Tuesday, April 29, 2008

The Pina Colada Upside Down Cake that Didn't

I thought I was strong.

I gave in and finally, after years of hearing "Pampered Chef is GREAT, you should come to the show I'm having!" And after years of successfully being too busy to attend, I finally broke down and went to my FIRST EVER Pampered Chef Show.

My reasoning for avoiding such events was soley based on the fact that I never considered myself much of a chef and I never really wanted to be pampered...even if I had a trait here or there that resembled chef-liness. But, to my surprise and delight, I quite enjoyed the "cooking show". I readily admitted my short-coming of being interested in cooking only because I must survive. The company of girls laughed at my confession (kindly, of course) and assured me that I would love the Pampered Chef product selection and if I tried it out, I would enjoy cooking for more than just survival.

There was a short season of my life where I found creativity in cooking. I rarely do something without either finding or forcing creativity in it. This season of my life was so short-lived, I find it silly to waste words on at this point. I must get on with my Pina Colada Upside Down Cake.

I found that many of the Pampered Chef products were ingenius, convenient and desired by all. Not to mention, a little pricey. I really wanted the knife that cut through practically anything and the can-opener that did all the work for you, including grasping the lid. I really, really wanted the garlic crusher that peeled the skin of the clove as it crushed. But, what I wanted most of all was the recipe the Pampered Chef lady was using to demonstrate her products, which she did email to us a few days later.

Mmm. Was it ever delish! It's called (if you didn't already figure it out) a Pina Colada Upside Down Cake. Bring it. I love Pineapples.

So, thinking I could avoid owning anything Pampered Chef and still pull of this great recipe, I gathered all the ingredients and was on my way.

Before I go on, though. I need to tell you something about myself. When I get an idea in my head, it's likely that I'm going to try and carry it out...no matter what time of day or night it is.

11:00 pm
  • Pre-heated the oven to 350 degrees.
  • Combined all necessary ingredients, added to cake pan, etc.
  • Put cake into oven.
  • Set timer for 31 minutes.

12:01 am

  • Checked cake and found that it was VERY slurpy.
  • Diagnosed that my cake pan was too small and too deep for the amount of batter.
  • Wished I had the Pampered Chef Skillet that was used at the cooking show.
  • Set the timer for 5 more minutes.

12:06 am

  • Checked the cake again and found that the middle was still slurpy and the edges were getting dangerously brown.
  • Took it out to cool on the off chance it would thicken.

12:15 am

  • Got impatient and readied myself to turn the cake upside down.
  • Found that it was still too slurpy. There was a bubble of batter rolling around in the middle of the cake.
  • Turned the oven down to 315 degrees.
  • Placed the cake in the oven with high hopes.

1:45 am

  • Hear Jim's voice in the middle of my dream. "Sarah!"
  • Woke up a little miffed. The alarm hadn't gone off yet.
  • Questioned why all the lights were still on at 1:45 am.
  • Freaked out becaused I realized the cake was still in the oven.

The cake survived. Quite surprisingly, it survived. It came out a little rubbery, but not at all blackened as I expected. We haven't tried any yet, but I'm bound to enjoy it somehow. My Pina Colada Upside Down Cake was spared, but I think it's a clear sign that I should invest in some Pampered Chefware.

3 comments:

HonorMommy said...

Pampered Chef would be pleased with this blog.... ;-D

Anonymous said...

I once made a pineapple upside-down cake in which I added TWICE as much melted butter to the bottom of the pan as I was supposed to.

It was, um, buttery. :)

Sarah said...

I think I did that, too...the double butter problem...still haven't tried it, but I'm sure I will soon echo your sentiments!

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