Pineapple Upside-Down Cake

There is one compliment which I prize higher than any other for my cooking: "as good as my grandma's."

This recipe got me that compliment. And from a Texan who doesn't normally eat upside-down cake because his grandma's spoiled him for all others.

The cake is both airy and chewy, the sugar syrup is rich but not sickly, the fruit holds up. If you've never had a fresh upside-down cake (like me, who'd mostly had it in cafeterias or from supermarkets), it's a revelation.

Warning: step 1 is, essentially, "make caramel." This can become a black and useless mess easily, and there's nothing you can do but throw it out, wipe out the pan, and start over. But that's part of learning, and it's about timing, not anything hard to do - you just have to watch the sugar and move quickly when it looks like time.