A vixen in tangerine

She's curvaceous yet demure, displaying her lines and slopes in quiet modesty. In certain angles, she appears matte and understated while beneath glaring lights she glistens. In one instant, she charges at breakneck speed...seconds later, she plods along. She hooks you in with her piercing claw, beats you to an exhaustive finish with an authoritative hand and spins you into a frenzy with her dizzying charm. Her outstanding charisma commands the attention of all those in the room. She is a Kitchen Aid mixer and she comes in tangerine.

I count this legendary piece of equipment - the machine of all machines for home cooks and haute chefs alike - as my favorite Christmas present of all time, a "trinket" gifted to me by my one and only. All kitchen geeks should be in possession of this timeless tool, for it mixes and churns ingredients with minimal effort and impeccable expertise. Sans hands, your butter and sugar gets whipped to a creamy stage while egg whites stiffen to sky-rising peaks. Cooks who harbor a more adventurous spirit can even attach a meat grinder or pasta maker to this versatile contraption.

Owning such a luxury is still an ethereal concept to me even after nearly two months of receiving this jewel of an appliance. I've been so in awe of my Kitchen Aid mixer, that I dared to not even tinker with it, for fear of bungling one of its brilliantly engineered settings. But how could I deprive myself of creating fun and yummy treats via the use of one of the most coveted kitchen inventions of all time? Finally, after weeks of agony and trepidation, I christened my Kitchen Aid mixer by baking a pineapple upside down cake for my one and only.

Pardon the drama, but my hands were literally shaking as I toyed with the attachments and settings. I enlisted the help of my one and only who snapped the beater into place with nonchalance. After a few practice rounds of inserting and detaching the attachments, my fear segued into confidence. I admit that initially, I forgot to lock the bowl into place, which resulted in several noisy clanks and sputters. Minutes later, I was liaising with the mixer as comfortably as collaborating with a regular hand mixer. This modern yet classic toy truly doubles in speed when compared to the hare pace of its old-fashioned, hand-held counterparts. With that in mind, you'll want to monitor your mixing time. I forgot about the mixer's godly power and let it spin my cake batter into rapid swirly motions longer than desired. What stood before me was a gloppy clump that I moistened with an extra 1/2 cup of milk. Fortunately, that emergency addendum helped create a cake that was still spongy and soft on the inside. We loved the edges of crackly brown sugar which crystallized like pieces of toffee. If you're not within arm's reach of fresh pineapple, canned slices will still do a bang-up job. And go ahead and vamp things up with plump pieces of maraschino cherry. I used the recipe below, courtesy of the Joy of Baking. Not in possession of a Kitchen Aid mixer? Well by all means, go fetch one. She also comes in gloss cinnamon, another come-hither color. 

Pineapple Upside Down Cake
Source: Joy of Baking

Ingredients

Topping:
4 tablespoons (1/4 cup) (55 grams) unsalted butter

3/4 cup (160 grams) light brown sugar

1 medium pineapple (peeled, quartered, cored, and sliced 1/4 inch thick) or 20 oz. can of pineapple slices

Maraschino cherries or candied cherries (optional) 

Cake Batter:

1 1/2 cups (195 grams) all purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 cup (200 grams) granulated white sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 large eggs, separated

1/2 cup (120 ml) milk

1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C) and place rack in the center of the oven. Butter (or spray with a non stick vegetable spray) a 9 inch (23 cm) round cake pan.

 

Topping: Place the butter and brown sugar in a small saucepan and stir over medium heat until the butter has melted and the sugar has dissolved. Continue cooking for a few more minutes until the sugar starts to caramelize. Then remove from heat, and pour into your prepared cake pan. Evenly arrange the fresh pineapple slices on the bottom of the pan. (Can also garnish with cherries.)

Cake Batter: In a large bowl, sift or whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.

In the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and then beat in the vanilla extract. Add the egg yolks, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the flour mixture (in three additions), alternately with the milk (in two additions), ending with the dry ingredients. 

In a clean bowl, whisk the egg whites with the cream of tartar just until the whites hold a firm peak. With a large spatula gently fold the beaten egg whites into the cake batter in two additions. Pour the batter into the cake pan, smoothing the top. Bake in preheated oven for 45 - 55 minutes, or until the top of the cake has browned and starts to pull away from the sides of the pan (a toothpick inserted into the cake (not the pineapple) will come out clean). Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool for about 10 minutes. Run a sharp knife around the edge of the pan and then invert the cake onto your serving plate.

Serve with softly whipped cream.

Makes one - 9 inch (23 cm) cake. Serves 6 to 8.