A bright, sunshiny gluten free pineapple upside down cake, made with super flavorful pineapple slices in caramelized sugar that adds sweetness and zest to the buttery yellow cake below. Grab that can of pineapple slices, and let's get baking!
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What makes this gluten free pineapple upside down cake special
A tender and moist gluten free pineapple upside down cake that's simply bursting with pineapple flavor, this cake is so impressive but almost couldn't be easier. It comes out of the pan so readily, too, whether you use a classic round cake pan or a springform pan.
This isn't just some yellow cake with pineapples on top. The bottom (which becomes the top, of course, then you turn it upside down) is packed with pineapple juice, maraschino cherries, and their juices are mixed with rich brown sugar and melted butter.
Our basic gluten free yellow cake mix is all we need for a buttery cake bottom that's ready to soak up all those juices, and baked with some of its own.
The bottom layer, which becomes the top layer after baking and turning out, keeps the cake almost impossibly moist during baking and thereafter. Plus, the bottom-turned-top layer makes the cake look way more difficult than it actually is.
Baking this particular cake with pineapple juice in place of water or milk adds an acid that also helps keep this upside down cake especially tender.
Ingredients for a gluten free upside down pineapple cake
- Sliced pineapple and juices – For this recipe, we need canned pineapple rings packed in their own juice. No sticky liquid with added sugars, please! And be sure to reserve the juice from the can when you remove the pineapple slices, since it goes into the cake base.
- Maraschino cherries – I like to use Silver Palate brand maraschino cherries, since there are no dyes. The cherries are less unnaturally red, though, but they taste better.
- Brown sugar – The brown sugar is combined with melted butter to make a grainy, delicious sugar paste that the pineapple slices are nestled into. It caramelizes in the oven and makes the pineapple slices heavenly.
- Salt – Salt brings out the flavors of the dish, and balances the sweetness.
- Unsalted butter – There's melted unsalted butter mixed with brown sugar in this recipe, and then room temperature unsalted butter used in the yellow cake that forms the base of the upside down cake.
- Gluten free flour – I like Better Batter's classic all purpose gluten free flour blend here, since it makes a perfectly tender, but not overly fragile cake, that stays fresh for days.
- Milk powder – Adding some dry milk to the cake adds the richness of milk without using milk as the liquid. That way, we can use pineapple juice that flavors the cake perfectly.
- Baking powder and baking soda – These are the chemical leaveners that help the cake rise. Make sure they're fresh, and measure carefully!
- Granulated sugar – Sugar adds sweetness but also tenderizes the yellow cake base.
- Eggs – Eggs add some rise and plenty of richness to your pineapple upside down cake. They also help bind the cake ingredients together.
Tips for making a beautiful gf pineapple upside down cake
Measure your gluten free flour like a pro
Measure your flour by weight, not volume, using a simple digital kitchen scale. Otherwise, you're likely to overmeasure it, and end up with a stiff, dry cake.
Canned pineapple vs. fresh pineapple slices
I recommend only using canned pineapple slices that are packed in their own juice (not a sugary syrup), not fresh pineapple. Fresh pineapple may not be quite as ripe, fragrant, or sweet as canned, and we are asking a lot of each slice!
Blot your pineapple to prevent sogginess
We want the liquid from the canned pineapple slices in the base vanilla cake layer, but not on the top of the cake (which we bake as the bottom). Be sure to blot those slices dry with a paper towel lightly, to rid them of extra moisture without leaving behind any paper towel residue.
Choosing the right cake pan for an upside down cake
You don’t need to use a springform pan for this gluten free upside down cake recipe. In fact, I prefer using a standard cake pan since the smooth edges make for a cleaner release.
I’m also not really the biggest fan of springform pans in general. I have a super terrific the-Williams-Sonoma-salesperson-swore-it-was-the-best springform pan, and I still made a mess when I used it for this cake (okay, it’s really no different when I use it for anything else). The version in the standard 9-inch round cake pan was a much more relaxing experience overall, and it was still beautiful.
How do you get your pineapple upside down cake out of the cake pan?
If you're afraid of upside down cakes because you're just so sure they'll never come out of the pan like they should and you'll feel like a total failure (oh, wait—maybe that's just me?), this is the upside down cake for you. It slips right out of the pan, and you feel like a million bucks. Trust me.
Don't rush to flip your pineapple upside down cake
Be sure to let your cake cool in the pan, so it can firm up before you turn it over (or, you know, upside down). Otherwise, it may fall not make the trip in one piece!
How to store a gluten free pineapple upside down cake
Like any cake, this upside down cake is best the same day it's baked. But it can be refrigerated for 24 hours if tightly wrapped with plastic wrap or in a tightly sealed container.
Can you freeze a gluten free pineapple upside down cake?
You can freeze a pineapple upside down cake, but the moisture in the cake may mean some ice crystals form on the pineapple. If it weeps at all as it cools, just blot it dry before serving it.
Gluten free upside down pineapple cake: substitutions
Gluten free, dairy free pineapple upside down cake
Try using coconut milk powder in place of the powdered milk in the cake batter, and vegan butter in place of the unsalted butter. My favorite brands of vegan butter are Melt and Miyoko’s Kitchen.
Gluten free, egg free pineapple upside down cake
To make this cake without eggs, try replacing the 2 eggs with 2 “chia eggs.” Place 2 tablespoons of ground white chia seeds in a small bowl, and mix in 2 tablespoons lukewarm water. Mix, and allow to gel before adding to the cake when you would add the eggs. You may see some flecks of chia seeds in the baked cake, but you won't taste them.
FAQs
Is pineapple gluten free?
Yes! Pineapple, the fruit, is naturally gluten free. Like any other naturally gluten free food, it is safe on a gluten free diet unless it's contaminated with gluten-containing ingredients.
Is canned pineapple gluten free?
Yes, unless it's a mixture of pineapple and something else gluten-containing, pineapple in a can should only have two to three ingredients: pineapple, pineapple juice, and maybe pineapple juice concentrate.
Is pineapple juice gluten free?
Yes, pure pineapple juice is gluten free. Enjoy it!
What's the best gluten free flour for a pineapple upside down cake?
I like this cake with Better Batter's classic gluten free flour blend, since it provides the best texture for this very moist, somewhat fragile cake. You can still use Cup4Cup gluten free flour blend, my other main recommended all purpose gluten free flour blend, which will make a slightly less sturdy cake.
Can I make a gluten free pineapple upside down cake with almond flour?
You can probably make a pineapple upside down cake using almond flour, but not using this recipe. This recipe must be made with an all purpose gluten free flour blend, not a single ingredient like almond flour.
Can I use pineapple chunks instead of slices for this gluten free pineapple upside down cake recipe?
You might be able to make this recipe using pineapple chunks if you use only the whole chunks from the can (not any crushed bits and pieces), and keep them from clumping together when you add the vanilla cake batter on top.
Can I use this recipe to make gluten free pineapple upside down cupcakes?
I've never made this recipe into cupcakes, and I honestly don't know how it would work to divide the pineapples and cake batter that way. Maybe it's possible if you use pineapple chunks, and place them on top, rather than on the bottom?
Why is my gluten free pineapple cake soggy?
Did you blot your pineapple slices dry, and measure your liquid carefully? You may not need all of the pineapple juice from the can.
Can I flip my gluten free pineapple upside down cake when the pan is still hot?
No, you definitely want to wait until the cake has cooled down before turning the cake upside down, or it won't turn out in one piece. If the pan is still hot, the cake is still hot.
Gluten free pineapple upside down cake recipe
Classic Gluten Free Pineapple Upside Down Cake
Ingredients
For the pineapple layer
- 1 20-ounce can sliced pineapple in its own juices
- 7 maraschino cherries I used Silver Palate brand, which has no dyes and no preservatives (optional)
- ¾ cup (164 g) packed light brown sugar
- ⅛ teaspoon kosher salt
- 6 tablespoons (84 g) unsalted butter melted
For the cake batter
- 1 ½ cups (210 g) all purpose gluten free flour blend (I used Better Batter; please click thru for details on appropriate blends)
- ¾ teaspoon xanthan gum omit if your blend already contains it
- 7 tablespoons (42 g) milk powder nonfat or whole milk
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- 8 tablespoons (112 g) unsalted butter at room temperature
- 2 (100 g (weighed out of shell)) eggs at room temperature, beaten
- ⅔ cup (5.33 fluid ounces) pineapple juice at room temperature (See Recipe Notes)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F. Grease a 10-inch cast iron skillet, 9-inch round cake pan or 9-inch springform pan and set it aside.
Prepare the pineapple layer.
- Remove the pineapple slices from the can and blot them as dry as possible with paper towels. Reserve the juice from the can for the cake batter.
- Remove the cherries from the jar, remove any stems and blot them dry as well.
- Place the brown sugar and salt in a medium-size bowl and mix to combine. Add the melted butter, and mix until a thick, grainy paste forms.
- Transfer the brown sugar and butter mixture to the prepared baking pan, and spread into an even layer with a spoon or small offset spatula.
- Place one pineapple ring in the very center of the pan, on top of the brown sugar mixture. Arrange as many more of the pineapple rings in a single layer around the center ring as possible without overlapping them at all.
- Slice the remaining pineapple rings into quarters and arrange the pieces in gaps between the rings and along the edges of the pan, climbing up the sides.
- Place a maraschino cherry in the center of each whole pineapple ring. Set the pan aside.
Make the cake batter.
- In a large bowl, place the flour, xanthan gum, milk powder, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and sugar, and whisk to combine well.
- Create a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add the butter, eggs and pineapple juice, mixing to combine after each addition. The batter should be thick but smooth.
- Scrape the batter into the baking pan on top of the pineapple layer and spread into an even layer with a wet spatula, taking care not to disturb the pineapples or cherries. If using a springform pan, wrap the bottom tightly with heavy-duty aluminum foil as it will leak during baking.
Bake the cake.
- Place the pan in the center of the preheated oven and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake (but without reaching all the way to the pineapple layer on the bottom) comes out with a few moist crumbs attached (about 45 minutes, less for a cast iron skillet).
- Remove the cake from the oven and allow to cool in the baking pan until cool to the touch (at least 30 minutes).
- Invert the cooled cake onto a serving platter, removing the pan (or springform pan bottom) slowly so as not to disturb the pineapple layer. The cake should come out of the pan readily.
- Allow to cool completely before slicing and serving.
Notes
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Thanks for stopping by!
Hi, I’m Nicole. I create gluten free recipes that really work and taste as good as you remember. No more making separate meals when someone is GF, or buying packaged foods that aren’t good enough to justify the price. At Gluten Free on a Shoestring, “good, for gluten free” just isn’t good enough! Come visit my bio!
Therese says
Excellent!! So moist and perfect!
Lynne says
Yay for very yummy cake. I made it in a 10” springform pan and it worked perfectly. It was so satisfying to turn it out and see the pineapple on the top.
Nicole Hunn says
That’s awesome, Lynne! It is kind of satisfying. Like revealing your very own masterpiece. :)
Jared Burrow says
So. Made it on Sunday.
Only change I made was I used Truvia baking blend instead of sugar, half the amount by volume. Especially with the natural sweetness of the pineapple it worked well.
This was amazing, and honestly we all ate too much (so I guess it’s a good thing I dropped the calories)
Jared Burrow says
I haven’t had a pineapple upside down cake in so long! Making this on Sunday ^_^
youngbaker2002 says
Gorgeous Nicole!
Melissa says
Nicole you mentioned at the beginning making your own gelatin? I’ve been wanting to do that for awhile. Is there a recipe handy? Checked on you search bar and went and looked in the new cookbook(Amazon Prime-yay) and didn’t see anything. The boxed Jello we all grew up with is full of yucky stuff. Any helpful suggestions?
Nicole Hunn says
I don’t have the recipe published anywhere yet, Melissa. But thanks for looking first. :) I will definitely put the recipe out there. It might be a D.I.Y. Fridays post sometime soon, or I’m even thinking of putting the whole thing in an email to my email subscribers.
Faith says
Well that’s a fine thing to tease in the recipe blog above and then NOT give us the jello recipe!!! I jumped on the search bar like Melissa thinking I had missed this somewhere…but noooooo-you’re holding out on us! I’ll be right here. Waiting for my jello. :)
Nicole Hunn says
I promise I didn’t mean to hold out, Faith! I honestly wasn’t sure if there’d be enough interest to post a recipe. I’m finalizing the testing (there’s more than you’d think—more than I expected), and will post the recipe next week. Get your gelatin ready!
June Brown says
Made this cake today and two things happen (both my fault so this post is a warning, not a complaint). First, I made the cake in a 8 inch round pan, not a 9 inch which meant the cake look done, passed the toothpick taste, but later I found out the cake was gooey in the middle. Next time, I am going to make it in my favorite pan – a 9 x 6 rectangle so that should solve that problem. The second thing is some of the pineapple juice leaked over the sides so my oven was not too happy. A cookie sheet under the pan will fix that problem. Don’t despair for me, my dear hubby and I are currently eating the outer edges and loving it!! However, I should get to that oven mess soon. :)
Nicole Hunn says
Yup, June. An 8-inch cake is too small, so I specify a 9-inch pan! That caused each of the problems you’re describing. Glad you enjoyed the cake anyway.
Carole says
The men in my family are going to love this. Will make it for Father’s Day . I’ll take the Hummingbird cake for Mother’s day. Any ideas on making a glaze for fresh blueberry or strawberry pie, really miss it. Is Jello gluten free ?? Just made the poundcake strawberry muffins that’s a go to recipe in this house.
Nicole Hunn says
Hi, Carole, yes, Jello is gluten free. I’ve been making it from scratch because then it’s decidedly healthy for my kids since gelatin is very healthful—but not with all those chemicals! Not sure what kind of glaze you’re looking for, though. Just a simple syrup for shine?
Carole says
My family loves fresh fruit pies with a graham cracker crust . I need something to hold the fruit together . I tried boiling sugar, water and cornstarch and then adding half a small package of strawberry jello and then letting it cool and thicken in the refrigerator before combining with the strawberries and it turned out ok but there is the problem with all the chemicals. But trying it with blueberries was a disaster. Any help would be appreciated.
youngbaker2002 says
yes, we would love that recipe too Nicole! We haven’t had Jello in so long because of all the junk in the store bought stuff.
Nicole Hunn says
I’ll definitely put the recipe for homemade Jello out there. I’m thinking about sending out the whole recipe in an email to my email subscribers. :) It’s so easy!
Nicole Hunn says
I’d take a look through the pies recipe category, Carole, and see if something appeals to you.
Kat says
My mother used to make these about once a year for special occasions. They always looked so pretty. I can’t wait to make one for my family that I can safely eat too. Thank you!
Nicole Hunn says
That’s perfect, Kat!
Bonnie Steele says
I am lactose intolerant, how would I substitute nonfat dry milk? Thank you, Bonnie
Nicole Hunn says
Bonnie, please see the post where it says “If you’d like to make this cake dairy free…”
Bonnie Steele says
I am sorry, but I don’t see a post saying dairy free. I see 12 comments.
Nicole Hunn says
Bonnie, the post is the blog post. Please see the final paragraph of the blog post before the recipe. It is in bold. It reads:
“If you’d like to make this cake dairy-free, try using blanched almond flour in place of the nonfat dry milk in the cake batter, and a vegan butter in place of the unsalted butter—but you’ll have to cut back on the salt in the batter as vegan butter is quite salty.”
Bonnie Steele says
I see it now. Thank you for your help and patience.
Lucy says
Spring form pans are a pain! I have three and never use them.
Nicole, do you think this recipe can be made in a muffin tin for individual cakes?
I have to bake for the school band and thought this would make a wow factor effect…
I have a rhubarb cobbler recipe that’s an upside down cake to die for; if you wish to give it a try let me know :)
Nicole Hunn says
I do think this recipe could be made in a muffin tin, yes, Lucy. But I’m not 100% sure how best to suggest creating the pineapple layer, assuming the wells aren’t big enough to hold a whole pineapple ring. You can’t use cubed pineapple, really, unless you remove most of the excess moisture. I think you’ll have to experiment, but it’s worth a shot!
Lucy says
Thanks, I think I will give it a whirl :)
Joy Almond says
Crushed pineapple works great also.
Barbara says
Lucy, the USA pan that Nicole used for the Devils Food cakes would probably work for this. The six 4″ wells in that pan are about 3-1/2″ at the bottom and should be about right for a ring of pineapple. Bet that would make some nice small cakes…individual or for two to share.
Nicole Hunn says
Perfect suggestion, Barbara!!
Michelle says
Lucy- Nordicware makes a pineapple upside down “cakelet” pan, if you want to be fancy! It accomodates the pineappe ring & makes them in cute little pineapple shapes.
Faith says
Lucy, I made individual pineapple upside down cakes using 7 oz ramekin cups. (I’m sure the 6 or 8 oz would work too) They are the perfect size to hold the pineapple ring and I just divide everything between the cups! I bake them longer than muffin cups but not as long as a whole cake. While you certainly could use pineapple chunks, I find it much more satisfying to dump out the cake and find that lovely ring and cherry center! (and they freeze well too) Thanks for the recipe Nicole-love it!
Lucy says
Great idea! Thank you :)
Michelle says
I have not had one of these in years! This looks terrific, and not too sweet, as some of these are. My grandma’s sister made these for every holiday when I was a kid, so I know Grandma will want me to share some with her. She actually gave me her pineapple upside down cake pan awhile back- it has little wells for the pineapple rings- but I think I will use my cast iron skillet. Thanks!
Nicole Hunn says
Wow, Michelle, I had no idea that there was even such a pan! I think it’s probably for the best that I didn’t know. ;)
Michelle says
It’s probably at least 40 years old and dinged up, but here it is.