This orange upside-down cake has variety of oranges baked in a buttery caramel under a tender, moist citrus cake. It is then flipped over for a delicious and gorgeous dessert!
Cut the oranges so that you slice off the rind and the thin skin exposing the pulp. Cut out sûpremes (slice out the pulp from the pith in wedges) or slice them into rounds. The second method uses fewer oranges and is much faster! Clearly I have regrets about my choices in the video!
Spray a 9 inch round pan with cooking spray and the line with parchment. Set aside, and preheat oven to 325°F convection (with the fan) or 350°F conventional (no fan).
Make the caramel, which will be your first layer in the pan. To do this, melt butter in a pot. Add remaining ingredients and cook until boiling and sugar has dissolved and caramelized. Pour in prepared pan and spread out. Arrange orange slices on top artfully.
Sift together cake flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer cream butter, sugar and zest until light and fluffy.
Beat in the eggs one at a time, scraping down between each addition. Add the vanilla with the last egg.
Reduce the mixer speed to low and alternately add the flour mixture with the buttermilk. I like to do the last few folds with a spatula to make sure I don’t over mix the batter.
Pour into prepared pan on top of citrus and then spread out with an offset spatula.
Bake in preheated oven for 35-40 minutes or until puffed, golden brown and a cake tester comes out with a few clinging crumbs in the center.
Release the cake from the sides of the pan while still warm by running a butter knife or offset spatula around the edges.
After 15 minutes, flip out the cake onto a rimmed baking sheet or cooling rack. The caramel will continue to drip, so make sure you have something to catch it! If you wait too long to flip, the caramel will begin to cool and set, and it won’t want to release from the pan. If you flip too soon, the caramel will be too runny and you will end up with a pool of sauce on the counter and not in your cake! Fortunately if this happens, just pour it into a jar or other vessel and pour it over the top when you serve it. Voilà! Problem solved.
Video
Notes
Yield: 1, 9” CakeSubstitutions – Making homemade buttermilk with milk and lemon juice isn’t the same thing, so I recommend substituting ½ cup sour cream mixed with 2 tablespoon water.Variations – Change the flavor of the cake by using different zest, adding spices with the dry ingredients, or by folding fruit into the batter.Storage – I recommend baking this cake immediately after mixing because of the quantity of baking soda. Cool, wrap and store at room temperature for up to 3 days, refrigerated for a week or frozen for several months.