This peach upside down cake is moist, tender, and the perfect summertime cake. Thinly sliced peaches coated in a brown sugar caramel top a delicious vanilla cake. The cake may look fancy and aesthetic, but it’s surprisingly easy to make and perfect for occasions or everyday.
Stone fruit season is upon us, so lets make a cake! This peach upside down cake is exactly as it sounds. Layer some sliced peaches at the bottom of a cake pan, put batter on top, bake, and then boom! Flip it over so that the bottom becomes the top. It’s a delightful little cake that’s so much fun to make.
If you love this recipe, I also recommend checking out some of my other favorite summertime treats like lemon poppyseed bread or blueberry cupcakes.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- The vanilla cake is so moist and flavorful. I use reverse creaming and lots of vanilla to make the batter, which makes it extra tender and delicious.
- You only need 3 peaches, so there is no need to buy out the entire stock of peaches at the store.
- It is a great summer cake recipe.
- Peaches layered into a brown sugar caramel create a pretty and tasty layer on top of the vanilla cake.
- You can add a tablespoon of bourbon to the caramel, because bourbon + peaches = everything 😉
Ingredients Needed
- All-Purpose Flour: I recommend using a digital food scale to measure your flour for the greatest accuracy. If you don’t have one, fluff the flour and spoon it into a measuring cup, using a knife to level off the top.
- Granulated Sugar: This recipe uses equal amounts of flour and sugar by weight.
- Baking soda and baking powder: leavening agents to rise the cake
- Kosher salt: a little bit of salt balances out the cake’s flavor.
- Pure vanilla extract: for the best flavor, use a good quality vanilla extract, or vanilla bean paste.
- Large eggs, at room temperature: soak eggs in a bowl of warm water for 5-10 minutes to quickly warm them.
- Buttermilk and sour cream: these ingredients together add tons of moisture and keep the cake tender.
- Unsalted butter: butter goes into both the cake batter and the caramel. For the cake, make sure that the butter is soft and cut it into slices.
- Fresh peaches, thinly sliced and cored: I prefer fresh peaches with the skin left on. The skin softens as it cooks and also adds a really pretty color to the top.
- Brown sugar, cinnamon, and optional bourbon: these go into the caramel layer that will eventually become the top of the cake.
How to Make Peach Upside Down Cake
1. Grease and line a 9″ round cake pan. Make sure that the pan is at least 3 inches tall to hold the peaches and batter. I love these round parchment cake pan liners–I buy them in bulk and use them almost every time I make cake!
2. Make the caramel: Heat butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon together in a heavy-bottomed pan until the mixture starts to bubble. Stir in some vanilla extract and bourbon if you’re using it. Pour this into the bottom of the cake pan.
3. Layer the peaches on top, either in a rosette or concentric circles depending on your preferred appearance. You can also throw the peaches in there and let them fall every which way for a wonderfully chaotic look.
4. Prepare the cake batter. Full instructions for this are in the recipe card! Pour the cake batter on top of the peaches. Use an offset spatula to spread it into an even layer since the batter can be thick.
5. Bake and cool. Bake the cake for around 50-55 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Let it cool for 10 minutes in the pan, and then put a plate of the top and flip everything over so that the cake falls out. From here, be patient and let the cake cool down before digging in!
Tips for Recipe Success
- Use room temperature ingredients. The butter, eggs, buttermilk, and sour cream should all be at room temperature before baking. Room temperature ingredients blend together better than cold. You don’t have to let them sit out for hours though. Soak eggs in a bowl of warm water for 5-10 minutes. Microwave buttermilk on 50% power for 15 seconds.
- Test for Doneness. The cake is done when a toothpick comes out clean. For me, this took roughly 54 minutes. Every oven is different, so yours may take shorter or longer. Ovens aren’t always the most accurate temperature-wise (mine runs 15 degrees off lol), so make sure you’re checking in on the cake!
- Serving. Peach upside down cake pairs really well with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.
Storing Leftovers
Due to the high moisture content and fruit, leftover peach upside down cake should be stored tightly wrapped in the fridge. It will be good for 2-3 days, though the cold fridge may dry out the cake a bit. This shouldn’t be a problem though as the peaches are still moist and juicy!
Pin and Save for Later
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Happy baking and hope you LOVE your peach upside down cake!
Peach Upside Down Cake
This peach upside down cake starts with a layer of fresh peaches and bourbon brown sugar caramel. The peaches are baked with a layer of moist vanilla cake, then flipped over onto a plate for a beautiful, summery dessert.
Ingredients
Peach Layer
- 3 medium peaches, core removed and thinly sliced
- 4 tbsp (55g)unsalted butter
- ½ cup (100g) light brown sugar
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp bourbon (optional)
Cake Layer
- 1½ cups (180g) all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup + 2 tbsp (180g) granulated sugar
- ¾ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ cup (113g) unsalted butter, softened and cut into slices
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ cup buttermilk, room temperature
- 2 tbsp sour cream or Greek yogurt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9" round cake pan that is at least three inches tall. Line the pan with a round piece of parchment paper, and then grease the parchment as well.
- Prepare the peach layer. In a small pot over medium heat, add the butter (4 tbsp), brown sugar (½ cup), and ground cinnamon. Cook until it is melted and starting to bubble, stirring frequently. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla and bourbon (if using).
- Pour the caramel into the bottom of the cake pan. Place the peaches on top in a circular or rosette pattern.
- Prepare the cake batter. In the bowl of a mixer, add the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix together until combined.
- While running the mixer on low speed, start slowly adding the butter, one slice at a time. Once all the butter has been added, slightly turn up the speed and continue beating until the mixture resembles cornmeal.
- Beat in the eggs and vanilla extract, making sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl, until the batter looks like a thick paste.
- While running the mixer on low speed, add the sour cream, and slowly drizzle in the buttermilk. Continue beating until a smooth batter forms. Once again, make sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl a few times.
- Pour the batter on top of the peaches. Smooth it out into an even layer.
- Bake for 50-55 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let the cake rest for 10-12 minutes after it comes out of the oven.
- Put a large plate or cooling rack on top of the pan, and carefully flip everything over so that the cake falls out onto the plate, peach side up. Peel the parchment paper off the top of the cake. Be careful, as the pan may still feel hot.
- Let the cake cool down fully before serving. Enjoy with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.
Notes
Selecting Peaches: I prefer using fresh, semi-ripe peaches to make this cake. Avoid peaches that are fully ripe and very soft, as they may become too mushy while baking. I would also not recommend frozen peaches, as they release more liquid while baking.
Pan Size: This recipe is for a 9" round cake. If you don't have a 9" round pan, you can also use a 9x9 inch square pan. Do not use an 8" pan, as it will not be able to hold the peaches and batter.
Reverse Creaming: You'll notice that the steps to make this cake involve reverse creaming, where you beat flour and butter together before adding the liquids. This method creates a cake that is tender with a tight crumb. By beating flour and butter together, the fat wraps around the flour to form a protective layer that prevents gluten development.
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