This Cherry Upside Down Cake is a celebration of ripe, delicious late summer fruits before they’re gone for the season. The combination of caramelized cherries and plums and the tender, brown butter cake is a match made in heaven!
Summer fruit is the best fruit! It actually makes me sad for the other seasons. And cherry season is very close to my heart.
Growing up with a cherry tree in our yard, we enjoyed fresh cherries at their peak. Dad would climb up high on a ladder and drop the cherries down, where I’d be waiting on the ground holding a big bowl to catch them.
I can’t get enough of summer desserts made with juicy berries and stone fruits. I love coming up with new recipes using cherries. And tbh, there just aren’t enough summer cakes out there. So it’s nice to be able to enjoy ripe cherries and plums in cake form.
What’s in this Cherry Upside Down Cake
Here is what you’ll need to make this rustic but beautiful summer dessert:
- ripe cherries
- ripe plums
- all-purpose flour. I have also tested this recipe using gluten free flour, and it comes out amazing!
- granulated sugar
- turbinado sugar
- butter
- eggs
- buttermilk
- pure vanilla extract
- baking powder
- baking soda
- salt
How to Make this Cherry Upside Down Cake
Upside down cakes became popular when it was common to make cakes in skillets. It was easy enough to put fruit and sugar at the bottom of a skillet, top it with a simple cake batter, and then invert it once it was done baking.
And that’s exactly how we’re making this Cherry Upside Down Cake. We’ll start with making brown butter.
Browning the butter before making the cake batter takes it to the next level. There is literally nothing as intoxicating as the aroma of butter browning in a pan. I just want to drink it.
Browning butter is simple. Just keep the heat at medium-low and gently swirl it around the pan until it starts to become aromatic. It will turn from yellow to an amber color, and that’s when you’ll know it’s done.
Then, layer the fresh cherries and plums on the bottom of the pan. We’re sprinkling a layer of turbinado sugar in between the fruit layer and cake layer, and again on the bottom of the cake. This will result in a deep caramelization of the layers that tastes like pure heaven!
Pour the cake batter on top of the fruit.
And don’t worry if you don’t have a cast iron skillet. Any oven safe skillet will do the trick. Just make sure whatever skillet you use is at least 2 inches deep. This is important so that your cherry cake doesn’t spill over during baking.
Be sure to let the cake cool to room temperature before trying to invert it.
Can you use frozen cherries in this recipe?
You can certainly use frozen cherries to make this upside down cake.
Allow frozen cherries to defrost in a colander and then use them according to the instructions in the recipe card.
How to Serve this Cherry Upside Down Cake
Once you invert the cake, you’ll see that the fruit layer has caramelized on top of the cake and the bottom of the cake has a beautiful raw sugar crust.
This Cherry Upside-Down Cake is perfect to serve as-is, but you could enhance the experience with a dollop of fresh whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
How to Store this Cherry Upside Down Cake
Cover this cherry cake tightly with plastic wrap or aluminum foil. Alternatively, transfer it to an airtight container.
This cake can be stored on the counter at room temperature for 2-3 days, after which time you’ll want to put it in the refrigerator or freezer.
Tips for Working with Fresh Cherries
- Use a cherry pitter. I’ll be up front – it’s going to be super annoying to use fresh cherries in a baking recipe unless you have a cherry pitter. A cherry pitter is an inexpensive gadget that will pop the pits out of your cherries in seconds. A worthy investment, in my humble opinion. They range in price from $9-$15 and are easily found in kitchen stores and on Amazon.
- Protect against splatter. When working with fresh cherries, expect some splatter. And cherry juice can stain! Pit your cherries in the kitchen sink or over a trash can to minimize splatter and possible staining of kitchen towels and clothing.
- Try frozen cherries. If you don’t have a cherry pitter, I’d recommend using frozen cherries just to keep your sanity. Bags of frozen cherries are already pitted, and all you need to do is let them defrost in a colander before using them for baking.
What Kinds of Fruit can be sure for an Upside Down Cake?
If you Google “upside down cake”, you’re going to see lots of pineapple. In fact, the pineapple upside down cake was all the rage in the 1920s, which definitely gives this cake that old-fashioned vibe.
But in truth, you can use lots of different fruits for an upside down cake.
This brown butter batter, made so moist and tender with the help of buttermilk, will go beautifully with many kinds of fruit:
- bananas
- apples
- peaches
- berries
When you make this Cherry Upside Down Cake, I’d love to hear about it! Drop a rating or leave a comment below. Enjoy!
FOR MORE SUMMER DESSERT RECIPES, TRY THESE:
- Skillet Berry Cobbler with Blackberries & Blueberries
- Blueberry Bread Pudding with Cream Cheese & Brioche
- Strawberry Ice Cream Pretzel Pie
FOR MORE CAKE RECIPES, TRY THESE:
Cherry Upside Down Cake with Summer Plums
Equipment
- 1 10" oven safe skillet The skillet can be cast iron or otherwise, just be sure it is at least 2" deep.
Ingredients
- 4 black plums pitted and sliced
- 1 cup cherries pitted and halved
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup turbinado sugar
- 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter 12 Tbsp.
- 3 large eggs
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- 1/2 tsp. baking soda
- 1/2 tsp. salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- Brown the butter in a 10" skillet over medium heat until it becomes an amber color and becomes aromatic. Use a wooden spoon to swirl the butter around the pan often.
- Pour the butter into a large bowl, leaving a coating of melted butter in the skillet. To the mixing bowl, add buttermilk, eggs, granulated sugar and vanilla. Beat with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until combined.
- Combine the dry ingredients: whisk flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. Slowly beat the flour mixture into the wet ingredients on low speed until combined.
- Sprinkle 1/4 cup turbinado sugar evenly onto the bottom of the prepared pan. Arrange cherries in a single layer on the bottom of the pan. Then, layer the sliced plums in an overlapping pattern. Sprinkle the fruit with another 1/4 cup turbinado sugar. Pour batter over the fruit. Sprinkle the batter with the remaining 1/4 cup sugar.
- Place a baking sheet on the bottom oven rack to catch any drips. Bake 45 minutes, until golden brown. Cool to room temperature on a wire rack before inverting onto a serving plate.
Delicious Gluten Free summer treat.
Hi Harry, so glad you enjoyed the gluten free version of this cake! Thanks for your feedback:)