Why did I ignore the signs?
Things were going well. I'd found not one but TWO recipes for miniature, single-serving pineapple upside down cake. It's my dad's favorite, and my mom makes it for him every year for his birthday. Here I was, making it for just me and the boy for his birthday because it's also his favorite, and I didn't want to have a bunch of leftover cake that we'd be stuck eating for days. Especially if it didn't work out.
That was the one smart move I made.
I used half a bottle of $10 Zapoppan tequila reposado, which is actually quite tasty for a cheap bottle (gotta love Trader Joe's) and soaked a whole can of pineapple rings in it for just a few hours. I baked the little cakes in their ramekins, popped them out to cool as we enjoyed his birthday dinner, then lit a candle and sang him a little off-key rendition of Happy Birthday. I took the first bite, and rushed to stop him before he could make the same mistake.
And then apologized profusely for completely ruining his favorite cake. I'd also ruined the Guinness brownies I'd attempted to make him just a month earlier. Remember how I don't bake?
He was very sweet about the entire ordeal. Apparently the deck was stacked against me because he did mention that my pineapple upside down cake was never going to be a good as his mother's...well, at least I make kick ass carnitas.
Next time, instead of messing with the pineapples, I'll just put some spirits in a caramel topping that goes on AFTER baking. Because this was an absolute and total FAIL. L'sigh.