12 February, 2014
whole wheat pineapple upside down cake
I’ve wanted to try an upside down cake for a long time, they look so good in pictures! Well, two challenges had to be worked out:
1. To cut a fresh pineapple with a circular core (I did not want to use canned pineapple).
2. To make a good looking cake that would hold together when turned upside down.
I was in luck to find fresh cut pineapple in the store, so I went right ahead. It took a few attempts to make this. My house has been smelling of pineapples for a few days now!
I use raw turbinado sugar which is the least processed form of cane sugar and hence healthier. It has a subtle molasses flavor and lends a nice brown color to the cake.
I took some tips for making caramel here
Preparation time: 30 minutes to prep batter, 40 minutes to bake.
Ingredients:
for caramel:
raw sugar- 5 tbsp.
water- 1 1/2 tbsp.
dry:
Whole wheat pastry flour- 1 1/3 cup
raw sugar- 1/2 cup (can use white sugar)
baking powder- 1 tsp.
baking soda- 1 tsp.
salt- 1/2 tsp.
pineapple slices- a few + small chunks for batter
dried cranberries- for decoration
wet:
unsweetened applesauce- 1/2 cup
canola oil- 1/2 cup
yogurt- 1/4 cup
Method:
1. Preheat oven to 350 °F. Line a 9″ round pan with parchment paper and arrange pineapple pieces with cranberries in the center.
2. Prepare caramel by heating on low, raw sugar and water till the sugar completely dissolves. Pour on top of the pineapples in the pan.
3. Combine dry ingredients (flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and soda) in a bowl, add wet ingredients (applesauce, oil and yogurt). Stir in pineapple chunks. Pour in the pan.
4. Bake for 40-45 minutes, till knife/toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
5. Insert a knife gently between the baked cake and the pan to loosen the particles that have stuck to the sides. Allow to cool for an hour before turning upside down. Slowly remove parchment paper.
18 thoughts on : whole wheat pineapple upside down cake
This looks gorgeous, Apsara!
thank you, Sonal!
Looks great Apsara. Didn’t know yogurt can be one of the ingredients in cake. What is it added for? Will try this recipe for sure.
Thanks, Shweta. Yogurt is for acid, usually. It combines with baking soda, a base to produce CO2 to produce fluffiness.
Got it – like how vinegar works in baking.
yes. I think there is also a role of the protein in curd, but not sure what.
So glad you made this whole wheat! And the pineapples look lovely.. like sunflowers actually! 🙂
thank you, Priya!
Pineapple Upside Down Cake is my all time favorite cake!!! This looks amazing! Celeste 🙂
thank you, Celeste!
I attempted a pineapple upside down cake which was a big fail…was too dense. Your cake looks tempting. Will try this!
sure, do let me know when you do. Thanks for visiting!
I always use this simple yet delicious recipe except instead of yogurt I use any dairy milk substitute mainly almond/soy, to make it vegan, and I’ve had wonderful results everytime!! As well as an extra can of pineapple chunks in the batter, makes it extra a+
thank you, Alexx
Hi I don’t have whole wheat pastry flour on hand, can I use regular whole wheat flour instead? Can someone please help really want to bake this cake….thanks in advance.
Yes, a good substitute for pastry flour is 50% whole wheat and 50% all purpose flour.
Do I have to use applesauce?
Hello! It is recommended to use applesauce, or any other fruit puree in its place