Introduction: Pineapple Upside Down Cup-Pies

It is a mystery of the universe as to why, exactly, but everything is better in miniature. And while a traditional, store-bought pie crust isn't the most flavourful treat, we can offset that with the tangy taste of pineapple. Prepare in personal sizes, flip upside down, and serve a la mode and you've got a dish that won't soon be forgotten.

Step 1: Materials

For this recipe you will need:

20 oz. can pineapple, chopped or crushed
20 oz. can pineapple rings
3/4 cup sugar
3 tblsp corn starch
1 tblsp lemon juice
1 pre-made dbl. crust pie crust

You will also need:

A cupcake pan (jumbo if you can get it; here I've used the standard size)
Medium Saucepan
A wooden spoon
A spoon
A fork
A rolling pin
A can opener
Measuring cup and spoons
Shortening to grease the cupcake pan
A 4" circular cookie cutter

Step 2: Pineapple Filling

Pour your can of crushed or cut pineapple, juice and all, into your saucepan. Add cornstarch, sugar, and lemon juice and put on medium heat until the mixture thickens.

Set aside.

Step 3: Pie Crust Prep

Open up your pre-made pie crust and use your cookie cutter to cut out as many circles as you can. You'll need twelve to fill the 1 cupcake pan. Six of the circles need to be rolled thinner so that you can line each entire cup.

You can ball up and re-roll the scraps if you need more crust, or plan to try and fill up a second pan.

Step 4: Assembly

Pre-heat your oven to 425 Fahrenheit and grease your pan.

Open and drain your pineapple rings. Place one in the bottom of each cup of your cupcake pan. If it won't fit, just cut it up so that it will. It didn't occur to me until after I'd made the pies, but you could use a smaller cookie cutter on the pineapple rings to make them fit into your cups. Either way, once you've got your bit of pineapple on the bottom, set your wider, thinner circle of crust on top of it, lining the cup.

Spoon in your filling until you are level with the top of the pan.

Place your smaller circle of pie crust on top and seal the seams.

Place into the oven and bake for about 25 minutes.

Step 5: Om Nom Nom...

When the pies are done, the crust will be that nice golden-brown colour indicative of all that is wonderful in the world. Give them a moment to cool before trying to remove them from the pan. I had no trouble just plucking them up by the edges of the crust, so don't worry about trying to flip them over onto a pan or anything like that...

Serve upside down and with anything you want. I went with a nice vanilla ice cream because I've found that pineapple and vanilla go wonderfully together, but that's a story for another Instructable.

Enjoy!

Serious Eats Pi Day Pie Contest

Participated in the
Serious Eats Pi Day Pie Contest