Upside-down cakes are one of those desserts that seem intimidating to make, but actually aren’t all that bad. The hardest part is the caramel sauce; other than that, it’s just fruit and cake!
That caramel, though. Let me tell you; when it goes wrong, it goes wrong. Just look at this.
I don’t know about you, but that does not look like a sauce to me. It was tasty as a caramel hard candy, but it definitely wasn’t right. Fortunately, I hadn’t poured my batter in before noticing that it had gone hard, so I was able to re-do it properly.
The end result of this cake is a flavorful, spiced cake with a sweet-tangy layer of cooked fruit and caramel across the top. I made mine in a bundt pan to be fancy, but it’s usually made in a regular cake pan or a springform pan, so feel free to use those if you prefer, just adjust your cooking time accordingly.
Cranberry Upside-Down Cake
Equipment
- Stand Mixer
- Cake Pan
- Sauce Pan
Ingredients
- ¾ Cup Brown Sugar
- 12 Tbsp Butter Divided, 4 and 8 tbsp.
- 12 Oz Cranberries
- 1¾ Cup Flour
- 2 Tsp Baking Powder
- ½ Tsp Ginger
- ½ Tsp Cinnamon
- 1 Pinch Cloves
- 1½ Cups White Sugar
- 3 Eggs
- 1 Tbsp Orange Zest
- ½ Cup Plain Yogurt
- ¼ Cup Milk
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350℉. Grease your cake pan well.
- Add the 4 tbsp of butter and brown sugar to a heavy-bottomed sauce pan and heat over medium-high until the butter melts and the sugar mixes well into it.
- Pour the caramel mix into the bottom of your cake pan, then pour the cranberries over the top. Set this aside while you make the cake.
- Whisk the flour, baking powder, and spices in a bowl.
- In a mixer, beat the 8 tbsp of butter and sugar together until fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time while beating, then add in the orange zest. Next, alternate scoops of flour mix and yogurt, about a third of each at a time. Once this is all combined, add the milk to finish it off.
- Pour the cake batter over the cranberries in your cake pan and spread it evenly.
- Put the cake in the oven but immediately reduce the heat to 325℉. Bake for about 50-60 minutes, or until the internal temperature of the cake is 205-210. When done, remove from the oven and let cool for 10 or so minutes, before turning it out onto a flat surface to finish cooling.