Pineapple upside-down cake: yeah!

Check this shit out!  I am partially disabled when it comes to baking, I measure things incorrectly and I don't cook things for the right time, and my kitchen looks like a tsunami hit and the outcome is never worth all the pain and suffering.  This time, everything worked out for the best!

I used the Paula Deen recipe:

Prep Time: 30 min

Cook Time: 45 min

Level: Easy

Serves: 8 servings

Ingredients

• Nonstick cooking spray
• 3 cups cake flour, plus more for pan
• 1 cup butter, softened, plus 1/2 cup, melted
• 2 1/4 cups sugar
• 5 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/4 cups whole buttermilk
• 1 1/2 cups firmly packed brown sugar
• 2 (20-ounce) cans pineapple slices in juice, drained well (reserve 2 tablespoons juice for frosting)
• 1 (10-ounce) jar maraschino cherries, drained well
• Pineapple Buttercream Frosting, recipe follows
• Chopped pecans, for garnish, optional

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray 2 (9-inch) round cake pans with nonstick cooking spray and coat with flour.

In a large bowl, beat 1 cup butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Gradually add the sugar, beating until fluffy. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla and set aside.

In a small bowl, add the 3 cups of flour, baking powder, and salt. Stir to combine. Add the flour mixture into the egg mixture alternately with the buttermilk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture.

Divide the brown sugar evenly into each pan. Pour the melted butter equally over the brown sugar. Arrange the pineapple slices and cherries over the brown sugar. Reserve remaining pineapple slices and cherries for another use.

Pour equal amounts of batter over the fruit and bake until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, about 40 to 45 minutes. Let the cakes cool in the pans for 10 minutes. Invert the cakes onto wire racks to cool completely.

To assemble the cake, carefully arrange 1 cake layer, pineapple side up, on a cake plate. Carefully stack the remaining cake layer, pineapple side up, over the first layer. Frost the sides of the cake with Pineapple Buttercream Frosting. Press chopped pecans into sides of cake, if desired.

Pineapple Buttercream Frosting:

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 2 tablespoons reserved pineapple juice
• 3 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar

Beat all the ingredients in a large bowl until well combined.

Yield: about 2 cups

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I used low fat buttermilk by accident, but I couldn't tell the difference, the consistency seemed so close to the same.  I chose to omit the frosting because it's Really sweet and delicious without it!  Many people mentioned that they overflowed their pans, so I only used about 95% of the batter and I even put a baking sheet underneath the 2 round baking pans to catch any run-off, but for me it seemed like I used the perfect amount with that method.  At the very end when you go to flip the round pans onto the cooling rack.... 1.  make sure you have paper towels under the baking rack to catch some liquid that will probably spill out from the bottom that hasn't yet hardened, and 2.  prepare yourself for the spill, but it's OK, all is well inside the cake.

This cake is fantastic!  I mean really, I know Paula likes her butter and I don't, but today she changed me.  I love that freaking butter.