Friday, August 5, 2011

Blackberry Apple Upside Down Cake

Every time life gets a little bit more hectic than usual, the one thing that suffers the most is my cooking. Honestly -- the self proclaimed "foodie" has been eating Hamburger Helper, Old El Paso tacos and canned Sloppy Joe mix. It's been... interesting. As you can imagine, there has been no baking in the kitchen, and though it makes me sad, it gives me the opportunity to revisit some of the things I've made in the past.
This Blackberry Apple Upside Down Cake is perfect for the end of August because it uses summery blackberries and apples, which peak in the fall. It's elegant enough to be on display but really, it's perfect served alongside a scoop of melty vanilla ice cream. Enjoy!


Blackberry Apple Upside Down Cake
3/4 cup butter, softened and divided
1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup honey
2 large Gala apples, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
1 cup fresh ripe blackberries**
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract


1. Preheat oven to 350°. Melt 1/4 cup butter in a lightly greased 9-inch round cake pan (with sides that are at least 2 inches high) over low heat. Remove from heat. Sprinkle with brown sugar; drizzle honey over brown sugar. Arrange apple slices in concentric circles over brown sugar mixture, overlapping as needed; sprinkle with blackberries.
2. Beat granulated sugar and remaining 1/2 cup butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until blended. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating until blended after each addition.
3. Sift together flour and baking powder. Add flour mixture to sugar mixture alternately with milk, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Beat at low speed just until blended after each addition. Stir in vanilla. Spoon batter over blackberries in pan.
4. Bake at 350° for 45 to 50 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on a wire rack 10 minutes. Carefully run a knife around edge of cake to loosen. Invert cake onto a serving plate, spooning any topping in pan over cake.


**Make sure you test a few of your blackberries before putting them into your cake. I've made this recipe with too-tart berries and it was ruined! Also, swap blackberries for cranberries for a more autumn-y feel.

5 comments:

S.V. said...

This looks so good..... upside down cakes bring back memories of home economics class back in the day. I still love an upside down cake and I still love pineapple ones actually. This however looks so much better than your classic upside cake.

Shirley said...

The top is beautiful, though I don't want to think about fall and the end of summer just yet!

Lomo said...

Fabulous cake!! That is one great summer cake!

Heather said...

Such a beautiful, summery cake! That looks great.

Zoey said...

YUMMMMMMMMMMMMM.