Posh Warm Spiced Pineapple Upside Down Cake

This is one of those puddings I remember from my childhood, Probably one of the British classics that we all seem to have fond memories of. When I was very young, a pineapple always reminded me of distant exotic lands.

I've called this recipe POSH, It isn't really, I've added some Rum to the sauce, and made a granita with the pineapple trimmings, But, In truth, this is just a blooming good pudding.

This recipe will serve 8-10 people ( you can halve these quantities to make 4-5 pudding if desired )

Shopping List

2 medium sized pineapples

A small amount of rapeseed oil

A sprinkling of caster sugar for caramelizing the pineapple

Ingredients for the Sponge

125g crushed brazil nuts ( you can do this in a food processor )

250g of Butter

1 Tablespoon of clear honey

150g of plain flour

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1/2 teaspoon of baking powder

1/2 teaspoon of ground allspice

1/2 teaspoon of ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon

200g of caster sugar

6 egg whites

Ingredients for the Caramel Rum Sauce

125g of caster sugar

85ml water

50ml of double cream

50ml of pineapple juice

35ml of dark rum

Ingredients for the Pineapple Granita

225g of pineapple trimmings

150ml of stock syrup ( simply simmer 300ml pineapple juice with 175g of caster sugar for 2 minutes and then cool )

The juice of half a lemon

Dark rum to taste

Method

1. You'll need 8 small pudding basins ( 3 x 2 inches )

2. Carefully peel and slice the pineapples in half, top to bottom

3. Now cut discs 1cm thick that will fit the bottoms of the basins

4. Keep the trimmings for the granita

5. On a medium heat, fry the pineapple disc until they start to caramelize, add a good pinch of sugar, this will help to give a golden caramel colour to the pineapple

6. Place the pineapple discs caramel side down into the basins and leave to cool

7. Pre heat the oven to 160c

8. Place the butter into a saucepan on a medium heat and heat until the butter reaches a golden colour

9. Remove from the heat and add the honey

10. Sift together the dry ingredients

11. Add the sugar and brazil nuts

12. Stir in the butter and honey mixture

13. Whisk the egg whites until soft peak stage, and carefully fold into the pudding mixture

14. Pour into the pudding basins and cook in the oven for 30/35 minutes

To make the sauce

1. Carefully boil the Sugar and water until they reach a caramel colour

2. Heat the cream and pineapple juice together and pour into the caramel

3. Add the rum to the finished sauce

To make the granita

1. Chop all the trimmings and place in a saucepan with the syrup

2. Cook for several minutes until the pineapple has softened, Add the lemon juice and rum to taste

3. Allow to cool and then place into a suitable container to be placed into the freezer, freeze until set

To serve

Turn out the individual puddings onto warm bowls, Spoon some of the sauce over the puddings, Remove the granita from the freezer and loosen with a fork, spoon some of the granita alongside the puddings and serve immediately