Christmas Upside-Down Cake

The flavors of fruitcake team with the buttery/caramelized goodness of upside-down cake in this delicious confection. A fairy-tale combination for the holiday season, this makes an excellent breakfast, snack, or dessert, depending on your mood.

Hands-on: 25 to 35 min | Bake: 25 to 30 min | Yield: 2 (9 inch) round cakes

Ingredients

Topping

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

Cake

• 1 (18.25 ounce) box of your favorite yellow cake mix*, prepared or your favorite two-layer yellow cake recipe, prepared
• 3 cups fruitcake fruits (or your favorite dried/candied fruits)
• 1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Instructions

1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and line two 9 inch round baking pans with parchment. Set aside.

Topping

1. In a medium size saucepan, combine the butter, brown sugar, corn syrup, and spices. Cook slowly over low heat until the butter is melted, the mixture is smooth, and you don't feel the grit of sugar on the bottom of the pan.
2. Divide the warm mixture between the two pans. Tilt the pans to spread an even layer of topping over the bottom of each.

Cake

1. Toss together 3 cups of the dried and/or candied fruits of your choice. Raisins, dried cranberries, candied cherries, dried pineapple, and dried cherries are all good choices. Divide the fruit evenly between the two pans, sprinkling generously over the topping. If desired, add 1/4 cup chopped nuts to each pan, as well. Our Favorite Fruitcake Fruit blend is perfect for this recipe.
2. Divide the prepared cake batter between the two pans. Bake the cakes for 25 to 35 minutes, or until they're golden brown and begin to pull away from the sides of the pans.
3. Remove the cakes from the oven, let sit for 3 minutes, then invert onto serving plates. Wait 30 seconds, then pull off the pans. Peel off the parchment if necessary, scraping any fruits or nuts back onto the cakes.
4. Serve warm or at room temperature, with a dollop of whipped cream or scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Notes

* 18.25 ounce boxes of cake mix have been replaced by 16.5 ounce and 15.25 ounce boxes. To compensate for the volume loss in a 16 ounce box, whisk 6 tablespoons all-purpose flour into the dry cake mix before proceeding with the recipe. To compensate for the volume loss in a 15.25 ounce box, add 1/2 cup + 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour and 1/4 teaspoon baking powder.

Attribution

Recipe and photo used with permission from: King Arthur Flour