It’s been a while since I’ve last baked in the kitchen. I had the baking bug recently and decided to make pineapple upside-down cupcakes. To be honest, I’ve never tried pineapple upside-down cake before! It’s my boyfriend’s favorite cake, so I thought, why not? I decided to make a cupcake version – easier to eat and share. The cupcakes turned out beautiful with a golden brown color and delicious with a wonderful brown sugar taste. Plus, I love the upside-down aspect of them. If you’re a fan of pineapple, this is the cake to try!
Pineapple Upside-Down Cupcakes Recipe (yields 24):
Ingredients for cake:
- 2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
- 1-1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
- 3 eggs
- 2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 cup sour cream
Directions for cake:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees
- Spray muffin pans with baking spray
- In medium bowl, whisk together dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, baking soda & salt
- In bowl of stand mixer, beat butter and sugars until light and fluffy
- Add eggs, one at a time, and beat until combined; add vanilla
- Add in half of the dry ingredients and mix, scraping sides of bowl
- Pour in sour cream and mix
- Add in the rest of the dry ingredients and mix until well combined
Ingredients for pineapple mixture:
- 1/2 stick unsalted butter, melted
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
- 2 (8 oz.) cans crushed pineapple, drained
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
- 12 maraschino cherries, cut in half
Directions for pineapple mixture:
- In large bowl, mix melted butter and brown sugar
- Add pineapple and walnuts; mix well
To assemble cupcakes:
- Place half of a maraschino cherry (cut side up) in the center of prepared muffin pan
- Spoon thin layer of pineapple mixture around the cherry
- Place a scoop of cake batter on top, fill to rim
- Bake for 20-22 minutes until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean
- Let cupcakes cool in pans for about 10 minutes
- Run a knife around the cupcakes in the pan and then invert onto wire rack.
Jamie’s tips for this recipe:
- Be sure to add the cake batter slowly into the muffin pan; otherwise, it might move the cherry off center.
- If you don’t like pineapple, the cake batter itself makes delicious plain cupcakes on its own without the pineapple mixture. I had a little extra batter remaining and baked mini ones (no pineapple) and they were scrumptious when cooked a little longer to well done.
- Add a scoop of ice cream for the perfect dessert!
Have you tried pineapple upside-down cake before?