Name: Apple Upside Down Cake
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 35 min
Total time: 55 min
Yield: 12
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 4 tablespoons unsalted butter; 1/2 cup brown sugar; pinch salt; 1 small apple, peeled, cored, and sliced; 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted; 1 cup granulated sugar; 2 eggs; 1/2 cup milk; 1 teaspoon vanilla; 1 1/2 cups flour; 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder; 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon; 1 teaspoon salt; powdered sugar, for dusting

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Simple and delicious Apple Upside Down Cake! Moist cinnamon-spiced cake topped with apples in a buttery brown sugar sauce.

Apple season is the best season! Try Creamy Caramel Apple Dip, Apple Spice Cupcakes, or Honeycrisp Apple Sangria!

Apple Upside Down Cake - simple and delicious apple cake! Moist cinnamon-spiced cake topped with apples coated in butter and brown sugar.

Not to be dramatic but this Apple Upside Down Cake is my favorite thing I’ve made in forever.

And you know that I don’t usually like any dessert with fruit.

But see, I’ve been craving pineapple upside down cake for literally months now and I was too lazy to make one so I finally broke down and bought one last week while I was in the middle of a week long argument with the boyfriend.

And then I couldn’t even enjoy it because I was too busy saying things like, “I keep dreaming about these giant bugs and google tells me that means I have anxiety and you won’t kill them for me!”

And no, the argument wasn’t about the bugs.

That just happened to come up.

A few times.

Ingredients

Butter – you are going to use butter in the apple topping and the cake batter itself. It needs to be melted both times so don’t worry about bringing it to room temperature.
Brown sugar – this is going to caramelize the apples on top and be so delicious!
Apple – use your favorite apple. A lot of apple baked goods recipes call for a granny smith so that they aren’t so sweet but I love a Honeycrisp or Pink Lady in this recipe.
Granulated sugar
Eggs
Milk
Vanilla
Flour
Baking powder
Cinnamon – all apple desserts need cinnamon!
Salt
Powdered sugar – this is just for dusting on top of the finished cake. Optional but makes it look so pretty!

Instructions

Prepare. Preheat oven to 350F. Line a 9-inch round cake pan with parchment paper.
Make upside down part. Stir together 4 tablespoon butter, ½ cup brown sugar, and pinch of salt until butter and sugar are melted. Pour into the cake pan. Top with sliced apples.
Combine wet ingrdients. Beat 12 tablespoons melted butter and sugar together. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Add milk and vanilla and beat until combined.
Combine dry ingredients. Whisk together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt until no lumps remain.
Combine everything. Add to the butter mixture and stir until just combined.
Transfer. Pour the batter over the apples and use a rubber spatula to smooth it out.
Bake. Bake in preheated oven for about 35 minutes.
Cool. Let cool for about 30 minutes in pan on top of wire rack. Flip onto a plate.
Dust. Dust with powdered sugar.

How Long Is Apple Cake Good For?

Upside Down Apple Cake is good for 4 – 5 days at room temperature. Make sure to keep it in an airtight container to keep it fresh for as long as possible.

You can prolong it’s life a day or 2 by keeping it in the fridge but it may dry out the cake slightly.

Can You Freeze It?

You can freeze this apple cake for up to 3 months. I recommend wrapping it tightly in plastic wrap and then placing it in a freezer ziploc bag.

When you are ready to serve it, let it defrost at room temperature for several hours.

More Apple Recipes

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Yield: 12 servings