Everyone – and I mean everyone – can have a go at this super-simple cake. It’s such a fun thing to make, and everyone will love it. If you fancy, give it a cheeky little twist by adding a couple of tablespoons of dark rum to the caramel sauce when mixing in the vanilla. Cook off the alcohol for a couple of minutes, and you’ll be left with a wicked boozy taste.
Pineapple upside-down cake
This cake is best served warm with a little double cream, ice-cream or custard.
Serves 8
Prep 25 min
Cook 1 hr
100g unsalted butter
140g light muscovado sugar
1 tsp vanilla bean paste
Large (435g) tin pineapple slices, in natural juice
For the cake
250g plain flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp fine sea salt
½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground ginger
½ tsp ground clove
150g golden caster sugar
150g light brown sugar
3 large eggs
130g unsalted butter
75ml soured cream
75ml buttermilk
Heat the oven to 180C (160C fan)/350F/gas 4. Grease and line a deep, 23cm cake tin.
To make the caramel, melt the butter and sugar in a saucepan over a medium heat, until the sugar has dissolved. Stir in the vanilla bean paste, then pour the caramel over the base of the prepared cake tin and smooth so you have an even layer.
Drain the tinned pineapple and, working from the outside in, arrange the rings on top of the caramel. If you have any left over, cut them and use to fill any gaps.
Put all the cake ingredients in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric whisk or a stand mixer with a beater attachment on a low speed until smooth. Pour the batter over the pineapple and level with a spatula. Bake for an hour, then leave to cool in the tin for 15 minutes.
Now it’s time for the moment of truth: the flip. Put a large plate over the tin, quickly flip the tin and plate upside down, and tip the cake out on to the plate. Slice and serve warm.
