Lewis County Herald - Serving Hohenwald, Lewis County Tennessee Since 1898

I remember my college days, fumbling around in the kitchen without a clue how to cook. My boyfriend's mom at the time took me under her wing. Mrs. Sylvia was an amazing lady, and an incredible cook. She taught me how to make so many wonderful, southern recipes: chicken and dumplings, cherry pie, casseroles, and a Pineapple Upside Down Cake.

This recipe is always a crowd favorite. It seems that when you shrink things down to minis, people like them even more. Plus, everyone is sure to get a pineapple ring and a cherry.

Baker's tip: A pineapple ring won't fit into a regular-sized cupcake tin. You will need a jumbo cupcake tin for this recipe. They can be purchased on Amazon, or where most baking goods are sold. This recipe yields 12 jumbo cupcakes. Enjoy!

Ingredients

For the cake:

4 large eggs, at room temperature

1 and 1/4 cups granulated sugar

1/4 cup dark brown sugar, packed

1/2 cup pineapple juice

2 teaspoons rum (or pure vanilla extract)

1 and 1/2 cups all purpose flour

2 and 1/4 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons cornstarch

For the topping:

6 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 and 1/2 cups dark brown sugar (packed)

1 teaspoon rum (or vanilla extract)

1/8 teaspoon salt

12 pineapple rings

12 maraschino cherries

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees (F). Generously spray a 12-mold JUMBO muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray; set aside.

Crack the eggs into a large mixing bowl; whisk smooth. Add in the granulated sugar, brown sugar, and rum (or vanilla), and beat smooth. Stir in pineapple juice and set aside. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, and cornstarch. Gradually add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and whisk until just combined. Be sure not to over mix here! Set mixture aside while you make the topping.

For the topping:

In a small sauce pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add in the brown sugar, rum, and salt, and cook for 1 minute, whisking constantly. Remove from heat.

Spoon two tablespoons of the topping mixture into the bottom of each muffin tin; place a pineapple ring on top, then place a cherry in the middle of each pineapple ring. Divide the cake batter evenly among the prepared tins, fill each muffin tin 3/4 of the way full. Bake for 20-22 minutes, or until the tops are puffed and golden brown, and a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.

Remove from the oven and cool in pan for five minutes. Gently run a knife around the edge of each cake to help loosen any stuck bits, then gently place a wire cooling rack on top and quickly flip over. You may want to place the cooling rack on a large sheet pan before doing this, to help make it less messy. Serve cakes warm or at room temperature.

Notes:

Rum may be substituted with pure vanilla extract. Cakes are best eaten the day they are made, but may be stored in the fridge, in an airtight container, or on a plate covered tightly with plastic wrap, for up to 3 days.