If you drop an upside-down cake on its head does it revert to plain old cake? Sadly, no. It just becomes yet another item to file under “Kitchen Disasters.”
The only advice I can give you, other than not to drop the final dish, is to resist the temptation to make this in a spring form pan. When I read “deep 9-inch round cake pan”, I thought I could improvise. Instead, I wound up scraping charred caramel off the oven floor. Other than that? It’s a charmer. Light, moist, with just a hint of almond, it’s a perfect addition to afternoon tea. Need a more practical excuse? It uses the peaches hogging all your valuable counter space while simultaneously thwarting those blasted fruit lies. If you don’t have blueberries, don’t fuss. Try raspberries or blackberries instead — or simply up the peaches.
I was going to serve mine with vanilla creme fraiche. But things didn’t quite turn out as planned. And pottery shards aren’t a recommended garnish. Trust me on this one.
This recipe is adapted from Rose Murray’s Hungry for Comfort. She says it makes six servings. I wouldn’t know…
Peach and Blueberry Upside-Down Cake
- 3 tbsp butter
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 4 large, ripe peaches, peeled and cut into thin slices
- 1 cup blueberries
- 1/3 cup butter, room temperature
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 egg
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
- 1/2 tsp almond extract
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 cup milk
- Set oven to 350F. Place the 3 tbsp butter and brown sugar in a deep, 9-inch round cake pan and place in the oven while it heats. Once the butter has fully melted, remove the pan from the oven. Stir the butter and sugar until they’re well blended and evenly coat the bottom of the pan.
- Peel and slice the peaches. Sprinkle the blueberries evenly over the bottom of the pan. Insert the peach slices, rounded side down, between the berries.
- In a large bowl, cream the 1/3 cup butter and sugar together. Add the egg, vanilla and almond extract, and beat until combined.
- Sift the flour and baking powder together. Add a third of the flour to the batter and stir until blended. Add half the milk and stir until blended. Add the remaining flour and milk, alternately, being sure to end with the flour. This is important to the texture of the cake.
- Spoon the batter gently over the fruit.
- Bake for 55 to 60 minutes or until the cake is golden brown all over and springs back when tapped.
- Cool on a rack for 10 minutes, then run a knife around the edge to loosen the cake. Invert the cake onto a plate.
- Serve warm with ice cream, creme fraiche or whipped cream
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{ 11 comments… read them below or add one }
Sounds great. I’ve got a peach tart in my plans today for those peaches hogging MY counter up. : )
@Michelle, sounds delicious. I made a galette this weekend and will be posting about it soon. Tarts are another delicious way to clear the counter.
This looks great and a wonderful way to use leftover blueberries and peaches, my favorite combination.
@Alison, I love this combination, too. Nature knew what she was doing when she arranged to have peaches and blueberries ripen at the same time.
I find myself wondering … is that picture pre-disaster, or did you bake another one to photograph? In any case, I also find myself shedding a tear. No dessert should meet such a bitter and tragic end.
@The Diva on a Diet, it was taken pre-disaster. I’d made the salad and the cake for my TV session. Jinxed or what? Oh well, at least I didn’t drop the galette I made this weekend. Hope that means my luck is changing (or my coordination is improving.)
Thanks for your commiseration.
This looks so great, Charmian! Now, I have another excuse to buy peaches at the farmer’s market this week! I was wondering, though, how tall is this cake? Is it about 3 inches tall? Could I possibly, double the cake part of the recipe, and make this a two layer cake? I have this bottomless mascarpone cheese tub, and I was thinking of making a making up an vanilla bean and agave-spiked whipped mascarpone filling between the layers of such a cake. Does this sound like a disaster waiting to happen? Thanks, wise sage!
@Steve, great question. I love when people think beyond the recipe. The cake is about 3-inches high, but is very top-heavy (once inverted) I don’t think it would support a second layer. However, your flavour combination is so intriguing I’d hate for you to not try something. Why not invert the cakes into a flat bottomed dish with tall sides — with the mascarpone in between, of course — and calling it a trifle?
I suspect the final results will be goopy but delicious. If you do try this, let me know how it turns out!
Please excuse the typos in the previous message, it’s quite late. I hope you still get the question, lol.
OMG, are we on the same wave length or what? I’ve been MIA for a while (new baby and all that) but look at my post for July 24. http://www.kitchenvixen.ca/daily-bread/2010/7/24/ontarios-best-in-one-cake.html
Our cakes look so similar! Gorgeous
I’m just going through your old posts to find out how your reno went!
@Carrie, congrats on the new baby! That’s the best reason for being MIA.
Funny how these recipes seem to cluster. But it’s the season. I just take it as a sign that blueberry and peach upside down cake is a great idea!