There's no formaldehyde. That's a myth.

Maraschino Cherry

I use beet or beet root powder if i want red. (but i bet that sounds kook and weird.) When some of my rhubarb is pale and not as red as the younger stalks, i use raspberries and a few strawberries i always have some frozen.

I like the pink in that cake. Not had it in years but it was a family favorite that my grandmother made. I don't think she used cherries at all. We used local strawberries being so plentiful and probably tinned crushed pineapple.

I used to make pineapple upside down cake in the restaurant in San Francisco where I worked in the mid 1970s, and I made it with fresh pineapple, which I simply cut into pieces, and there were no rings and therefore no holes. If you are using rings, you can cut them in half and arrange them differently, as in an "S" pattern. I had to make large quantities in the restaurant, and I was so tired after cutting up that many pineapples that I could not be bothered with cherries. It was a hippy style restaurant, and the cake always sold. I would make two 16" x 24" rectangular pans of that cake at once, and I had to make four more pans of two other items each night that I worked. I had to make a syrup from the pineapple juice that I collected (plus some brown sugar) because the fresh pineapples were tart.

Raspberries are in season now.

I like the "S" shape instead of rings. My friend suggested coconut all over for "Tropical Upside Down Cake". I think a raspberry sorbet would go well with it. It is supposed to be served instead of birthday cake and ice cream since most of the guests have an allergy to this or that. So, gluten free, dairy free, nut free, soy free, and no weird chemicals. If someone says they can't eat sugar, then they have to go eat salad. Thanks for the inspiration.

I don't want cherries decorating my pineapple upside down cake.

I just core a pineapple, and cut the slices in half and overlap them in a circle.

Sometimes I topped with toasted pecans.