Hawaii Bound Oahu Pineapple Spice Cake

We are truly Oahu bound tomorrow morning, so I thought I would kick-off the trip with a little visit down Cooking With Alice memory lane. Hawaii (and the Bradys) hold special significance for us. When I turned 30, we took our first trip to Hawaii as that year we dedicated ourselves to only going on Brady Bunch vacations (the others were obviously King's Island and the Grand Canyon). And, two years ago we celebrated two 50th celebrations at once (Mark's b-day and Hawaii's statehood) with a luau extravaganza. That said, pineapple cake. Flour, eggs, oil, cinnamon, nutmeg, sugars (white and brown), and pineapple baked in a Bundt pan (which I had to borrow, since this is the first and probably last time I will ever make a holey cake). The best part is the icing, with among the sugar also includes rum and a lot of butter.  Of course, the recipe directions were less than complete, but that's why I love Alice, always providing me with a culinary challenge.

"Hawaii Bound" The first of the three part Hawaiian Brady Bunch epic. Mike has a big construction project he is overseeing in Oahu and takes the whole family along for the ride. Everything is coming up hibiscus for the Brady's in paradise.They take a whirlwind tour of the island, including Diamond Head and a solemn visit to  Pearl Harbor. The son of the man who owns the construction company offers to show Greg the island "sights" and do some surfing. Cindy and Bobby have a chance encounter with Don Ho. The girls all take in the shopping. Bobby even finds a cute little good luck charm at the construction site that he wears around his neck. The sun is shining, the birds are singing, it seems as if there is absolutely nothing that could spoil this idyllic family vacation...


The Recipe: (prepare at your own risk...remember it is from Alice)

For the cake:
1 1/2c oil
1/4c firmly packed brown sugar
1c sugar
3 eggs
1c pineapple, chopped (juice reserved, Alice doesn't say it, but trust me)
3c flour
1tbsp baking powder
1tsp salt
1tsp cinnamon
1/2tsp nutmeg
1/4tsp ginger
1/4tsp allspice (which begs the question, if it is truly all spice, why do we need the other spices?)

For the glaze:
1/3c pineapple juice
1/4c butter
1/4c sugar
1/4c brown sugar
1/4c rum

Special equipment: Bundt Pan

In a medium bowl whisk the oil and both sugars. Add the eggs one at a time. In a separate bowl combine the flour and the the spices. Blend the dry ingredients into the egg mixture, then add the pineapple. Pour batter into a greased and floured 10-inch bundt pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes (it took longer) or until the cake pulls away from the sides of the pan. Turn cake out onto a cake platter and cool.

In a saucepan combine the juice, sugars and the rum. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat and simmer for 7 minutes. Cool and drizzle over the cake.