Pineapple Upsidedown Cake

(You'll need a round cake pan, at least 8 1⁄4 “, 9” is better)

Cake:

1 1⁄2 cups cake flour or 1 1⁄4 cups all purpose flour 

1 cup sugar

1 1⁄2 teaspoons baking powder

1⁄2 teaspoon salt

3⁄4 cup milk

1/3 cup shortening

1 egg

1 1⁄2 teaspoon vanilla

Topping:

1 large can of pineapple slices 5 tablespoons salted butter

1⁄2 cup brown sugar, packed

Optional:  Maraschino cherry - for center top of cake

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Cut up butter into squares in the cake pan and put it into the oven just until it is melted. Remove from oven.

Sprinkle 1⁄2 cup of packed brown sugar evenly over the melted butter in the cake pan. Put one complete pineapple circle in the center of the pan. Cut other slices in half and spread around the circle, fitting as many as possible. If you wish, cut remaining pineapple circles into pieces and fit into the “holes” and add cherry to center.

Measure all ingredients into a large mixing bowl. Blend 1⁄2 minute on low speed, scraping bowl often. Then beat 3 minutes on high speed.

Gently pour cake mixture over pineapples and spread around. Leave a bit of an indentation in the center so that the cake lays flat after being cooked.

Bake for about 40 minutes or until pick inserted in the center comes out clean (or crumbly). Remove from oven. Let cool for about 10 minutes and then run a knife around the edges and invert onto plate. You may have pineapples stick to the cake pan. Just shovel them out and replace on cake.

-Angela Plagge