Pineapple Upside Down Cake

My first attempt. Waiting for the moment of truth.

We've been back from a weeklong vacation for about a day and, of course, Chris didn't fail to remind me that there's no dessert in the house. I wanted to make something quick and easy, but I wasn't sure what that should be. I'm not a big fan of cake, but Chris is so I thought I'd make him one.

I found a recipe for Pineapple Upside Down Cake in my "Betty Crocker's Cookbook" (published 1989) and thought that might be a good way to use up some canned pineapple in the frig. Chris had never had Pineapple Upside Down Cake, but he was game to try it.

The recipe calls for buttermilk baking mix, but I don't keep that on hand. So I subbed 1 1/2 cups cake flour, 1 1/2 tsp. baking soda and 1 tsp. salt for the baking mix. I wasn't sure about the proportions or the substitution, but I thought I'd give it a try. To give the cake a buttermilk flavor, I added a squirt or two of lemon juice to 1/2 cups of milk.

As you can see in the picture above, the bottom of the cake didn't turn out too bad. I baked it for 30 minutes instead of 35.

Here's the cake flipped right side up:

Chris' description: That's the sorriest excuse for a cake ever.

I'm proud of it, but Chris didn't know what to think. His description, "That's the sorriest excuse for a cake ever. I hope it tastes better than it looks." He wanted to know if it was supposed to look that way. And, in case you don't know, it is. :)

He was also hoping it was a cake that requires icing. He likes eating icing and graham crackers. Many times I only making icing for him to eat as dessert. :)

Anyway. Though the cake was falling apart, it was tasty!