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Apple Upside-Down Cake

Cakes and Cupcakes

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This homemade Apple Upside-Down Cake is full of warm autumn spices (like cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg) and rich, caramel apple flavor. It’s a fluffy spice cake that pairs perfectly with the brown sugar apples. Step-by-step video too!

best apple upside down cake cut into slices

If you’ve never tried an apple upside down cake, then you have got to put it on your list immediately!

It’s quickly becoming one of my favorite desserts for fall!

apple upside down cake cut in slices on brown parchment paper

Thanksgiving is coming in hot this year and I’m still sitting over thinking it’s September and I’ve got a couple of months until the holidays are upon us.

Someone just posted that’s there’s only 6 more Saturdays until Christmas and I nearly panicked. That means even less Saturdays until Thanksgiving and Black Friday, and I don’t have my menu planned.

Of course, we’re pretty traditional when it comes to Thanksgiving so making a menu really just means writing down all of our standard dishes on a new sheet of paper (you know, homemade cranberry sauce, turkey, mashed potatoes & sweet potatoes—because I can’t give either one up so we must have both—stuffing, sweet potato biscuits, etc.).

The desserts are pretty much the same thing. I always want to do something new and fun, but then there’s the dilemma of the classics (like pumpkin pie and apple pie).

Does a family of 10 really need 4-5 pies? Because I can’t forget about the chocolate pecan pie.

And what about people who don’t like pie?? Besides praying for their souls, what do I serve them?!

apple upside down cake cut into slices with ice cream

I’m a chronic over-thinker (as if you couldn’t tell) but Thanksgiving is my holiday.

A holiday centered around food and family and friends.

I know holidays can be tough for a lot of people for a variety of reasons, which is probably why I go so overboard trying to make sure everyone comes in feeling welcomed and leaves feeling like family.

And if that means making a cake for those non-pie people, then cake it is!

Since it can’t be any cake—oh no, it must be a cake that screams fall in every.single.bite—it has to be this caramel Apple Upside-Down Cake.

Gooey, caramelized apples baked in a spice cake batter, served warm with ice cream or whipped cream on top?!

Maybe I won’t be a pie person either this year… 😉

caramel apple upside down cake slice with ice cream

All right, so let’s talk the best Apple Upside-Down Cake. (Biased? For sure.) 

One of my favorite cake recipes of all time is this pineapple upside-down cake (that I went a little overboard with and turned into 3 layers…because, why not?!).

This recipe is fairly similar, although the cake itself is a spice cake (and it’s a thicker/taller cake in general).

The apple portion of this cake can be done two ways: you can slice them in rings, like I did, or you can slice the apple into traditional thin slices.

Why did I slice the apple into rings? 

The truth? I thought it would look prettier in pictures (a lot like how pineapple upside-down cake looks with pineapple rings). However, you definitely do not have do rings. In fact, if you do it in thin slices, you probably will have more apple to cake slice ratio.

caramel apple upside down cake on parchment paper

Also, because I feel like someone will notice and ask…

Yes, the cake made in the video is shorter in size than the cake photographed. 😉

After making, tasting, photographing and videoing, I decided I wanted a thicker cake. Can you fault me?? Who doesn’t want more cake?!

But videoing takes a lot of time. When I re-made the recipe with more cake batter, I opted simply to re-photograph it and use the video footage I already had.

So…now you know. 😂

caramel apple upside down cake slices

Tips & Tricks to this caramel Apple Upside-Down Cake:

  • I used a 9×9 square pan. If you made this in a circular pan, it would need to be a deep dish circular pan, one that has about the same height as a square baking dish
  • This is a homemade spice cake recipe (no cake mix required!), but it’s a fairly easy and straight forward recipe.
  • As mentioned above, you can slice the apples in rings (like I did), or you can cut it into thin slices.
  • Using apple rings in a 9×9 pan, I needed 9 slices (for me, this was about 1-2 apples).
  • If using traditional thin apple slices, you will need 1 large apple or 2 medium apples.
  • I suggest serving this cake warm with ice cream or whipped cream on top.

slice of apple upside down cake with ice cream

 

Who needs a slice?

best apple upside down cake cut into slices
Print
Apple Upside Down Cake
Prep Time
30 mins
Cook Time
40 mins
 
This homemade Apple Upside-Down Cake is full of warm autumn spices (like cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg) and rich, caramel apple flavor. It’s a fluffy spice cake that pairs perfectly with the brown sugar apples. Step-by-step video too!
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: apple upside down cake
Servings: 9 -12 slices
Author: Michelle
Ingredients
Topping
  • 4 Tbsp butter melted
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 1-2 large apples (sliced into rings or traditional thin slices)
Spice Cake
  • 3/4 cup butter, softened
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 3 eggs
  • 2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
  • 3 Tbsp cornstarch
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 3/4 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 3/4 tsp ground cloves
  • 1/2 tsp ground allspice
  • 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
  • 1/4 tsp ground ginger
  • 3/4 cup buttermilk
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 3 Tbsp sour cream
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9x9 square baking dish.
  2. Pour melted butter into your baking dish and tilt the pan around until the butter is spread evenly on the bottom. Sprinkle brown sugar over the top of the butter. Lay apple slices on top of the brown sugar. Set aside.
  3. With a standing mixer or a hand mixer, beat butter until light and fluffy, about 1-2 minutes.
  4. Add in brown sugar and granulated sugar. With your mixer, beat the sugar with the butter until light and fluffy.
  5. Add in the eggs, one at a time, beating bell after each addition.
  6. Add in flour, cornstarch, baking powder, salt and all spices. Using your mixer (or a rubber spatula), mix until just combined (it’s okay if there’s still a little white in the batter).
  7. Add in buttermilk and mix until just combined.
  8. Lastly, add in the vanilla extract and sour cream, mixing until everything is just combined.
  9. Pour the batter on top of the apples, spreading in an even layer.
  10. Bake for 35- 40 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean.
  11. Allow the cake to cool for about 10-15 minutes, then invert the pan onto a plate and lightly tap the pan until the cake comes out.
  12. Serve warm with ice cream or whipped cream.
Recipe Notes

*Instead of using a square pan, you can use a 9x9 deep dish circular pan (about the same depth as a 9x9 square baking pan). 

 

apple upside-down cake photo collage with text

 

Here are some other recipe you might love:

Slow Cooker Spiced Apples

Slow Cooker Spiced Apples Recipe -- These sweet slow cooker spiced apples taste just like homemade apple pie filling! These apples are cooked with maple syrup, apple pie spice, orange zest, apple cider (or apple juice), butter, and bit of corn starch (to thicken the juices), making a sweet holiday dessert that is so easy! Top with ice cream, caramel sauce, or whipped cream for an even more decadent easy Thanksgiving dessert or Christmas dessert! Plus, a step-by-step video below!

Apple Spice Bundt Cake

This easy apple spice bundt cake recipe is the perfect dessert! Filled with both shredded and chopped apples, this cake is full of sweet apple flavor! The vanilla glaze is the cherry-on-top, making this easy apple cake a family favorite!

Slow Cooker Apple Dump Cake

This Slow Cooker Apple Dump Cake recipe is the fall dessert of all fall desserts! This easy apple dump cake recipe begins with spiced cake mix and fresh apples, making this a simple slow cooker dessert you can set and forget! Aaaand a video below!

Shared by Michelle

Comments

  1. Wanda says

    November 12, 2019 at 2:32 pm

    I have made apple upside down cake. But I used a gingerbread recipe for the cake and it was delicious.

    Reply

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I'm Michelle and this is where you'll witness my baking addiction. I bleed coffee and breathe sugar. Come join me as I journey through life one recipe at a time! READ MORE
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