Bacon Maple Pineapple Upside Down Cake

I decided to jump onto the Bacon Bandwagon.  Since there's no donut shop in my nearby area that carries a bacon maple donut, I had to improvise.  Pork and pineapple go together.  Pineapple and maple go together.  Maple and pork go together.  It's rich, but it's sweet and salty and delicious!  Loved it!  And how many cakes do you know of that include a pound of bacon?!  It's awesome.

It makes me think fondly of the Prodigal Son that used to be in Chicago.  Irish pub in the front, angry, dirty punk music in the back, and bottomless free baskets of deep fried bacon on Wednesday nights.  I think I actually saw more blood spilled in that venue than any other venue.  That's just what happens when you get crazy and mix bacon and punk rock!  Chaos and anarchy!

The last show I saw there was my friend Germ's band, The Rotten Fruits, shown in the video here!  You can find Germ with his new band, Modern Day Rippers!  If you're in the Chicago area, check 'em out!  It's always a good show! 

BACON MAPLE PINEAPPLE UPSIDE DOWN CAKE

• 1 pound bacon
• 3 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened and divided
• 2 tablespoons shortening
• 2 cups + 1/3 cup 100% pure maple syrup (Grade B if possible)
• 3 egg yolks
• 1 egg
• 1 & 1/4 cups whole milk
• 1 cup dark brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons bacon fat (rendered from bacon)
• 1 can pineapple slices
• Maraschino cherries
• non-stick cooking spray

Chop bacon into bits and cook until crisped over medium-high heat.  Use a slotted spoon to remove bacon from pan and drain on papertowels.  Save 2 tablespoons of the bacon fat and set aside.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees

Spray 9x13 cake pan with non-stick spray and then coat with flour.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, cinnamon, allspice, baking powder, and salt.  Stir until mixed.  In a large mixing bowl, combine 1 stick of butter and shortening and beat with an electric mixer until fluffy.  Add 2 cups of maple syrup and beat until smooth, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl.  Add egg yolks and egg, one at a time, blending thoroughly after each addition.  Alternately add flour mixture and milk, 1/3 of each at a time.  Set aside

Melt 1 stick of butter and 2 tablespoons bacon fat over low heat.  Once melted, remove from heat and stir in 1/3 cup maple syrup.  In floured pan, sprinkle 1 cup brown sugar evenly over bottom of pan.  Pour butter and maple mixture over brown sugar.  Place pineapple rings on top and cherries in the middle of the rings.  Sprinkle bacon in even layer over everything.  Then carefully pour in cake batter.  Bake at 325F until a knife or toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean (40-45 minutes).


Cool cake over cooling rack for 10 minutes.  Then invert onto serving platter and let cool another 20 minutes.

 

(Served here with a Fig Balsamic reduction)