Macadamia & Pineapple Upside-Down Cake

Test Kitchen time! And boy, is this is a doozy.

Juicy pineapple, crunchy macadamia, and a cool, almost-creamy cake to house it all. And, if that doesn't beat all, it comes from Chef John Folse and Chef Rick Tramonto's Restaurant R'evolution in New Orleans. You say you want a R'evolution? We-hell, let's get started then.

The only changes I made to the recipe below were to use white sugar instead of brown in the butter topping and to cut that sugar down to 1/2 cup.

You'll want to be extra-careful with the final steps of the recipe—letting the cake brown in the oven, then cool to room temperature in the pan—because the cake will be browning more quickly on top than in the bottom of the cake pan, where the pineapples are bedded. Let the top darken a bit more than you normally would.

And another thing to be wary of: this cake is so delicious, you'll have a hard time putting it away. Enjoy!

Macadamia Nut Pineapple Upside Down Cake

from Restaurant R'evolution in New Orleans

Yield: 1 9-inch round cake (12 portions)

Ingredients:

For the cake batter:

3⁄4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar

3 large whole eggs

1⁄4 cup sour cream

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1⁄4 cup plus 2 tablespoons cake flour, sifted

1⁄2 teaspoon baking powder

1⁄4 teaspoon baking soda

1⁄4 teaspoon Kosher salt

1⁄4 cup macadamia nuts, toasted and cooled

Butter topping:

1 1⁄2 ounces unsalted butter, melted

3⁄4 cup brown sugar

1 Pineapple, cleaned, cored, and sliced

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Cream the butter until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Sift the cake flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda together.

2. In a food processor, pulse the macadamia nuts and sugar until roughly chopped. Place the butter in a mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix until smooth, and then add the sugar and nut mixture.

3. Add the eggs one at a time, scraping the sides of the bowl in between additions. Add the vanilla extract; scrape the sides of the bowl. Then, alternate the dry ingredients with the sour cream, starting with the dry ingredients. Mix until well combined, being careful not to over mix. Mix the butter topping, by mixing the melted butter with the brown sugar.

4. Prepare the cake pan by spraying it with pan spray. Lay thin layer of the butter topping down inside the pan. Arrange the sliced pineapple in the bottom of the cake pan. Pour the cake batter over the pineapples, trying not to disturb them. Bake for 15 minutes then rotate the cake. Bake for another 10–15 minutes or until the top is golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean once inserted. Let cool completely inside the pan. Use a knife to loosen the cake from the pan and place a dinner plate, larger than the cake on top. Invert the cake and remove the pan. Serve room temperature.