Orange Upside-Down Cake
3.9
(21)
This recipe traces a familiar path: Slice fruit and nestle it in some caramel, pour cake batter over the top, bake, and unmold. When you flip over the cake, you'll find it's topped with delicious candied orange slices and citrusy caramel.
Stressed about that caramel? No need to be. Keep a distant eye on the sugar once you put it on the stove, but don't hover. Chop some vegetables. Check Twitter. Pet the dog. Every so often, swirl the pan to make sure the caramel is cooking evenly. Don't bother stirring (the sugar will only clump up on your spoon). Once the mixture starts to color, swirl it slightly more frequently. When it turns an attractive chestnut brown, take it off the heat, add your premeasured butter and salt (and a splash of booze, if you want), and stir.
Ingredients
Makes 1 cake
For the caramel topping:
For the cake:
Special equipment:
Preparation
Make the caramel:
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Step 2
Lightly butter the cake pan. Slice the oranges as thinly as you can (about 1/8 to 1/4-inch thick), preferably using a mandoline and picking out seeds as you go; set aside.
Step 3
Make sure you have all the ingredients for the caramel ready to go before you begin cooking it. In a medium pot, combine the sugar and 6 tablespoons water and place over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil and cook, swirling the pan occasionally, until the mixture turns a medium-dark amber color, about 10 minutes. Remove pot from heat and carefully stir in the butter and salt until incorporated. Pour the caramel into the buttered cake pan.
Step 4
Starting in the center of the pan, layer the orange slices on top of the caramel, overlapping a bit and working your way toward the outer edge (you may not need to use all the orange slices). Set pan aside.
Make the cake:
Step 5
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside.
Step 6
In a separate large bowl, use an electric mixer to cream the butter and sugar until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition, and then blend in the vanilla and orange zest.
Step 7
Add the flour mixture in three parts, alternating with the buttermilk, beating just to combine. Spoon the batter in dollops over the oranges in the cake pan, being careful not to move them around too much. Smooth the top of the batter with a wet offset spatula or the back of a spoon. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through.
Step 8
With an offset spatula or a butter knife, loosen any parts of the cake that seem to be sticking to the side of the pan. Invert the cake onto a plate or platter while it's still hot. Let cool until warm or room temperature, then cut into wedges with a serrated knife to serve.
Leave a Review
Reviews (21)
Back to TopI made this and it went really well! I didn't have a 10" cake pan, so I split it into two 9" pans and accommodated by doubling the caramel. There was plenty of cake per pan. I can't imagine if I'd tried to get it all in one - they nearly overflowed as it was. Based on other reviews, I peeled the oranges on top to avoid the bitterness of the orange peel. With the layering, it almost created a stained glass effect -- beautiful! For the design, the oranges shrink slightly, so you should give a little more overlap than you ultimately want. I also doubled the salt in the caramel and zest in the cake. Overall, this was incredibly delicious and totally gorgeous. I can't wait to make it again.
Rebekah
New York, NY
3/8/2023
I have made this type of recipe before, you need to wash the oranges to make sure that they are clean before you eat the rind. Thinly slice the oranges with a serrated knife make the caramel sauce as directed and place the oranges in the sauce and cook for 5-10 minutes. Place the oranges on the bottom of the pan as directed, save the reserved caramel sauce. Remove cake from pan and pour reserved sauce over the baked cake.
Colleen
4/18/2022
Someone said using a spring-form pan was possible. DO NOT USE A SPRING FORM PAN!!! Of course, the caramel leaked out all over the bottom of my oven. Ok, shame on me for not putting some aluminume foil underneath the pan, but I discovered this only when I smelt the burning caramel. Shame on that reviewer. And for goodness sake Epicurious, vet the review responses before you let them on. Even this one. Protect the cooks out there from bad advice given from show-off cooks…. Damn.
Anonymous
Austin, Texas
9/18/2021
Excellent recipe. I had no oranges, so used mandarins, which I peeled. Also used a spring-form pan, with no problems. Only tip that I think is useful: use a candy thermometer for caramel (340°F). I wish I had some Triple Sec or something to add to batter (ran out of liqueur in this time of corona virus...). Next time!
farker11871
4/5/2020
I made the recipe and it was good but I felt it lacked more caramel flavor for the top as well as butteriness and orange flavor in the cake. To remedy, I made adjustments that all enjoyed. Caramel: 1 cup of brown sugar and 6T of butter for the caramel no water, same salt amount in original recipe Cake: Instead of 1 cup of buttermilk - 1/2c of orange juice & 1/2c buttermilk 1.5 sticks of butter instead of the 1 stick. 1 1/4 tsp of cardamom for fun Lastly, I baked it in a cast iron skillet. Make the caramel in the skillet, once done arrange the oranges on top of the caramel (careful not to burn yourself if doing while still piping hot), scoop the batter on top of that. Cook for same amount of time.
Anonymous
Riverside, CA
3/3/2020
I enjoyed the cake overall but thought that leaving the rinds on added nothing and made the cake difficult to cut. If I made the cake again I'd supreme the oranges and lay them out in a fan pattern. I'd also add additional zest or possibly some grand mariner to the actual cake.
drbalzac
Chicago
1/13/2020
Was leery after all the bad reviews, gave it a try nevertheless. Came out well, I peeled the oranges.
msinms
Starkville, MS
12/6/2019
Made this the other day and it turned out great! Unfortunately the caramel sauce on top was really bitter and kinda ruined the entire cake. When making this try to under cook your caramel sauce just a little bit to make sure it doesn't overcook in the oven.
flavourlessmilk_
Australia
6/23/2019
I made this yesterday. Followed the instructions precisely and it came out beautifully. Will definitely be making this again
nwatty6118
Trinidad
4/1/2019
This came out beautiful and delicious. If you don't care for the taste or texture of orange rind, you might not enjoy it. I added about 2 T of juice from leftover orange to the batter.
szgol
2/19/2019
Mine was too bitter to be edible. I trimmed the peel and pith from the oranges, hoping to prevent bitterness, but it didn't work. I wish it had worked like other people's because I love oranges. I bake by weight AND use an oven thermometer. No clue what happened wrong. The rest of the cake was sadly tossed.
Anonymous
Seattle, WA
1/31/2018
I took this cake to a dinner party and when it was gone everyone was scrapping the platter. So delicious and beautiful too!
lbcookie
Long Beach, Calif.
12/7/2017
Can I make this in a bundt pan?
sharowitz
Vancouver BC
8/20/2017
I thought this was an easy and delicious cake - and SO pretty! Three notes: I would double the zest. Make sure your caramel is thoroughly cooked to a deep amber - it does not cook further in the baking. Don't use a spring form pan.
ha2ell
Boston MA
1/29/2017
This is one of the few cakes that I've ever made in my life that I tossed after serving. I followed the recipe and I found the orange/caramel part very bitter and there was nothing special about the cake itself. My guests didn't like it either, as evidenced by a lot of plates coming back virtually full. On to the next recipe!
Anonymous
Baltimore
1/24/2016
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