| Level: | Intermediate |
| Total: | 6 hr 30 min |
| Active: | 1 hr 30 min |
| Yield: | 8 to 10 pieces of cake |
Ingredients
- 2 pints dulce de leche ice cream, softened
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, plus more for the pan
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup water
- 6 1/4-inch-thick fresh pineapple rings (1 left whole and the rest cut in half)
- 6 maraschino cherries, stemmed and halved
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 3/4 cup whole milk
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
- 1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup chopped dried pineapple
- 1/2 cup pineapple juice
- 2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
- Juice of 1/2 lemon
- 1/3 cup water
- Pinch of kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
Instructions
- Prepare the ice cream layer: Line a 9-inch round cake pan with plastic wrap. Spread the ice cream in the pan using an offset spatula to create a smooth, even layer. Freeze until very firm, about 2 hours.
- Make the pineapple topping: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter the sides of another 9-inch round cake pan. Stir the granulated sugar and water in a medium saucepan over medium heat until the sugar dissolves. Cook, gently swirling the pan but not stirring, until the mixture is light brown, 6 to 10 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and carefully whisk in the butter. Pour the caramel into the prepared cake pan, quickly swirling to coat the bottom before the caramel hardens (use a rubber spatula if needed to push the caramel to the edges). Lay the whole pineapple slice in the center of the caramel, then lay the remaining half slices around the whole slice, all facing the same direction. Place 1 maraschino cherry half cut-side up in the center of each slice.
- Make the cake: Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. Whisk the milk, sour cream and vanilla bean paste in a liquid measuring cup until smooth. Beat the butter and granulated sugar in a large bowl with a mixer on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until well combined. Reduce the speed to medium low and beat in the flour mixture in three additions, alternating with the milk mixture, until combined. Scrape the bowl with a rubber spatula, then increase the speed to medium high and beat 30 more seconds.
- Pour the batter over the pineapple topping in the pan and spread in an even layer. Bake until well browned and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 55 minutes to 1 hour. Run a knife around the cake to loosen, then transfer to a rack and let the cake cool in the pan, 30 minutes. Invert the cake onto the rack to cool completely.
- Meanwhile, make the pineapple compote: Combine the dried pineapple, pineapple juice, brown sugar, lemon juice, water and salt in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook until the pineapple is soft and the liquid is syrupy, 8 to 12 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla bean paste. Transfer the mixture to a food processor and pulse until the pineapple is finely chopped. Let cool.
- Assemble the cake: Clean the 9-inch round cake pan and line with plastic wrap, leaving a 2-inch overhang all around. Slice the cake in half horizontally with a long-serrated knife. Place the half without the pineapple cut-side up in the pan. Top with the pineapple compote and spread evenly. Unwrap the frozen ice cream disk and carefully place on top of the compote. Place the remaining cake half, pineapple-side up, on top of the ice cream. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze until firm, at least 4 hours or overnight. Remove the cake from the pan, using the plastic wrap to help; transfer to a platter. Let the cake sit at room temperature for 10 minutes before slicing.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 9 servings |
| Calories | 543 |
| Total Fat | 21 g |
| Saturated Fat | 13 g |
| Carbohydrates | 83 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 2 g |
| Sugar | 60 g |
| Protein | 7 g |
| Cholesterol | 103 mg |
| Sodium | 336 mg |
Reviews
Where to start…I saw this in the most recent copy of Food Network Magazine, and was so excited to make it for Father’s Day. It sounded so amazing! The criticism is in. I will lead with, it tastes good, but…
First, there are several problems with this recipe. The largest being suggested that all these layers, somehow magically fit back into one 9’’ cake pan. Absolutely impossible. You can even see in the picture how tall the finished cake is. I rarely bake, and my instinct to split the batter into 2 pans was strong, but I thought, “no, I’ll follow the recipe.” Bad decision, should have trusted my gut. Why the recipe says to try to cut a pineapple upside down cake in half horizontally is beyond me. Why not use 2 pans!? Most people who bake, have more than 1 round cake pan! And, it was so tedious to try to cut the cake in half, since the top half was sticky! My husband had to help me meticulous slide a thin cutting board between the 2 layers of cake so we could get the top off. It was so close to breaking the entire time.
Now, onto the height of the finished cake…I ended up having to assemble mine in a 10’’ spring form pan, that was a good 1.5’’ taller than the 9” cake pan. The final cake came 1/4’’ from the top. Clearly, too tall for the suggested pan.
“Caramel” topping surrounding the pineapple – way to much time, for poor results. The good old fashion way of brown sugar mixture around the pineapple would have been so much easier and better. I cooked the sauce as indicated, full time, plus a little more (gas range), and it clearly was too watery. We ended up having to faux brûlée the top of the cake with additional brown sugar under the broiler to get it more caramelized.
The pineapple compote, despite all the sugar, really didn’t do anything for the cake. Simple, crushed pineapple with brown sugar would have tasted more “real” and fresh. Too much time on making compote, for now extra pop.
So, we ate the cake last night, and it was a hit with adults and kids, but the time spent, with flavor outcome was not balanced. I will not make this cake again. It would be a million times easier to make a more classic pineapple upside down cake and layer with ice cream, if needed. I really just missed the simplicity of that good carmalized corner of my grandmas pineapple upside down cake.