Pineapple Upside-Down Cake Conundrum

Pineapple Upside-Down Cake can be perplexing: How do you balance the flavours of fruit and cake? What’s the best way to invert the finished cake? When should you stop “testing” it to make sure every bite is equally delicious?

While these questions may not have plagued us for centuries, they have at least crossed MY mind. Fortunately, I found answers. The solution was in creating single servings of the topsy-turvy cake in mason jars.

The individual serving size makes it easy to prepare, portion and present these sumptuous servings of sweet pineapple and almost savoury cake. The flavour of the cake offsets the pineapple with a hint of cardamom that gives a subtle tropical flavour.

Pineapple Upside-Down Cake In-A-Jar

Topping Ingredients:

4 TBS unsalted butter

3/4 cup light brown sugar

1 diced whole pineapple (or substitute canned tidbits)

Topping Method:

1. Grease the bottom and sides of six 250ml wide mouth mason jars with butter. Place on a lined baking sheet
2. Melt butter in a medium saucepan on medium heat
3. Add brown sugar, stir occasionally until the mixture is pale and foamy, about 3 to 4 minutes
4. Distribute evenly into the mason jars and arrange pineapple in a single layer, but tightly packed together

Cake Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (organic, if possible)

3 TBS cornmeal

1/2 tsp salt

8 TBS butter, softened – but still cool

1 cup granulated sugar, plus 2 TBS (for egg whites)

4 large eggs, separated – at room temperature

2 tsp vanilla

2/3 cup milk

Cake Method:

1. Pre-heat oven to 350
2. Whisk dry ingredients together
3. Cream butter in a mixer at medium speed
4. Add sugar gradually and continue beating until light and fluffy (about 2 minutes)
5. Beat in yolks and vanilla
6. Reduce to low speed and add dry ingredients and milk, alternating between the two (begin and end with dry ingredients)
7. Beat egg whites at low speed until frothy, then increase to med-high and beat to soft peaks
8. Gradually add the remaining 2 TBS of sugar, continue to beat to stiff peaks
9. Fold one quarter of the beaten egg whites into the batter
10. Then fold in the remaining egg whites
11. Distribute the batter evenly to mason jars
12. Bake until the top of the cakes is golden and an inserted toothpick comes out clean (about 20 minutes)
13. Let the cakes rest for 2 minutes then run a knife around the edge to loosen them, then individually invert the cake on plates
14. Garnish with maraschino cherries and mint sprigs
15. Serve and enjoy

The mason jars also make it a snap to save or share the individual cakes. Who do you know that loves cake in a jar?