Dad’s Miraculous Pineapple
Upside-Down Campfire Cake

Serves 10 to 12

Here’s the recipe for my dad’s amazing pineapple upside-down cake that you can make from the confines of your cozy CLK. No campfire needed!

b cup firmly packed light brown sugar

2 ounces unsalted butter, melted

3 cups fresh pineapple chunks, about

1 pineapple

¾ cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 pinch sea salt

6 ounces unsalted butter, room temperature

¾ cup sugar

4 eggs

1 Preheat the oven to 350°. Line the bottom of a round 8-inch cake pan with parchment paper and spray with cooking spray. In a small bowl, stir together the brown sugar and melted butter, and spread it evenly in the bottom of the pan. Arrange the pineapple chunks on top of the sugar tightly packing them in, but only a single layer.

2 Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl and set aside. Then use your whisk to beat the butter and sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy. The butter must be at room temperature to whip up easily. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition before adding the next.

3 Fold in the flour mixture by gently putting your spatula in the center of the bowl. Pull toward you and scrape the spatula along the bottom. When the spatula breaks the surface of the batter, turn the bowl about an inch, and start again. Each time you pull up and then drop the spatula back into the center, you will be folding in the flour to the batter. Only do this for about 90 seconds, or you will overmix the cake.

4 Carefully spoon the cake batter over the pineapple, and spread it out evenly, while disturbing the pineapple as little as possible.

5 Bake for 15 minutes. Then rotate the cake, reduce the heat to 300°, and continue baking for 1 hour or until the cake is golden brown on top and beginning to pull away from the sides of the pan.

6 Don’t allow the cake to cool for more than 5 minutes or it will not easily release from the pan. Run a knife around the sides of the pan to loosen the cake. Place a cake platter upside down over the cake pan. Using a towel to hold the hot cake pan, turn it upside down onto the platter. It’s ready to eat!