Pineapple Upside Down Cake

It has almost been a year since I went to Hawaii with some girlfriends.  What a great trip!  A whole week of friends, the beach, bikinis, yummy food in the most scenic location.  We didn't do a ton of touristy things like sightseeing and going on tours.  It was a really relaxing and nice vacation.  Especially considering I don't get to see my really good friend, who I've been friends with since middle school, too often!  

My friend works at a hotel and won Employee of the Year, and got a free trip to any of their hotels.  She picked Maui, and I was just lucky enough to go with her!  The hotel had the best food.  I love breakfast food and this place did not disappoint.  The big buffet had so many different options of all the breakfast foods you could imagine with tropical twists, such as guava pancakes.  Yummy!  It was quite pricey, so we didn't eat there every morning.  Down by the pool and beach, they had a mini buffet that had pretty much the same stuff, but at the beach bar so it was about half the price.  So, after we would pick up clean towels for the day and reserve our chairs, we headed to breakfast.

This beach bar also had lunch, desserts and other snacks for during the day.  One of my favorite things was their Pineapple Upside Down Cake.  It's a very traditional dessert, but it was delicious and it probably didn't hurt that I was enjoying it in Hawaii.  

Ahhh... I wish I was still there!

Recently, I have been in the mood for Pineapple Upside Down Cake, so I made some and I want to share it with you!  

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

Ingredients:

• 2 oz. butter
• 6 oz. brown sugar
• 4 pineapple slices, canned
• about 6 maraschino cherries
• 4.25 oz. buttermilk
• 2.25 oz pineapple juice, from the can of pineapple slices
• 2.5 oz. vegetable oil
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 3 eggs
• 8 oz. cake flour
• 5 oz. sugar
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• pinch nutmeg
• 1.5 oz. shredded coconut

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Melt butter and brown sugar in an 8 inch deep cake pan over the stove.  (pictured below)
3. Once melted, pull off heat (be careful... it may be hot!) and arrange pineapple slices and cherries in desired pattern.  Set aside.
4. In medium bowl, combine buttermilk, pineapple juice, oil, vanilla and eggs.
5. In large bowl, sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and nutmeg.  
6. Pour the wet mixture into the dry and whisk until combined.  Mix in coconut.
7. CAREFULLY pour batter over fruit.  Caution:  fruit may shift a little when you add the batter. 
8. Bake for 35 minutes or until a knife comes out clean.  
9. Cool 30 minutes before flipping upside down. 
10. Use spatula to loosen edges before turning onto a cake plate.
11. Enjoy warm or at room temperature.  

Place the cake pan right on the stove.  Doesn't matter if its an electric or gas stove.  Just make sure you don't touch the sides without checking to see if its hot!

I didn't spray the pan with nonstick spray first because the brown sugar and butter mixture will keep the cake from sticking.  

All done, waiting to be flipped!

My center cherries shifted a bit, but what can you do?!  No use crying over shifted cherries!

This is a very classic "upside down cake".  You can make this with plenty of different fruit.  Apples, peaches, blueberries just to name a few!  

Enjoy!!  

Banana Chocolate Chip Cake

I don't know about you... but bananas and chocolate is one of my favorite combinations!!  

One of my favorite places to get dessert is the Melting Pot.  I always get the Flaming Turtle chocolate fondue and out of all the yummy dippers they give you, bananas are probably in my top 2 favorites!  I also love the cheesecake, and that's where the icing comes in!

So, a couple summers ago I was babysitting some kids and we wanted to make a dessert.  And this is what we made!  Banana Chocolate Chip bars!!  So yummy!  But it needed a little something extra.  This time, I decided I would make a frosting for the top.  What's better than Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting?!  I am a big lover of making Cream Cheese Frosting.  It is so delicious and easy to make!  

Banana Chocolate Chip Cake

Ingredient:

• 3/4 cup butter, softened to room temperature
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 2/3 cup brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 2-3 mashed bananas
• 2 tsp. vanilla
• 2 cups flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 6 oz. chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Cream the butter, sugar and brown sugar in a mixer or using a hand mixer.
3. Add the egg, vanilla and bananas and mix until combined.  *I simply put the banana in my hands and squeeze it until it is mashed up.  There is a picture of this below.
4. Add the flour, baking powder and salt and mix until just combined.
5. Stir in the chocolate chips.
6. Spray a 13x9 baking dish with a non stick spray.
7. Pour the mixture into the pan and spread out.
8. Bake for approximately 30 minutes, or until a knife comes out clean.

Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients:

• 1 8oz. package of cream cheese, softened to room temp.
• 4 oz. butter (1 stick), softened at room temp.
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1/3 cup cocoa, I used Double Dutch Dark Cocoa, but you can use any kind.
• 1 tbsp. vanilla

Directions:

1. In bowl, mix cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy. 
2. Add powdered sugar, cocoa and vanilla, and mix slowly at first until everything is incorporated.  
3. Then, mix on high for a couple minutes until the frosting is completely combined and light and fluffy.
4. Spread on a completely cooled cake and enjoy!

Butter and sugars light and fluffy.  

Green eggs from my Mom's chickens!  (They are a brighter green in person, but for some reason they look really light in this picture... I don't know!)

Mashing the bananas in my hand.

Chocolate chips I used.

Butter and cream cheese for frosting.

Mmm... this frosting is SO good!

I served the cake with vanilla ice cream, a cold glass of milk, sliced bananas and some chocolate chips!  

Let me know if you love this recipe as much as I do!!  

I may go have a slice right now!  :-)

Rose Cake

I just got back from my honeymoon in St. Lucia.  What an amazing place to visit!  I have a special post that I am going to do about all the desserts I ate while I was there, but that is for another day.  I am totally exhausted with unpacking and laundry.  It was a LONG travel day yesterday!  And now, the Pittsburgh Steelers game is on.  Enough said!

So anyways, for now... here are some pictures of a cake I made before I left.  Hope you enjoy!

Be sure to check back soon for my St. Lucia post!  Then, I will be starting my Christmas posts soon!  I will of course be making some Christmas cookies, but am also going to do a series of edible gifts that you can give to your family, friends and coworkers for the holiday season.  I have LOTS to share with you!

Every year, I make gift baskets for my family holding lots of goodies.  I am continually searching for new and exciting gifts.  I mean... my family probably does not want the same thing every year!  Although I do have a few things that are ALWAYS in my baskets!  Stay tuned for more!  I am very excited about this... I hope you are too!