Friday, August 14, 2009

Pineapple Upside-Down Cake, a vacation from Gluten-Free living!

I was instructed to start eating gluten again in prep for a biopsy. I took full advantage! This is one awesome pineapple upside-down cake, courtesy of Cooks Illustrated. I love this recipe, it's an all-time favorite of mine.

After simmering the sugar and pineapples, collect the pineapple juice
















Then cook the juice some more and then add a little butter to form the caramel topping















Pour the caramel in the prepared pan and set aside.















Get ready to put the pineapple in the pan!















Ta da! The pineapple topping is ready.















Cake batter... yum















Drop the cake batter onto the pineapple and carefully spread so that you don't disrupt the topping.















Ready to bake















Golden brown- done cooking!















Carefully, put a plate on top of the cake pan and invert. Remove the cake pan. I used a knife before inverting to loosen the sides of the cake.















Recipe, from Cooks Illustrated

Pineapple Topping
1 medium fresh pineapple (about 4 pounds), prepared according to illustrations below (about 4 cups prepared fruit)
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar (7 ounces)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Cake
1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (7 1/2 ounces)
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon table salt
8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick), softened but still cool
3/4 cup granulated sugar (5 1/4 ounces)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs at room temperature
1 egg white at room temperature
1/3 cup whole milk at room temperature

1. Lightly spray 9-inch round, 2-inch deep cake pan with nonstick cooking spray; set aside.

2. For the pineapple topping: Combine pineapple and brown sugar in 10-inch skillet; cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally during first 5 minutes, until pineapple is translucent and has light brown hue, 15 to 18 minutes. Empty fruit and juices into mesh strainer or colander set over medium bowl. Return juices to skillet, leaving pineapple in strainer (you should have about 2 cups cooked fruit). Simmer juices over medium heat until thickened, beginning to darken, and mixture forms large bubbles, 6 to 8 minutes, adding any more juices released by fruit to skillet after about 4 minutes. Off heat, whisk in butter and vanilla; pour caramel mixture into prepared cake pan. Set aside while preparing cake. (Pineapple will continue to release liquid as it sits; do not add this liquid to already-reduced juice mixture.)

3. For the cake: Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt in medium bowl; set aside.

4. In bowl of standing mixer fitted with flat beater, cream butter and sugar at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes. Reduce speed to medium, add vanilla, and beat to combine; one at a time, add whole eggs then egg white, beating well and scraping down bowl after each addition. Reduce speed to low; add about one-third of flour mixture and beat until incorporated. Add half of milk and beat until incorporated; repeat, adding half of remaining flour mixture and remaining milk, and finish with remaining flour. Give final stir with rubber spatula, scraping bottom and sides of bowl to ensure that batter is combined. Batter will be thick.

5. To bake: Working quickly, distribute cooked pineapple in cake pan in even layer, gently pressing fruit into caramel. Using rubber spatula, drop mounds of batter over fruit, then spread batter over fruit and to sides of pan. Tap pan lightly against work surface to release any air bubbles. Bake until cake is golden brown and toothpick inserted into center of cake comes out clean, 45 to 50 minutes. Cool 10 minutes on wire rack, then place inverted serving platter over cake pan. Invert cake pan and platter together; lift off cake pan. Cool to room temperature, about 2 hours; then cut into pieces and serve.

To Prepare pineapple:
1. Slice 1 inch off top and bottom. Standing pineapple on one end, cut off strips of skin from top to bottom.
2. Quarter pineapple lengthwise. Place each quarter on its side and cut out light-colored piece of core.
3. Cut pineapple lengthwise into 3/4-inch strips. Turn 90 degrees and cut crosswise into 1/2-inch pieces, (or dice as recipe instructs).

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