As you all know I’m not much of a baker but I made this pineapple upside down cake from the recipe provided by Lori Bailey. I did change some things because I had a different nut and I had Craisins® instead of dried cranberries.

Ingredients list: 12 tablespoons of unsalted butter, room temperature, (Separated, 6 tbsp. plus 6 tbsp.), 2/3 cup of packed brown sugar, ½ cup of nuts (I used walnuts), ¼ cup of Craisins®, two tablespoons of minced peeled fresh ginger, 1 can of pineapple rings, 1 and 2/3 cups of all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon of baking powder, 1 teaspoon of baking soda, ¼ teaspoon of salt, ¾ cups plus 2 tablespoons of sugar, 3 large eggs separated, 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract, 2/3 cups of buttermilk (use regular milk and add one tablespoon of vinegar – that’s how I make buttermilk).

Preheat your oven at 350 degrees, add six tablespoons of your butter in your 9” cake pan. Make sure your pan is deep, two inches will be perfect. Melt your butter in the oven, take out after melted and add your sugar, nuts, and fresh ginger. Cook on your stove top until it bubbles. Turn off and set aside. Add all dry ingredients, mix with a fork, and set this aside. Next mix just your egg white with an electric mixer until it peaks like a meringue. Add two tablespoons of your white sugar to the mixture. Now stir in your yokes, buttermilk to the dry ingredients, then fold in your whipped whites. After the batter is mixed, set aside. Place your pineapple slices on top of the gooey nut mixture in the deep 9-inch pan. Finally, place your cake mixture on top of the pineapples.

Please don’t overcook. Unfortunately I cooked mine five minutes too long. The recipe calls for an hour, which is way too long. I would only cook for 40 minutes. Please check your cake at 40 minutes with a toothpick; if it is a little wet, cook only five more minutes. After it is cooked, let it sit for 10 minutes then turn over onto a nice dish for about 10 to 15 minutes. It will drop on its own so just be patient.

This is a wonderful dessert. Enjoy with a squirt of whipped cream.

I’ve been asked to make a soup and I have a good one for you next week.

I hope everyone is able to enjoy school vacation with family and friends this week. I want to give a big shout out to our Seahawks girls and boys this week in Augusta. Bring home the gold.