I really love Pineapple Upside-Down Cake but I don't think I've ever made a really good one that everyone enjoyed and devoured. Until today, that is. I found a recipe in a cookbook but as I can't follow directions, I changed it up to make this a truly Chelsea original.
2 tablespoons Butter - real, creamy, salted butter, no substitutions
1/3 cup Brown Sugar - loosely packed, add more or less depending on preference
2 tablespoons Water - straight from the tap
1 can DelMonte Tidbit Pineapple - let's face it, the name brands are always better than the store brands
1 package Pillsbury White Cake Mix - I imagine you could substitute any other cake mix but this is what I used and it was excellent
1 cup Pineapple Juice - drain the juice from the can, if it isn't enough top it off with water from the tap
1/4 cup Canola Oil - we're cutting down the oil but we can't cut it out
3 Eggs - the whole egg, if you please
4 ounces Cool Whip - softened and stirred into creamy goodness
12 Maraschino Cherries - we get ours at Costco already pitted, with the stems still on...beautiful
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Melt the butter in the bottom of a 9-inch round pan. This can be done right in the oven as it is heating up.
3. Remove the pan from the oven - be careful, it will be hot! Stir in the brown sugar and water.
4. Add the drained pineapple to the bottom of the pan. Spread it out evenly to completely cover the bottom.
5. In a separate bowl mix together the pineapple juice, oil, and eggs. Add the dry cake mix to the liquid. I like to hand stir this all together to keep the batter from getting over-beaten, which, as we all know, ruins a perfectly good cake.
6. Pour the cake mix over the pineapple. Note that we did not spray the sides of the pan with non-stick cooking spray. Don't worry, you'll still be able to remove the cake and this way the cake will grow up the sides and form a perfectly even dessert, no strange humps in the middle.
7. Bake the cake for at least 35 minutes. For some reason the pineapple juice reacts differently from water and will increase your baking time. Your cake may take even longer - mine took 40 minutes. Keep a toothpick handy to test the center. Do not remove the cake from the oven before it is baked all the way through.
8. Let the cake cool for a good 15 minutes on a wire rack or anything that elevates it and gets cool air underneath the pan.
9. Carefully run a knife along the edges of the cake to loosen the sides. Turn it out onto a pretty round platter. You may have to replace some straying tidbits of pineapple. Just lovingly put them where they belong and they will re-adhere themselves to the cake top.
10. Let the cake completely cool down another hour or so. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill it in the fridge overnight.
11. Just before serving, spread a layer of softened Cool Whip over the pineapple and top with the cherries.
12. Cut, serve, enjoy! And refrigerate any leftovers...but I promise there won't be any leftovers.
