This pineapple upside down cake is soft and buttery with a caramelized brown sugar pineapple & cherry topping. Its juices seep down into the cake, adding even more luscious flavor and texture. A classic favorite using canned pineapple and maraschino cherries, this retro cake is served upside down and perfect any time of year.
I love learning in the kitchen and I’m always working hard to improve my skill. With constant practice comes the opportunity to bring you the best recipes I can. This is an exciting post!
Improved Pineapple Upside Down Cake Recipe – Read the Difference
I developed and published a pineapple upside down cake recipe several years ago. It’s certainly loved by many, but the cake is prone to overflowing because there’s quite a lot of batter. Additionally, it can taste overly wet and the instructions were never written very clearly. As a cookbook author and baker, I’ve certainly improved my craft over the years!
My improved pineapple upside down cake recipe, written below, is much softer than my original. Using creamed butter instead of melted, cake flour instead of all-purpose flour, all white sugar instead of brown sugar + white, and using egg whites guarantees a huge textural difference. I adapted it from my white cake. My new recipe doesn’t yield as much cake batter, so we don’t have to worry about overflowing.
The pineapple cherry topping remains the same. You don’t mess with perfection. 😉
- Old Cake Recipe (in notes below): Overly heavy, wet, overflowed
- New Cake Recipe (below): Softer, pleasantly moist, reduced amount of batter
We’re using the same ingredients in my updated cake batter just in different forms, ratios, and amounts. Baking is truly a science and I’m happy to continue to deliver you well tested and improved recipes!
Key Ingredients You Need
- Cake Flour: Lighter than all-purpose flour, cake flour produces a soft crumb.
- Baking Powder & Baking Soda: The two add plenty of lift under the heavy topping.
- Salt: Balances the sweetness.
- Butter: Instead of melted butter, use 6 Tablespoons of softened butter. (Not the whole stick, though you do need more for the topping.) Creaming butter and sugar guarantees a buttery soft crumb. It’s how I prepare my vanilla cupcakes, too.
- Sugar: White granulated sugar sweetens and tenderizes the cake. There’s brown sugar in the topping to provide essential flavor!
- Egg Whites: Don’t let yolks weigh down a cake that’s already weighed down by the fruit topping. After all my recipe testing, I now swear by just egg whites here. So there’s no waste, here are my recipes using egg yolks.
- Vanilla Extract: Flavor.
- Sour Cream: Along with cake flour and egg whites, sour cream promises a tender cake crumb. Plain yogurt works in a pinch.
- Pineapple Juice & Milk: Liquid is key in most cakes because it thins out the batter. You typically make pineapple upside down cake with canned pineapple, so use some of the liquid in the can for the cake batter.
I appreciate that the cake, in general, is smaller and not as overwhelming just like this apple upside down cake. Both are great options for smaller gatherings for Easter and other holidays. See more Easter brunch recipes and Easter dessert recipes.
Pineapple Upside Down Cake Topping
I didn’t change my original topping recipe. Sticking with tradition, the topping includes canned pineapple rings, maraschino cherries, butter, and brown sugar. I always use 10 pineapple rings (some are halved for the sides), which is one 20 ounce can. Feel free to use fresh pineapple and cherries. Canned pineapple chunks will be a little messy and could spill down the sides when you invert the cake, so proceed with caution.
- My #1 Tip for the Topping: Blot the wet pineapples and maraschino cherries before using. The more liquid in the fruit, the more liquid that won’t “set.” Excess liquid creates an unpleasantly wet cake.
I know you’ll appreciate this too: pineapple upside down cake is basically already frosted. There’s no extra decoration required; the garnish is literally baked into the cake!
Overview: How to Make the Best Pineapple Upside Down Cake
This classic pineapple upside down cake is buttery rich and the sweet fruit topping is downright irresistible. Let me walk you through each step so you understand the process.
- Prepare the topping: Melt the butter, pour into an un-greased cake pan or pie dish, sprinkle with brown sugar, then arrange the blotted pineapple rings and maraschino cherries as you see in my photos and video tutorial. I always refrigerate the topping as I prepare the cake batter—this helps solidify the designed arrangement underneath the wet cake batter.
- Prepare the cake batter: Whisk the dry ingredients together. In a separate bowl, cream the butter and sugar together. Beat in the egg whites and vanilla, then the sour cream. Pour the dry into the wet ingredients, pour in the pineapple juice & milk, and then beat to combine. You’ll have about 2 cups of cake batter and it’s very straightforward to prepare.
- Spread over topping: Pour and spread the cake batter over the chilled topping.
- Bake: Because of the wet bottom layer (which is the topping), the cake takes much longer than a typical 1 layer cake. Its juices will bubble up the sides, creating these incredible caramelized edges. (They’re so good!) With upside down cakes, it’s always good practice to place a baking pan or sheet on a lower rack to catch any juices should they splatter over the edges.
- Cool: Cool the cake for 20 minutes before inverting onto a serving plate. Inverting any sooner will create a seeping mess—we want the topping to “set” as much as it can. You can serve this cake warm, though it slices much better if you let it cool completely at room temperature first.
Expect a Dense Cake
I’ve been making pineapple upside down cake since I could hold a spatula. I’ve made hundreds of versions, or so it seems, and I say with 100% certainty that this cake will always be on the denser side. (Unless you are using store-bought cake mix.) You see, the cake is served upside down. The weight of the topping, which is the bottom of the cake as it bakes, weighs down the crumb beneath it. Pineapple upside down cake will never be as light and airy as white cake. If you were to make this exact cake batter and serve it right-side-up, the cake would taste much airier.
Does that make sense?
I know you’ll love its unique texture, especially paired with the brown sugar caramelized fruit topping. Let me know how you like it!
PrintPineapple Upside Down Cake
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes
- Yield: serves 8-10
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Updated in 2020, this is my favorite recipe for traditional pineapple upside down cake. For best success, read the recipe and recipe notes before beginning.
Ingredients
Topping
- 1/4 cup (4 Tbsp; 56g) unsalted butter, melted
- 1/2 cup (100g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 8–10 pineapple slices (see note)*
- 15–20 maraschino cherries (see note)*
Cake
- 1 and 1/2 cups (177g) cake flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 6 Tablespoons (85g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar
- 2 large egg whites, at room temperature
- 1/3 cup (80g) sour cream, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup (60ml) pineapple juice, at room temperature (use leftover from can)
- 2 Tablespoons (30ml) milk, at room temperature
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C).
- Prepare topping first: Pour 1/4 cup melted butter into an ungreased 9×2 inch pie dish or round cake pan. (Make sure the pan is 2 inches deep. I recommend this pie dish, which is 1.8 inches deep but I never have an overflow issue.) Sprinkle brown sugar evenly over butter. Blot any excess liquid off the fruit with a clean towel or paper towel. (The wetter the fruit, the more likely the cake could overflow or the topping could seep over the sides when inverted.) Arrange about 6-7 blotted pineapple slices and all the cherries on top of the brown sugar. I like to halve 3 pineapple rings and arrange them around the sides of the pan, too. See my photo and video above for a visual of the arranged topping. Place pan in the refrigerator for a few minutes as you prepare the cake batter. This helps solidify or “set” the topping’s arrangement.
- Make the cake batter: Whisk the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together. Set aside.
- Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment, beat the butter on high speed until smooth and creamy, about 1 minute. Add the sugar and beat on high speed until creamed together, about 1 minute. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. On high speed, beat in the egg whites until combined, then beat in the sour cream and vanilla extract. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl as needed. Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Turn the mixer onto low speed and as the mixer runs, slowly pour in the pineapple juice and milk. Beat on low speed just until all of the ingredients are combined. Do not over-mix. You may need to whisk it all by hand to make sure there are no lumps at the bottom of the bowl. The batter will be slightly thick.
- Remove topping from the refrigerator. Pour and spread cake batter evenly over topping.
- Bake for 43-48 minutes, tenting foil on top of the cake halfway through bake time to prevent the top from over-browning before the center has a chance to fully cook. The cake is done when a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out mostly clean—a couple moist crumbs are OK. Don’t be alarmed if your cake takes longer or if the cake rises up and sticks to the foil. (We serve the cake upside down anyway!)
- Remove cake from the oven and cool on a wire rack for just 20 minutes. Invert the slightly cooled cake onto a cake stand or serving plate. Some of the juices from the topping will seep over the sides—that’s ok. You can slice and serve the cake warm, but the slices will be messy. I find it’s best to cool the cake completely at room temperature before slicing and serving. Do not refrigerate the cake to speed up the cooling process because it could end up tasting overly dense.
- Cover leftover slices and store for up to 3 days in the refrigerator or 3 months in the freezer. Thaw at room temperature. I don’t recommend freezing the cake as a whole because the topping arrangement doesn’t thaw very nicely. See make ahead instructions below.
Notes
- Make Ahead Instructions: You can refrigerate the topping in step 2 for up to 1 day. If refrigerating for longer than 1 hour, cover it tightly. Other than that, this isn’t the best cake to make ahead of time or freeze because the pineapples will settle down into the cake—while still tasty, the presentation won’t be as pleasing. You can, however, prepare the wet ingredients (cover and refrigerate) and dry ingredients (cover at room temperature) separately up to 1 day ahead of time, then continue with the recipe the next day. Let the wet ingredients come to room temperature before mixing.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 9-inch Pie Dish or 9-inch Round Cake Pan | Glass Mixing Bowl | Whisk | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Cooling Rack
- Old Recipe: The current cake batter recipe was updated in 2020. If you loved the old cake batter recipe, originally published in 2014, here it is: The topping recipe is the same. Prepare the recipe above through step 2. For the cake batter, whisk 1 and 2/3 cups (210g) all-purpose flour, 1/2 teaspoon baking powder, 1/4 teaspoon baking soda, and 1/2 teaspoon salt together. In a separate bowl, whisk 1/2 cup (115g) melted unsalted butter, 3/4 cup (150g) packed light brown sugar, 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar, 1 large egg, 1/4 cup (60g) yogurt or sour cream, 1/2 cup (120ml) milk, 1/4 cup (60ml) pineapple juice, and 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract together. Whisk wet and dry ingredients together until smooth. Continue with step 5 in the recipe above.
- Pineapple & Cherries: Traditional recipes use canned pineapple and maraschino cherries. I recommend 1 20 ounce can of pineapple rings/slices, which usually holds 10 rings/slices. You can use fresh pineapple rings/slices and fresh cherries if desired. If using fresh cherries, I recommend halving them. Blot excess liquid off the fresh fruit just as I instruct in step 2. Fresh or canned pineapple chunks, tidbits, and/or crushed pineapple will create a messy topping that could spill over the sides when the cake is inverted. I recommend rings/slices because they are larger.
- Sour Cream & Milk: Full fat sour cream and whole milk are strongly recommended for the best taste and texture. A full fat plain yogurt would work instead of the sour cream, though the cake may not taste as tender. Same goes with a lower fat or nondairy milk.
- Why is everything at room temperature? All refrigerated items should be at room temperature so the batter mixes together easily and evenly. Read more about why room temperature ingredients are important.
Trying this recipe for my mother in law’s birthday…where could I find a dish like the one pictured to bake the cake in?
I’ve tried the hyperlink you created but it wouldn’t work. I have a couple glass pie dishes I think will work just fine. Thank you though.
Hi Mysti! We linked to the one we used in step 2 of the recipe – it’s a 9.5 inch Pyrex glass pie dish. Hope the cake is a hit!
For all readers, using a Wilton scalloped pan for this makes the most beautiful cake. I had gotten the pan when I was making wedding cakes years ago and decided to use it for the pineapple upside down, you’ll be super happy with the presentation!
I made this recipe this weekend for Valentine’s as it’s my husband’s favorite. The cake turned out lovely! Moist and had a great flavor. Although I love pineapple never used to like this cake so much because l used to find the cake a bit dry but this one had perfect texture. The only reason l didn’t give it a 5 was because the top cracked. I went back over all the steps to see what could have caused it and realized that it was likely due to the fact that l used the convection setting so the cake did not rise evenly and probably could not stand the weight of the topping but it baked in 30mins. Will be keeping this recipe to use again so thanks Sally.
To date, all recipes I’ve tried on this website have been superb! The pineapple upside cake I chose to bake for my husband’s birthday, however, was not so. For starters, I used the recommended size pie pan and had liquid overflow onto the bottom of my oven. This obviously occurred while the cake was baking and emitted a terrible odor the entire time. The very center of the cake required an additional 5 minutes of bake time due to being very runny. Following the cooling, inverting, and additional cooling directions, the cake did look beautiful. Sadly, the taste was not great. There was a clear separation in taste between the light layer of pineapple brown sugar topping and the cake itself; leaving us wanted more pineapple and brown sugar. The cake itself lacked flavor and was pretty bland. I can vividly recall the taste of my mother’s pineapple upside down cake – the moist, densely flavored cake oozing with pineapple and brown sugar goodness. This cake doesn’t follow that tradition.
I would highly encourage you to give the old recipe (at the bottom of this page) a try. The new one isn’t good at all but the old one is superb.
Just baked this and it turned out perfectly. I missed the instructions about where to add the milk so it got mixed in with the sour cream which was totally ok! I might use a little less sugar next time but that’s my personal taste. Such a light cake and not difficult at all to make. Thanks for the great recipe.
I just made the new version and the taste is delicious, but I found the cake itself to be very dry. I might like your older version better. I’ve always made my mother-in-law’s recipe, but thought I’d try something different.
Can I substitute dark sweet cherries? I have a 15 oz can (in heavy syrup) leftover from baking your Black Forest Cake.
Hi Jill, that shouldn’t be a problem.
Made this for the first time and it was a SUCCESS! Thank you for your detailed instructions!
Hi Sally! Do you have a recommendation for making a half recipe? I don’t have any 9″ pans that are 2″, I have other options that are smaller but not sure which one to try. I don’t want to go to a double recipe because I don’t think it will freeze well and I don’t want to eat a whole 9×13 alone. I’ve read many comments where commenters say they used half the recipe or a smaller pan, but I didn’t see any comments with your thoughts. Thanks!
Hi Eli, halving the recipe would be the perfect amount of batter for a 6 inch pan (with 2 inch sides). Let us know if you give it a try!
Can I double the recipe? I want to increase the overall height of the cake, the top remains the same.
I made this tonight and it was fantastic (and very easy). Does anyone have any ideas for how to make the caramel topping a little crunchy or slightly gooey? Every time I do this cake the topping almost seeps into the cake. I remember as a child the topping being more of a pronounced element. I think my mother may have cooked the butter and brown sugar a bit first in the cake pan. Would this make a difference? Any tips welcomed!
Hi Torrey,
It doesn’t look like anyone replied to this so I thought as a fellow baker that I could chime in. I’ve read around the internet and old cook books and have baked different pineapple upside down cake recipes. One “traditional” recipe that I’ve used and really liked – I don’t recall the website – called for cooking the butter and brown sugar first using a cast iron skillet and then adding the pineapples to the hot pan and letting them cook a little before adding the cake batter and then baking it all together in the cast iron skillet (or any oven proof skillet) and it turned out great! Hopefully that’s a helpful tip.
What made you change the batter recipe? Just curious. I loved the old one. Trying the new one today.
Wondering the same! How did you make out with the new recipe? Old recipe is nearly perfect (I just subbed brown sugar for white and went a little generous with yogurt and pineapple juice). New recipe isn’t good – I made this cake again last year and was thinking that the ingredients didn’t seem the same, and the cake turned out so mealy and dry. I had been really disappointed and confused. Just now noticed that the recipe was “updated”. For anyone reading this, USE THE OLD RECIPE! (And thanks for it, Sally!)
I liked both honestly. The old recipe was a dense cake and I always had way too much batter but I loved the density of the cake. I loved how the crust was and everything about it. This new cake was so light almost like a sponge or angel food cake. I liked it as well but I definitely liked the older recipe better.
Thank you so much for this recipe <33 I'm in college and just getting started with baking, but this cake turned out so beautiful and delicious! My sister usually doesn't like cake at all but she ate every bite of this one! I'll definitely make it again:)
Best pineapple upside down cake recipe we’ve tried. My wife’s favorite, so there’s been many. My advice is to use real cake flour and not the optional cake flour substitute.
I must be the one baker disappointed with this pineapple upside down cake recipe. The cake batter is definitely lighter, less moist, but lacks the full flavour of a luscious cake. I prefer my pineapple upside down cake to be deliciously ladened with whole eggs and pineapple juice. It should melt in your mouth! This updated recipe falls short.
Thanks For Sharing this Amazing Recipe. My Family Loved It. I will be sharing this Recipe with my Friends. Hope They will like it.
Sally… you never fail us! You are our go-to for any baking and we have been doing a lot of baking this last year. We had a fresh pineapple on the counter and a birthday to celebrate today. The only changes I made were baking it in 9in cast iron (per another recommendation) and we used blueberries instead of cherries (suggestion of my 5 year old). This was the perfect size and delicious… not too sweet.
Excellent recipe.
I added a half teaspoon of almond extract and added back in one egg yolk. Gave it a lighter French gateau kind of taste. It was so amazing.
Awesome recipe! It said to expect a dense cake but mine was actually quite fluffy! My husband said it’ll be his new birthday request 🙂
I made this with gluten free flour for our celiac son and was A+
Turned out so well, there was no leftovers!
Hi Sally, made this today. I am a big fan and have made many of your recipes and they always turn out great.
I had problems today. And I wonder what I did wrong. I followed all instructions exactly and baked my cake for 50 mins and the toothpick cane out clean. Cooled for 20 min on rack, inverted and it came out perfectly onto my cake plate. The center appears to be not cooked. Liquidy batter. I don’t know if I can save it now. Popped it back onto the pie dish and returned to oven to bake more. But the center is all sunken. Any ideas on where I went wrong? I guess it just wasn’t done even though the toothpick was clean?? Thanks
Hi Carol, thank you so much for giving this recipe a try! Sounds like the cake just wasn’t baked through yet. Sometimes when doing the toothpick test, crumbs will get stuck under the slightly harder “crust” on top of the cake. The toothpick will appear to come out clean, but the cake really isn’t done yet. To keep this from happening in the future, try wiggling it around a bit to make a slightly larger hole than the toothpick, then pulling out to see if there’s any crumbs. Hope that helps!
Loved the recipe!!! Super easy to make, I reccomend watching the video beforehand as it helps visualize each step. Moist and fruity cake, it was great!
Pineapple upside down cake is one of my favourite. I like to bake it and eat it too. My family loves my cakes. Your recipe solved all the issues I was having with my recipe. Thank you so much.
This was excellent. Easily the best and fun to make too! Subbing part of the milk for pineapple juice was a great suggestion, and it lent the perfect touch of pineapple flavor to the cake itself. My fiancé and I had a retro tiki-themed holiday celebration (because why not?) with just the two of us, and this was the centerpiece. What a festive and delicious cake!
Wow I got sooooo happy when i figured out that this did not need a skillet! This recipe got me sooooo happy to try and it came out perfect!!! Thanks for the recipeee!
Hi Sally,
I tried this cake, half the recipe in 7 inch metal pan. It tastes heavenly! However, as the cake slided upside down very easily, it cracked on the top(fruit side). There was a slight dome as the cake baked and probably when turned out, the cake couldn’t take the weight of the topping..is this understanding correct or there cud be some other reason for the same. And how can I avoid the same?
Thanks
Kriti
Tastes amazing!
Sally, I would never use anything but your old recipe. It is perfection extra batter and all. As a matter of fact- if I recall you mentioned using banana’s instead of pineapple if desired which is why I came back to take a look. I don’t see that now.
Hi Terry, I’m so glad you enjoy the older recipe. (It’s in the recipe notes if you can’t find it!) I’ve actually never tested this recipe with bananas before, though I’m sure you could try it.
In the ingredients you have mentioned sour cream , is it okay if I don’t add them to the ingredients.
Or do you suggest any else ?
I’m from Sri Lanka it’s really difficult to find sour cream.
Hi Fathima, You can use plain yogurt in place of sour cream.
This is such a great recipe and so easy to follow. Thank you!! This was my first time making this and it is definitely a keeper! My boyfriend asked for this as his birthday cake and it was perfect. (I used a 9″ round pan and added pineapples on the sides, I also used regular flour and it was still very good.)
Hello, the recipe doesn’t say when to add the milk. I re read it 20 times lol. I did add it after the sour cream. Cake in oven now!