PINEAPPLE UPSIDE-DOWN PUMPKIN GINGERBREAD

Pineapple Upside-Down Pumpkin Gingerbread image

Provided by Selma Brown Morrow

Yield Makes 10 servings

Number Of Ingredients 21

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Topping:
Nonstick vegetable oil spray
2/3 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
2 tablespoons frozen pineapple juice concentrate, thawed
1 teaspoon mild-flavored (light) molasses
1 ripe pineapple, peeled
Cake:
2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 cup mild-flavored (light) molasses
1/2 cup canned pure pumpkin
1/2 cup boiling water
Whipped cream

Steps:

For topping:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray 9x9x2-inch metal baking pan with nonstick spray. Combine sugar, butter, pineapple juice concentrate, and molasses in heavy small saucepan. Bring to boil over medium heat, whisking until sugar dissolves and syrup is smooth; boil 1 minute. Pour evenly into prepared pan.
Cut off one 1/3-inch-thick round from pineapple; cut out core. Place round in syrup in pan. Stand pineapple on end. Cut lengthwise into 1/3-inch-thick slices. Using 3 round cutters of different sizes, cut out rounds from pineapple slices, avoiding core. Arrange rounds close together in single layer in free-form design in syrup.
For cake:
Whisk first 6 ingredients in medium bowl. Beat butter in large bowl until fluffy. Add sugar and beat to blend. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time. Beat in molasses, then pumpkin. Beat in dry ingredients just until blended, occasionally scraping down sides of bowl. Beat in 1/2 cup boiling water. Pour batter evenly into pan.
Bake cake until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 50 minutes. Cool cake in pan 45 minutes. Place platter over pan and invert. Let stand 5 minutes. Gently lift off pan. Serve cake warm or at room temperature with whipped cream.