Upside-Down Blood Orange Cake

By Melissa Clark

Upside-Down Blood Orange Cake
Andrew Scrivani for The New York Times
Total Time
1 hour 30 minutes
Rating
5(1,497)
Comments
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In the cold days of a long winter, our tables are brightened by citrus season, and nothing has more flair than a blood orange. Here is a one-pan cake of cornmeal and flour that lets the orange’s ruby flesh shine. It takes just a little time to assemble and less than an hour to bake. The result is a festive fruit dessert guaranteed to lift even the worst winter doldrums.

Featured in: Blood Oranges Add a Ruby Hue to Dishes and Desserts

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Ingredients

Yield:8 servings
  • 270grams unsalted butter (2 sticks plus 3 tablespoons), at room temperature
  • 130grams light brown sugar (about ⅔ cup)
  • 2teaspoons fresh lemon juice
  • 2medium-sized blood oranges
  • 122grams fine cornmeal (about 1 cup)
  • 65grams all-purpose flour (about ½ cup)
  • 8grams baking powder (about 1½ teaspoons)
  • 2grams fine sea salt (about ½ teaspoon)
  • 200grams granulated sugar (about 1 cup)
  • 4large eggs, at room temperature
  • ⅓cup sour cream
  • 2teaspoons vanilla extract
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (8 servings)

558 calories; 32 grams fat; 19 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 9 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 63 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 41 grams sugars; 6 grams protein; 261 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9-inch round cake pan.

  2. Step 2

    In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt 3 tablespoons (45 grams) butter. Add the brown sugar and lemon juice; stir until sugar melts, about 3 minutes. Scrape mixture into bottom of prepared pan.

  3. Step 3

    Grate ½ teaspoon zest from one of the oranges, then slice off the tops and bottoms of both oranges. Place oranges on a clean, flat surface, and slice away the rind and pith, top to bottom, following the curve of the fruit. Slice each orange crosswise into ¼-inch-thick wheels; discard any seeds. Arrange orange wheels on top of brown sugar mixture in a single, tight layer.

  4. Step 4

    In a large bowl, whisk together orange zest, cornmeal, flour, baking powder and salt. In a separate bowl, cream together remaining 2 sticks (225 grams) butter with granulated sugar. Beat in eggs, one a time, then beat in sour cream and vanilla. Fold in the dry mixture by hand.

  5. Step 5

    Scrape batter into pan over oranges. Transfer to oven and bake until cake is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center emerges clean, 40 to 50 minutes. Cool cake in pan 10 minutes, then run a knife along pan’s edges to loosen it; invert onto a platter and cool completely before serving.

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Ratings

5 out of 5
1,497 user ratings
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Comments

Louise

I substituted Cointreau for the lemon juice, almond flour for the cornmeal, gluten free flour for the flour and yogurt for the sour cream and it was the cake my grandson chose for his birthday! Terrific either way.

Katherine

Thanks to the commenter who suggested that more than two blood oranges might be needed; I ended up using 3-1/2. And thanks to the one who suggested using a cast-iron skillet; that worked splendidly. And thanks to the one who suggested substituting yogurt for sour cream; that too worked splendidly. The end result was a tasty and beautiful cake, happily not too sweet.

Lynda H.

Bob's Red Mill makes a fine-grind cornmeal. Do not use corn flour; that won't give you the right texture or flavor. Another reader noted good results with a medium-grind cornmeal, which gave the cake a bit of crunch.

Sue B.

This was very tasty! I made it for Easter dinner with my family. The only thing I didn't like is that the membrane between the orange segments was tough enough that you couldn't cut through the orange slices without smushing the cake. I tried a straight-edged knife as well as a serrated one. I keep my knives very sharp but the cake was soft from the syrup, so it was a problem. I had to use 5 oranges to cover the whole cake.

Mollie C.

I’ve made this cake a handful of times and get compliments on it every time! I zest all of my oranges first and combine with the granulated sugar to get the oils and flavors distributed evenly, and then cream with the butter. Also it’s a lot easier to set the orange slices when the butter/brown sugar/lemon juice mixture is warm. I’ve done both orange juice and lemon juice in that mixture, they’re both good! Lastly, I always use Greek yogurt in place of sour cream because that’s what I always have on hand; it works great. I love citrus season!

Eileen

Yum! This is like a sweet, moist cornbread. I used a spring form pan lined with parchment (with the paper going up the sides a little). This mitigated any leakage from the oranges. I followed the recipe exactly as written and baked for 50 minutes. Two large blood oranges filled the top beautifully and actually came out looking like the photo. A winner!

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