Chef John's Pineapple Upside-Down Cake Recipe

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Most Helpful Positive Review

Mar 20, 2012

UNBELIEVABLE!! This cake is absolutely amazing and so easy to make. It was gone in 10 minutes at my house. Very earthy and fulfilling. I'll be making this again and again...It is "The perfect desert"

—Robert Reece

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Most Helpful Critical Review

Mar 28, 2012

Sorry- I thought the cake was dry. There are other recipes I find much more moist and have more flavour. The cardamom did not add the "special" element I thought it would.

—Eliza

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51 Ratings

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Mar 20, 2012

So I watched the video of this recipe that was posted on the home page, and decided to try it...Had to improvise a bit (apologies to you review purists) used Capt. Morgans spiced rum and had no pineapple juice since I used pre-sliced fresh pineapple in a plastic container and it had a little sponge on the bottom which stole all the juice. Subbed OJ. Subbed a few dashes of cinnamon and nutmeg for cardamom (personal preference). My skillet was a bit larger than 12 inches, so my batter just barely covered the pineapple and cooked up in about 20-25 minutes. Very tasty - very buttery

—SJRJA

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Mar 20, 2012

I was surprised by this, because I expected the dough to be liquidy, as usual for cake. The dough was actually very thick, almost knead-able, even after I added a splash more of milk to try and loosen it up a little. But, I gamely spread the dough on the fruit-and-sugar in the skillet, and baked it... and it came out DELICIOUS. As a note, I used coconut sugar in place of the brown sugar in the topping, and a third of a cup of agave instead of the half cup of sugar in the cake itself. Worked just fine.

—jjtraw

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Apr 08, 2012

I was looking so forward to trying this recipe I even bought a cast-iron skillet! I don't know if I did something wrong (I can't see that I did), but it was disappointing. It looked pretty, just like the photo, but the cake was dry and didn't have much flavor.

—slross

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Apr 12, 2012

Great, reminds me of my mom's cast iron pineapple upside down cake. Only difference I have made in recipe is to use canned unsweetened pineapple slices with a maraschino cherry placed in the center of the slices and Splenda brown sugar blend for brown sugar. Also do not have cardamon and used dash of cinnamon. Great recipe Chef John!

—gobomel

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Apr 23, 2012

What no cayenne? Have not made yet just surprised to see Chef John and no cayenne pepper. i will updated tonight when i make it ****UPdate***This was a great cake, i only gave it 4 stars because i think i wanted a little more cake, i will make again i think that i will double the cake part. the cardamom was a nice flavor and went well with the brown sugar and pineapple. I ment to add some pineapple juice to the batter but forgot thank you chef john

—mommietotwo

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Apr 20, 2012

This was quite good, but I'm sorry to say that I likes the box mix version my brother made for me better. He used a yellow cake mix (substituting applesauce for the oil - cake was really moist - but of course with a brown sugar & butter topping it still wasn't low fat). The fresh ingredients worked fine, but it was on the dense side as most scratch cakes are.

—WB

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Nutrition

Calories
263 kcal
13%

Carbohydrates
35.9 g
12%

Cholesterol
49 mg
16%

Fat
12.3 g
19%

Fiber
0.6 g
2%

Protein
2.7 g
5%

Sodium
274 mg
11%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Nutritional Information

Chef John's Pineapple Upside-Down Cake

Serving Size: 1/12 of a recipe
Servings Per Recipe: 12
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 263
Calories from Fat: 111

% Daily Value *
Total Fat 12.3g 19 %
Saturated Fat 7.6g 38 %
Cholesterol 49mg 16 %
Sodium 274mg 11 %
Potassium 72mg 2 %
Total Carbohydrates 35.9g 12 %
Dietary Fiber 0.6g 2 %
Protein 2.7g 5 %
** Sugars 23.3g
Vitamin A 8 %
Vitamin C 8 %
Calcium 10 %
Iron 10 %
Thiamin 14 %
Niacin 12 %
Vitamin B6 2 %
Magnesium 3 %
** Folate 19 %

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
** Nutrient information is not available for all ingredients. Amount is based on available nutrient data.
(-) Information is not currently available for this nutrient. If you are following a medically restrictive diet, please consult your doctor or registered dietitian before preparing this recipe for personal consumption.