Cranberry-Pineapple Upside Down Cake

Heat the oven (with the oven rack in the middle) to 350°F. Butter a 9-inch round cake pan.

For the cranberry topping, put 4 tablespoons of the butter and 2/3 cup of the sugar in the pan and transfer to the oven. Bake, stirring half way through, until the mixture starts to turn light golden brown, 10 to 15 minutes. Stir again, spread into an even layer, and place on a wire cooling rack. In a medium bowl, toss together the cranberries and pineapple juice. Spoon the cranberries and juice over the sugar and spread the cranberries into a single layer.

While the sugar-butter mixture bakes, make the cake: In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a liquid measuring cup, measure the buttermilk then add the vanilla.

In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, use an electric mixer on medium-high speed to beat the butter until creamy. Add the sugar and beat until fluffy, about 1 minute. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary. With the mixer on low speed, add half of the flour mixture. Then add the buttermilk mixture. Now add the remaining flour mixture. Mix until just incorporated but do not over mix. Scrape the batter over the cranberries and gently spread into an even layer.

Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, 40 to 48 minutes. Let cool on a wire cooling rack for 20 minutes. Run a knife around the cake to loosen it from the pan. Invert onto a plate and lift off the pan. Hopefully it comes out perfectly. If a few cranberries stick to the pan, just patch them back into the cake. Serve warm or at room temperature.