Upside-Down Cake is a versatile dessert that can be easily made in just about an hour. In this recipe, I use fresh peaches. While I always recommend using fresh fruit, I have seen some use canned fruit and both work out well. In addition, I love nuts, especially walnuts. Nuts add a nice texture to the final product and help to balance the sweetness of the topping.
When I was a child, my mother used to make the old Betty Crocker Pineapple Upside-Down cake recipe. That recipe called for canned pineapple rings and maraschino cherries. As a child, and even now, I struggle with pineapple. We just don’t like each other. When my mother made the Pineapple Upside-Down cake, I would sneak into the kitchen and gently scrape away the caramel topping between the pineapple rings, and if my fork brushed the pineapple, I wouldn’t eat it. For some odd reason, my behavior was frowned upon. Consequently, while she never made the cake with a different fruit, she made sure I didn’t get my hands on another one.
This Peach Upside-Down Cake, like every other upside-down cake, consists of a topping (created in the bottom of the pan) and a simple white cake. If you have a favorite white cake recipe, you can use your own, or try mine below. Likewise, if you have a favorite white cake mix, you can use that. Above all, be creative, experiment with your fruit of choice, and make it your own. You are the master of this cake. Just make sure no one tries to scrape away the caramel topping!
Peach Upside-Down Cake Recipe
Ingredients:
Cake:
- 1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 1 1/3 tsp baking powder
- 1/3 tsp salt
- 1/4 pound butter ( 1 stick ), softened
- 1 large egg
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/2 cup half and half
Topping
- 1/4 cup of melted butter
- 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
- 2-3 large peaches, sliced with skin on
01
Slice Peaches into thin wedges and set aside.
02
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Prepare the batter –
Mix the flour, baking powder and salt and set aside.
In a separate bowl, whip the softened butter and add in sugar. Mix well.
Add in egg and mix.
Add vanilla and mix.
Gradually add flour mixture alternately with the half and half, mixing well after each addition.
Set aside.
03
Prepare the topping.
Melt the butter and pour into the bottom of a 9” round cake pan.
Sprinkle brown sugar over the melted butter, making sure it is evenly distributed.
Arrange peach slices in your desired pattern until the bottom of the pan is covered.
04
Spoon batter evenly over the topping.
Bake for 40-45 minutes. Test for doneness by inserting a tooth pick in the center of the cake. If it comes out clean, it is done.
05
Remove the cake from the oven and allow to cool for 10-15 minutes.
Run a knife along the sides of the pan to loosen.
Cover the pan with a plate that is larger, in diameter, than then pan.
Using hot pads or a towel, flip the pan and plate upside-down (or right side-up, in this case). Carefully lift the pan from the cake. Don’t be alarmed If any bits are stuck to the pan. They can be removed, with a knife, and reapplied to the cake while it is still sticky.
Decorate the sides of the cake with walnut halves, lightly pressing the walnuts into the gooey sides of the cake.
This cake is best served slightly warm to room temperature. The simple white cake is taken to another level with the creaminess of the half and half. The caramelization of the peaches and the added touch of raw walnuts compliment one another very well. While you might not want to share this cake, it is the perfect dessert to bring to any gathering.
Variations:
In place of peaches, try plums, whole fresh figs, fresh cut up pineapple, Amarena cherries, or even Concord grapes (shown above). Cut enough of the desired fruit to fill the bottom of the pan. It is one of those desserts that is easy to put together, and very forgiving. Have fun and enjoy!
