Peach Upside-Down Cake

With a cake that’s all made in one bowl, this upside-down peach cake couldn’t be a better dessert for summer! Peach slices are lined on the bottom of a pan, an easy caramel sauce is drizzled on top, and the batter is spread over everything. Once baked, the cake is inverted, and a more beautiful dessert couldn’t be found. Plus, it’s super easy to make!

Why this recipe works.

Adding fruit to cake is not as easy as it sounds. Fruit in the batter can leech too much liquid and make the cake dense. Instead, I wanted a recipe to give the fruit a front seat and use the best of the flavor and texture. This upside-down peach cake does just that. Ripe peaches are placed on the bottom of the cake pan with a quick caramel. The caramel adds some sweetness but more so a nice complementing flavor to the peaches. The batter is a simple cake with a perfect crumb that can be mixed together in one bowl and poured over the peaches. The result is a perfect snacking cake. Peaches on top with a caramel that soaks in and delicious cake. Peach season can’t come soon enough.

Everything you’ll need to make this recipe.

• Peaches are the star of this entire recipe and need to be ripe. Ripe peaches will be easy to peel and will have the best flavor. If using frozen peaches, allow them to thaw fully before using.
• Cornmeal adds both texture and sweetness to the cake. The sweetness plays well with any stone fruit, such as peaches, in this cake. And the texture creates a contrast between the gooey smoothness of the caramel and the cake.
• Baking powder will add lift and texture, ensuring that the cake rises the way it should while in the oven.
• Buttermilk adds more flavor than ordinary milk. Plus, the tangy sweet buttermilk gives the cake a more tender crumb.

Here’s how to make this recipe.

1. Prepare the caramel sauce. Add the white granulated sugar to a shallow pan and place over medium to medium-low heat on the stove. Let the sugar heat until the edges begin to crystallize and dissolve. Then, using a spatula, being to pull the sugar into the center of the pan. Once the sugar is mostly dissolved, swirl the pan to ensure everything is fully melted.

2. Prepare the peaches. While the sugar is melted, remove the skin from each peach and slice it into wedges. Line the peach slices around the bottom of a well-greased 9-inch circular pan fitted with a parchment round.

3. Pour on the caramel sauce. Remove the caramel sauce from the heat and slowly pour it over the top of the peach slices in the pan, making sure to cover most of the peaches. Scrape out any of the residual caramel sauce from the pan and drizzle on top of the peaches. Set the pan aside while preparing the batter.

4. Mix together the batter. In a large bowl, add the room-temperature butter and white granulated sugar. Using a spatula, mash the butter and sugar together. Then switch to a wire whisk and mix until the butter and sugar are combined and light and fluffy in texture. Add in the eggs and vanilla extract and mix until combined. Then add the flour, cornmeal, salt, and baking powder. Begin mixing the dry ingredients together while slowly pouring in the buttermilk. Once the batter is mostly mixed, finish by folding it together with a spatula.

5. Bake the cake. Pour the mixed batter on top of the pan with the peaches and caramel sauce. Use an offset spatula to smooth out the top of the cake and ensure the batter covers all of the peaches. Place the cake in the preheated 350°F oven and bake for 50 to 60 minutes until the top is golden brown and a skewer inserted in the center comes out mostly clean. Let the cake cool for 15 to 20 minutes, then flip it by placing a serving plate on top and inverting the cake pan. 

These pro tips will make this recipe a success.

• To make sure you have the ripest peaches, let them sit on the countertop for a few days before using them. When the skin begins to get a bit wrinkly, they’re ready to peel and will peel beautifully.
• While arranging the peaches in a circular pattern around the bottom of the baking pan is not necessary, it does result in a beautiful cake. Since the cake will be flipped once baked, what’s in the bottom of the pan will become the top.
• To avoid getting any unknown pieces of shell into your cake batter, crack each egg into a small bowl before adding to the batter.
• To get the correct amount of flour in the batter, do not scoop your measuring cup into your flour container. Instead, hold your measuring cup and add flour gently using a scoop. Then level off the top of the measuring cup with the back of the scoop. This will ensure that you do not add too much flour and the cake texture is light.
• Make sure to invert the cake onto your serving platter while it is still warm. If the cake cools completely, the caramel sauce will harden and will not come out of the baking pan as easily.

You’ll love these other cake recipes.

• Rhubarb buttermilk cake
• Lemon pudding cake
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• Chocolate fudge pudding cake
• Orange and zucchini olive oil cake
• Boston cream pie
• Classic blueberry coffee cake
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