Apple Upside Down Cake is a very easy recipe. Not only is it easy but it tastes so good too. It works perfectly as a dessert, with some cream. But it is also great as an accompaniment to a lovely cup of tea.
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As the name suggests the cake has apple on the bottom, when it goes into the oven. But when serving the cake the apple is on the top. As for the apples I prefer to use a sweet type, in this case Royal Gala. Of course any apples will be fine. However if using a sharp apple like Granny Smith you might wish to sprinkle some sugar over them before covering with the cake batter. Since Royal Gala are a lovely sweet apple I didn’t need to use sugar on them.
One advantage of making an upside down cake, rather than including apples in the batter, is that the cake is likely to bake better since it doesn’t have lots of juice released into it during baking. The cake also looks so good when it is served, with that nice thick layer of apple on the top.
Of course there are lots of recipes for apple cake with the apple in the batter. I have some on the blog too. They are good, but I feel this one serves my preference better.
The cake is so easy to make too, using equal quantities of flour, sugar, butter and eggs, as you might find in a pound cake recipe.
Ingredients
Apples – Peeled, cored and sliced quite thinly. I use Royal Gala but any apples will be good.
Flour – Plain or all purpose flour is best for this type of cake.
Sugar – I use caster sugar for the cake batter, but granulated sugar also work. I also use a little light brown sugar for sprinkling. That can also be sprinkled over the apples if they are a little sharp.
Butter – Unsalted butter is detailed in the recipe, but you can use salted butter and omit the salt from the recipe.
Eggs – Medium eggs in UK/Europe or Large eggs in North America. I specify a number of eggs(4) but the weight out of the shell is very close to the weight of the previous ingredients.
Vanilla Extract – to flavour the cake batter.
Baking Powder – as a raising agent.
Baking Soda – another raising agent.
Salt – to draw out the flavours.
Apricot Jam with a little brandy – for a glaze.
Process for Apple Upside Down Cake
It is best to start by preheating the oven and then greasing a 9 inch/23cm springform pan or the same size pan with a loose bottom.
Then whisk the eggs with the sugar until very pale and thick. Whisk in the vanilla too. Mix the baking powder, baking soda and salt into the flour. Then add half that mixture into the eggs and gently whisk to combine. Add half the butter and whisk again. Repeat the process with the remaining flour and butter.
Arrange the apple slices in the bottom of the cake pan, in whatever pattern you wish. Then cover with the cake batter and level it off. Sprinkle a little of the brown sugar on the top.
Bake the cake for 45 to 50 minutes until it rises well and takes on a good colour. Allow it to sit in the pan for 15 minutes. Meanwhile heat the apricot jam and brandy, stirring to make a thick glaze.
Turn the cake out onto a wire rack to cool. As it cools you can brush the glaze over the top. Then sprinkle some brown sugar on as well.
My Cake
I let my cake bake for 46 minutes, by which time a skewer in the centre came out clean. I left it to cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Then I put it on a wire rack, upside down. I put the glaze over the top and then some brown sugar.
After it was cool I cut a slice ready for a taste. The taste was superb. The sweetness of the lovely Royal Gala apples was great. The cake was soft and light and very good indeed. A most enjoyable cake or dessert.
Another great cake recipe is Last-Minute Christmas Mincemeat Cake.
Apple Upside Down Cake
10
servings30
minutes50
minutesKeep the screen of your device on
Ingredients
450g(1lb) apple slices
200g(1 1/3 cups, based on scooping packed flour into a 250ml cup) plain flour
200g(1 cup) caster sugar
200g(14 tbsp + 1 tsp) very soft unsalted butter
4 medium egg(large in USA) – mine weighed 204g out of the shell
5ml(1 tsp) vanilla extract
11g(2 3/4 tsp) baking powder
2g(1/2 tsp) baking soda
1.5g(1/4 tsp) salt
40g(2 tbsp) apricot jam in 10ml(2 tsp)brandy
37g(3 tbsp) light brown sugar, for sprinkling
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 180C/160C Fan/350F.
- Grease a 9inch/23cm springform pan and line the base with parchment paper.
- Place the eggs and sugar into a large bowl and whisk them for about 5 minutes until they are pale and thick.
- Pour in the vanilla extract and whisk to combine.
- Mix the baking powder, baking soda and salt into the flour.
- Add half the flour into the egg mixture and gently whisk or stir to combine.
- Do the same with half of the butter.
- Repeat the process with the remaining flour and butter.
- Set the batter aside and arrange the apple slices, however you wish, into the cake pan.
- Scrape the batter over the apple slices and then spread it out to level it off.
- Sprinkle some light brown sugar over the top of the batter.
- Bake the cake for 45 to 50 minutes, until it has risen well and taken on some colour. A skewer in the centre should come out clean.
- Leave the cake in the pan for 15 minutes, then turn it out, upside down so the apple it on the top, onto a wire rack.
- Heat the apricot jam and brandy in a pan, stirring to create a nice thick glaze.
- Brush the glaze over the apples as the cake cools.
- Sprinkle with brown sugar and leave to cool until you are ready to serve.