This Showstopping Shortcut Citrus Upside-Down Cake Elevates Box Mix With 2 Simple Tricks
Looking for something sweet to brighten a winter day? Bake this upside-down citrus cake. Made with a convenient boxed cake mix and crowned with a layer of shining orange and grapefruit wheels, this cake is equally easy to make and stunning to look at.
The fruit:
A combination of grapefruit, orange, and blood orange will lend the prettiest color gradient to this cake, but feel free to use whatever mix you prefer. Whichever fruit you choose, slice it evenly and remove as much of the bitter white pith from the sides as possible. (A small serrated knife is your best friend here.) And when you’re arranging the fruit on the cake, make sure to shingle them tightly together; they will shrink as they bake.
The cake:
As much as we love a plain boxed yellow cake, I discovered in testing that a few adjustments were necessary to achieve the optimum taste and texture here. Using 2 eggs, rather than the typical 3, yields a sturdier cake, which is much more able to support the beautiful citrus topping—and absorb the extra moisture that it brings to the cake. Swapping the usual water for orange juice brings an additional layer of flavor that, when combined with the orange zest, ensures that citrus perfumes the cake from top to bottom—and everywhere in between.
How to flip:
As with any upside-down cake, it’s important to flip this cake over and remove the pan while the cake is still warm. You want to wait about 15 minutes after it comes out of the oven: just enough to let it cool slightly and firm up, but not long enough that the butter and sugar in the bottom citrus layer sets too firm. I recommend running a butter knife around the edge of the pan before flipping, just to make sure nothing is sticking on the sides. The flip is not difficult: Place a serving plate or platter upside down on top of the cake pan, grasp both sides of the plate and the pan in your (oven-mitted!) hands, and invert both plate and pan. Make sure to place the plate on the counter and use both hands to lift the pan straight up and off the cake.
Storage:
Because of the sticky fruit topping, store this cake in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It should keep for 3 to 5 days. Be sure to bring it back to room temperature before serving, though—if it’s cold, the flavors will be muted and the texture too firm to enjoy properly.
Did you try making this? Let us know how it went in the comments!
Yields: 8 servings
Prep Time: 5 mins
Total Time: 1 hour 35 mins
Ingredients
Cooking spray
1
navel orange
1
blood orange
1
grapefruit
2 tbsp.
unsalted butter, melted, cooled slightly
1/2 c.
(100 g.) granulated sugar
2
large eggs
1
(13.25-oz.) box yellow cake mix
1 c.
fresh orange juice
1/3 c.
vegetable oil
Directions
Preheat oven to 350°. Grease a 9" round cake pan with cooking spray, then line with parchment.
Using a handheld zester, zest navel orange (you should have about 1 tablespoon zest); set aside. Slice navel orange, blood orange, and grapefruit into 1/4"-thick slices. Using a paring knife, remove peel and pith from around the edges.
Pour butter into bottom of prepared pan and sprinkle with sugar. Arrange grapefruit and orange slices on top, slightly overlapping so bottom is covered (you may not use all of the fruit).
In a large bowl, whisk eggs until blended. Add cake mix, orange juice, oil, and reserved zest and whisk until combined. Pour batter over arranged fruit and carefully spread in an even layer.
Bake cake until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean, 40 to 50 minutes. (The cake may sink slightly in the center; this is okay.)
Let cool 15 to 20 minutes. Using oven mitts, invert cake onto a platter. Let cool completely.
You Might Also Like
