Old Fashioned Apple Upside Down Cake. A decades old family recipe that uses very simple ingredients to create a comfort food dessert that everyone will love. 

Old Fashioned Apple Upside Down Cake.

When I say old fashioned, that’s exactly what I mean. Made from scratch using simple ingredients just like your grandmother would have made. I’ve been making this one for decades.

Old Fashioned Apple Upside Down Cake.

Especially at this time of year, this apple upside down cake is one of those recipes that you make when “there’s nothing in the house”. You likely have all the ingredients on hand to whip this one up at any time.

I like to serve this one warm from the oven with a scoop of vanilla bean or even caramel swirl ice cream or a dollop of fresh whipped cream. Delicious for a fall Sunday dinner dessert or at any time of year.

The only improvement I would make is to add a big scoop of vanilla ice cream!

I like Red Delicious Apples for this recipe but you can use any kind you like.

Originally published Jan 30, 2008

Apples in water s they do not discolour.

Preparing the glaze for the apples

Getting the apples ready for the cake

Arranging the apples in the bottom of the pan.

Love homemade cakes from scratch? We’ve put together a collection of the 25 Most Baked Cakes of the last 12 years on Rock Recipes. You are sure to find several to love.

Originally published September 2016 Updated March 2020.

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Yield: 12 Servings

Old Fashioned Apple Upside Down Cake

Prep Time: 25 minutes

Cook Time: 40 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes

Old Fashioned Apple Upside Down Cake - a decades old family recipe that uses very simple ingredients to create a comfort food dessert that everyone will love; a classic Autumn dessert that's only improved by a big scoop of vanilla ice cream.

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Ingredients

For the Apple Layer

• 6 apples peeled, cored and cut into thick wedges
• 1/3 cup butter
• 2/3 cup white sugar, you can use light brown sugar if you prefer
• 3 tbsp water
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon

For the Cake Layer

• ½ cup butter
• ¾ cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1-2 tsp vanilla extract (I use 2)
• 2 cups flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 cup milk

Instructions

To Prepare the Apple Layer

1. Melt the 1/3 cup butter in a large non-stick sauté pan.
2. Add the sugar, water and cinnamon. Cook over medium heat until the mixture gets foamy, then add the apples.
3. Cook the apples in the cinnamon and sugar syrup just until they begin to soften.
4. Transfer the apple slices to the prepared pan and pour the syrup from the pan over them.

To Prepare the Cake Batter

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9x9 inch baking pan or a 10 inch round cake pan well.
2. Cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
3. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
4. Beat in the vanilla extract.
5. Sift together the flour and baking powder.
6. Add the dry ingredients alternately with the milk, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. In general, I add the dry ingredients in 3 portions and the milk in 2 additions.
7. Dollop the batter by heaping tablespoonfuls all over the surface of the apple layer and then spread out evenly to the edges of the pan.
8. Bake at 350 degrees F for about 40 to 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
9. The toothpick test is the best way to ensure that this cake is fully baked.

The nutritional information provided is automatically calculated by third party software and is meant as a guideline only. Exact accuracy is not guaranteed. For recipes where all ingredients may not be used entirely, such as those with coatings on meats, or with sauces or dressings for example, calorie & nutritional values per serving will likely be somewhat lower than indicated.

Nutrition Information

Yield

12

Serving Size

12 Servings
Amount Per Serving Calories 277Saturated Fat 8gCholesterol 63mgSodium 133mgCarbohydrates 37gFiber 2gSugar 34gProtein 1g