Serves 8
60 min
Salted Caramel Apple Upside Down Cake
Recipe GLPRa931dfeff4a8a2
A stunning dessert featuring paper-thin apple slices bathed in a warm spiced caramel sauce, topped with a tender butter cake. When inverted, the glossy caramelized apples become the beautiful crown of this cake. A sprinkle of sea salt brings out the caramel's richness, and vanilla ice cream is the perfect complement.
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Ingredients
Butter (divided: ½ cup for sauce, plus additional for greasing pan)
1¼ cups Brown sugar (divided: 1 cup for sauce, plus ¼ cup for cake)
3 Apples, very thinly sliced (3-4 apples, about 2 cups total)
2 teaspoons Ground cinnamon (divided: 1 teaspoon for sauce, 1 teaspoon for cake)
½ teaspoon Ground nutmeg
¼ teaspoon Ground cloves
1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
2 Large eggs
1½ cups All-purpose flour
1 teaspoon Baking powder
¼ cup Whole milk
Sea salt for garnish
Directions
Preheat your oven to 325°F. Generously butter a 9-inch round cake pan, making sure the bottom and sides are well coated. Using a mandoline slicer or very sharp knife, slice the apples as thinly as possible—nearly paper-thin slices work best. Set the sliced apples aside.
In a medium saucepan, melt the ½ cup of butter over medium heat. Once melted, add 1 cup of brown sugar, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, ½ teaspoon of nutmeg, ¼ teaspoon of cloves, and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.
Stir the caramel mixture constantly over medium heat for about 3 minutes, until it becomes smooth and slightly thickened. Pour this warm caramel into the bottom of your prepared cake pan, then arrange the thinly sliced apples over the caramel layer in slightly overlapping rows.
In a separate bowl, cream together the remaining butter (about ¼ cup) and ¼ cup of brown sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
Add the 2 large eggs to the butter mixture and beat well to combine. Pour in the milk and continue beating until everything is fully incorporated.
In another bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and remaining 1 teaspoon of cinnamon. Gently fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until just combined; do not overmix.
Carefully pour the cake batter over the caramel and apple layer in the pan, spreading it gently to cover the apples evenly.
Bake in the preheated 325°F oven for 45 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the cake portion (not the apples) comes out clean or with just a few crumbs.
Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool in the pan for exactly 10 minutes. This timing allows the caramel to set slightly while the cake remains warm enough to invert cleanly.
Place a serving plate over the top of the cake pan. Carefully invert the pan and plate together, then gently tap the bottom of the pan until the cake slides out onto the plate. The caramelized apples should now be on top.
Sprinkle the top of the cake lightly with sea salt to enhance the caramel flavor. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.
