PINEAPPLE UPSIDE DOWN BITES (Adapted from Rachel Ray)

This recipe sounded so good to me – bite sized items go fast at parties, so I knew that would be a success, and I thought they’d be adorable atop a platter.  Recipe makes 24 mini bites, so I’ll triple or maybe quadruple the recipe. Easy peasy although you need to allow time to cut small squares out of parchment paper (see below).

1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/4 cup (packed) light brown sugar
5 maraschino cherries, quartered
1/3 cup diced pineapple, patted dry
1 16 1/2 ounce box yellow cake mix, prepared into batter

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees . Cut out small parchment rounds and place in the cups of two 12-cup mini-muffin tins, layering 1/2 tsp. butter, 1/2 tsp. brown sugar, a cherry piece, a single layer of pineapple (about 5 pieces) and about 1 tbsp. cake batter (cups should be about two-thirds full; save remaining cake batter for another use). 

Bake until golden-brown and a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the center of the cupcakes, about 12 minutes. Immediately run a knife around the edge of each cake and invert to cool on a baking sheet. Serve warm or at room temperature.