Mini Pineapple Upside-Down Cakes (gluten-free & vegan)

I made the most adorable mini pineapple upside down cakes with our white cake mix. Here’s what I did:

I found a cool pan from Nordic Ware, shaped liked small pineapple cakes:

I prepared one package of Julie’s Original White Cake Mix with the following changes:

I used 1/3 cup melted coconut oil (unrefined), instead of the canola oil. The unrefined oil has a lovely coconut flavor. You can used soy, almond or So Delicious coconut milk beverage for the milk. They all have a neutral flavor. I haven’t tried it with regular canned coconut milk yet. It probably would give additional coconut flavor. I just wanted to keep the fat content lower, since canned coconut milk can be quite high in fat.

Then I lightly sprayed the pan with my favorite pan release spray (the Kirkland spray from Costco, which is gluten-free, doesn’t leave a residue on your pans and keeps the cakes from sticking.) I placed a pineapple slice in the bottom of each of the greased wells of the pan. I used a can of unsweeted pineapple slices for this (Dole brand, I think.)

Then I scooped the prepared white cake batter over the pineapple slices. I filled each one about two thirds full. I baked them for about 45 minutes, or until they were golden and a tester inserted into the middle came out clean. I let them cool about 20 minutes, and then carefully removed them to a cooling rack to cool completely.

I sprinkled the baked pineapple upside down cakes with a little shredded coconut for garnish.

If you make these, I would love to hear how they came out!

-Julie