Easy Vegan Pineapple Upside-Down Cake

For International Pineapple Day, here is my vegan pineapple upside-down cake recipe

When I went vegan, cakes were one of the things I thought I was giving up forever. I accepted that, but then I discovered that a lot of basic, store-bought cake mix packs are vegan. You just needed to add some vegan butter, margarine or oil and then a little vegan egg. Most of the time, I use flaxseed egg, 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseed, or chia seed and 2.5 tablespoons of warm water. You give it a mix and leave it for 5 minutes. You might need to add some more water if it's a little thick, but that's it.

Anyway, after trying a few cake mixes, I thought I could make my own from scratch. Flour is vegan, baking powder is vegan, vanilla is vegan. With it being International Pineapple Day, I thought I'd try a pineapple upside-down cake using a simple pound cake recipe, and it worked, so here it is.

Pineapple Upside-Down Cake is great for a dinner party

Easy Vegan Pineapple Upside-Down Pound Cake

Ingredients

 Topping:

• 30 g vegan butter (or coconut oil)

• 70 g brown sugar

• Pineapple rings (about 5–6 from a can or fresh)

• Maraschino cherries (optional)

  
  

Cake Batter (Pound Cake Style):

• 190 g all-purpose flour

• 1 tsp baking powder (about 4 g)

• ½ tsp baking soda (about 2.5 g)

• ¼ tsp salt

• 150 g sugar

• 120 ml neutral oil (e.g., canola, sunflower, or melted coconut oil)

• 180 ml non-dairy milk (e.g., almond, soy, oat)

• 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar or lemon juice (15 ml)

• 1 tsp vanilla extract (5 ml)

• ¼ tsp almond extract (optional, about 1.25 ml)

Instructions

1. Prep the tin and topping

   • Preheat oven to 175°C (fan 160°C).

   • Grease a 23 cm round cake pan or a 20 cm square pan (or line the tin if it has a removeable base).

   • Melt the vegan butter and pour into the bottom of the pan. Sprinkle over the brown sugar.

   • Arrange pineapple rings and place cherries in the centres if using.

2. Make the cake batter

   • In one bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

   • In another bowl, combine sugar, oil, plant milk, vinegar/lemon juice and extracts.

   • Pour wet into dry and stir just until combined—don’t overmix.

3. Assemble and bake

   • Gently spread the batter over the pineapple topping.

   • Bake for 35–45 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

4. Cool and flip

   • Let cool for 10–15 minutes.

   • Loosen edges and invert onto a plate. Cool before slicing or serve warm.

Tips

• If you want even more pineapple flavour in your cake add 2 tbsp of pineapple juice (from the can) to the batter.

• For a richer cake, use canned coconut milk instead of regular non-dairy milk, but this will give your cake a more coconutty taste.

Health Benefits of This Pineapple Upside-Down Cake Recipe

Vitamin C - Even though it's only a small amount, you still get some vitamin C from the pineapple. Vitamin C is great for our immune system. It's an antioxidant that protects our bodies from free radicals and our bodies use it to make collagen. In fact, 100g of pineapple provides over 50% of your daily vitamin C.

No Cholesterol or Animal Fats - Being vegan, this cake has no saturated animal fats, which is bad for our hearts. There is zero cholesterol either, but there are plant-based oils, which contain healthier unsaturated fats.

No Eggs or Dairy - This is great for people with egg or dairy allergies. If you know someone with a gluten allergy, you can use a wheat flour substitute, such as coconut flour.

Manganese - Pineapple is packed with manganese which is essential for a healthy metabolism and healthy bones.

Vegan pineapple upside-down cake is healthier than animal-based versions, but that doesn't make it healthy. Always remember that we need to enjoy these things in moderation - I'm saying, don't eat the whole cake and say you're topping up your vitamins. But, it's still yummy, it's still vegan, so enjoy it.

#Vegan #VeganCake #VeganRecipe #VeganUpsideDownCake