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Pineapple Shortcake

Posted by beccaosuna on

I know just last week I was talking about how we’re getting into the holiday season so Pineapple Shortcake seems a little out of place. But in Houston the holiday season also means we’re finally getting nice enough weather to hang out outside and do all the things that our friends in the north did all summer. Hurricane season is almost over and pineapples are on sale. So pineapple shortcake. This was also a great recipe to test because I really want to propagate pineapples so I need a bunch of pineapple tops.

I learned recently from an episode of The Splendid Table that the best way to incorporate zest into a baked good is to mix it in with the fat of a recipe rather than the dry ingredients. The oils of the zest bond to the fats and that protects them from breaking down too quickly in the baking process.

The cake recipe is based on a sour cream cake from Rose Levy Beranbaum’s The Cake Bible, the greatest cake cookbook in the history of cake cookbooks. Seriously if you don’t have any of her books you have to get them, we used them at the first bakery I worked at and they’re so comprehensive and informative you’ll never need another baking resource.

Pineapple Shortcake Recipe

Ingredients

Cake:

  • 4 large egg yolks
  • ⅔ cup (160 g) sour cream, divided
  • 1 inch fresh ginger, grated
  • 1 teaspoons vanilla
  • ½ teaspoon coconut extract
  • 2 cups (240 g) all purpose flour
  • 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar 
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1 ½ sticks (170 g) unsalted softened butter
  • Zest from one lime

Pineapples:

  • 1 pineapple
  • 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • Juice from one lime

Whipped Cream:

  • 1 pint heavy whipping cream
  • 1-3 tablespoons sugar depending on your taste
  • ½ teaspoon salt

Instructions

  1. Make the cake: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease two square 8×8 cake pans, line the bottom with parchment or wax paper and then grease again and flour.
  2. In a medium bowl mix together the egg yolks, ¼ of the sour cream, ginger, vanilla and coconut.
  3. In the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large mixing bowl combine dry ingredients (including sugar). Add the butter, lime zest and remaining sour cream. Mix on low speed until flour is coated in the fat. Increase to medium speed (high speed for a hand mixer) and beat for 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides and add the egg mixture in 3 batches, beating for 20 seconds or so after each addition. Scrape down the sides and give it a final mix.
  4. Split the batter between the two cake pans. Bake for 30 minutes. Let cool slightly before turning out onto a rack and cool completely before assembling the pineapple shortcake.
  5. Core and cut the pineapple into ½-inch pieces. Toss with sugar, lime juice and salt. Cover and leave to soak while the cake cools.
  6. In a stand mixer or with a hand mixer on high whip the heavy cream until soft peaks form. Add sugar and salt and whip until peaks are just stiff.
  7. To assemble a single cake, when everything is cooled, stack cake, whipped cream, pineapples, cake, a thin layer of whipped cream, pineapples and dollops of whipped cream. For smaller cakes cut sponges into squares before stacking. Garnish with fresh mint or basil if you like.

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