This Vegan Pineapple Upside-Down Cake is so moist and pretty! It is soft and tender with a gooey brown sugar topping with tender baked pineapples for that extra natural sweetness. So easy to make you don’t need your mixer!
This Vegan Pineapple Upside Down Cake is so moist that your non-vegan friends won’t even notice that it’s dairy free! Did I mention it is super moist? Once you take a bite of those caramely and golden bites of sweet pineapple and dive into the tender and moist vanilla cake, your guests will be in paradise!
It’s been a while since I shared a vegan pineapple cake and with summer almost here (well, for many of us, the temperatures are full summer mode!). There’s a funny story behind the first vegan pineapple cake I shared. We were going to a dinner party at our neighbor’s house, who just happened to recent become vegan.
It was the birthday of one of the guests and this guest made a request to me that he’s love a pineapple upside-down cake. Scrambling at the last minute looking for canned pineapples, I only had pineapple chunks. The cake was a hit and I always wanted to share the version with the bright maraschino cherries. It’s a cake that reminds me of parties growing up. Mom used to make hers the traditional dairy version.
Now that we have a dairy-free family member, there will be more vegan recipes shared here! She’s a beauty of a cake that is made without dairy and eggs and is so similar to the traditional dairy version. It’s not complicated at all to put together. You can make the whole thing by hand with a good spoon or a whisk.
A batter that is not complicated at all to put together that’s made with the reserved pineapple juice and coconut milk, oil, flour, sugar and vanilla and that’s all there is to it!
The juicy pineapples get added on top of non-dairy butter sticks (I use Earth Balance baking sticks), vegan brown sugar (I made my own) and some maraschino cherries. Be sure to use vegetable-dyed maraschinos to make sure they are truly vegan, as some maraschino cherries are not vegan.
The cake batter is so simple to make and you could do it all in one bowl! Just takes a few minutes to whip it all together until it’s smooth and lovely.
Bake your gorgeous cake, let cool for a bit, and carefully flip!
Smooth, moist and lovely vegan cake!
Let’s get on to how to make this pretty little cake!
How To Make Vegan Pineapple Upside Down Cake
If this is your first time making a pineapple-upside down cake, don’t be afraid. It’s all made by hand and is not that difficult to put together this beautiful and festive cake.
I used non-dairy butter for that same incredible buttery taste like my mom’s homemade pineapple upside down cake.
Preheat oven 350 degrees F.
Topping: Spread the vegan butter in a saucepan, add sugar and stir. Spread mixture around the base of your cake pan.
Pineapples: Arrange pineapple slices around the pan, reserve the juice to use in the cake batter and place cherries wherever they fit.
Cake: For the cake, combine pineapple juice, oil, vanilla in a bowl and set aside.
Mix: Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, salt. Add pineapple mixture and mix to form a batter.
Batter: Pour batter over the pineapple/cherries. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Invert: Remove the cake from oven, allow to cool for about 10-15 minutes before inverting cake on a serving platter. Use a knife to loosen cake from the side of the cake pan if it is sticking.
Storage: Store in an airtight container and keep refrigerated for up to 3 days.
HOW DO I FLIP A PINEAPPLE UPSIDE-DOWN CAKE?
1 Allow your pineapple upside-down cake to cool for 10-15 minutes before you try to flip it. If any of the cake has baked into the edge of your pie plate or cake pan, gently loosen the edges with a knife.
2Place your cake platter (or any plate that’s larger than your pineapple upside-down cake) over the pan — plate surface should be facing your vanilla cake layer.
3 Using oven mitts carefully and firmly grip both the side of the cake platter and the cake pan on either side.
4Carefully but quickly flip everything over so that the bottom of the cake pan is facing upwards, and then set down your cake platter and very carefully remove the cake pan. The pan is still very hot, so don’t try to do it without oven mitts or something to protect your hands.
And that is all there is to it! This cake tastes best warm, so while you still want it to cool a bit, you shouldn’t wait too long before taking that first bite!
Vegan Pineapple Upside-Down Cake
Ingredients
- TOPPING
- 1/4 cup melted non-dairy butter (I used Earth Balance)
- 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar (I made my own to make it vegan)
- 1 (20-ounce) can sliced pineapple, drained (reserve the juice!)
- 15-20 maraschino cherries
- CAKE:
- 1/2 cup coconut milk or your favorite non-dairy milk
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 1 cup vegan sugar
- teaspoon teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/3 cup oil
- 1 tablespoon white vinegar
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 Tsp Fleur Di Sicilia Flavoring
Instructions
- Preheat oven 350 degrees Lightly spray the sides of a cake pan or pie plate.
- Pour 1/2 cup juice off can of pineapple into 1 cup measuring cup-measure. Add coconut milk to make 1 cup; set aside.
- TOPPING:
- Place 1/4 cup of melted non-dairy butter into a 9-inch springform cake pan (or a 9-inch pie dish or a 9x2 inch (deep dish) round cake pan). Make sure it is a deep pan. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup of light brown sugar (I made my own vegan brown sugar). Top with pineapple slices (reserving the juice for the batteand arrange cherries between the pineapple and place cherries in the center of each pineapple slices or wherever they fit. See my photo for a visual. Set aside.
- CAKE:
- In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.
- In a separate bowl, combine the pineapple juice mixture, oil, vinegar, vanilla and Fleur di Sicilia (omit if you don’t have it)
- Quickly mix wet ingredients into dry, stirring to combine ingredients well and get out the big lumps.
- Pour batter on top of the pineapple/cherries. Smooth out with a spatula.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until golden on top and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. (Baking time will depend on pan size).
- Remove the cake from oven, allow to cool for about 10-15 minutes before inverting cake on a serving platter. Use a knife to loosen cake from the side of the cake pan if it is sticking.
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