My recipe for Pineapple Upside Down Cupcakes

9/11 always makes me cry, I'm so sad for too many lives cut short, for the survivors, & for the painful memories we all, as Americans, have of that day. So today, after watching some of the news coverage, I decided that I needed to bake. It's kind of a stress reliever for me, I think. So I took note of what I had on hand, and began to devise a plan for something sweet & delicious!

Cupcakes: (this made 26 cupcakes)

Duncan Hines Moist Deluxe Pineapple Supreme cake mix
1/3 c oil (I used 1/2 c of applesauce instead)
1 c water
1/3 cup pineapple juice
3 eggs

Mix well, I used my mixer for about 3 minutes on medium to get the lumpy bits out!

filling:

1/2 c butter, softened
1 c light brown sugar
cream together until well blended
&
pineapple rings cut in half, then each half into three pieces - enough for each cupcake to get one piece


Line muffin tin with cupcake liners, fill each cup about 1/2 full, add a piece of the pineapple & a big dollop of the butter/sugar mixture. Then cover with a spoonful of batter to mostly cover the filling.

Bake at 350 about 18 - 22 minutes (Check for doneness with a toothpick or knife).

Let these cool, then frost with (Duncan Hines is what I had on hand!) cream cheese frosting, or you could probably make a buttercream with 3 cups of powdered sugar, 1 stick butter, and a couple tbsp of the pineapple juice mixed in. YUM! I topped the frosting with a drizzle of Smuckers Caramel Ice Cream topping. These are incredible!! BOTH kiddos are loving them!! They'll make great treats in their lunchboxes next week.

***My first batch, I added the filling at the bottom, like an upside down cake. BAD move - the butter seeped through the cups and made a huge mess! Gooey, delicious, awesome, but a big mess!! That's when these became inside out instead of upside down!!*****

Hope y'all enjoy them as much as we are - they are good!