Desserts · By Sharon
Apricot Caramel Upside-down Cake
Summer is the time for Okanagan apricots, and we have often been gifted with bags/boxes of them directly from the apricot trees of John and Melissa in Osoyoos. In addition to making an apricot/orange marmalade each summer, I love to make this rich, buttery-dense coffee cake.
Ingredients
For the underside of the cake
- 3 tbsp butter
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 2 tbsp of Cointreau or other orange liqueur
- ~30 apricots (pitted, and cut in half)
For the cake
- 5 tbsp butter
- ¾ cup sugar
- 1 large egg
- Zest of 1 orange
- 1½ cups unbleached flour
- 2 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 cup milk
- 1½ tsp vanilla
Method
- 1
Melt 2 tbsp butter for the underside of the cake and mix in the brown sugar. Spread this mixture around the base of a round spring-form pan.
- 2
Press the apricot halves into this sugar mixture, arranging in a circular pattern radiating from the middle.
- 3
Mix all the ingredients for the cake in a bowl, then beat with a mixer on medium speed for 2 minutes.
- 4
Spoon cake mixture carefully over the apricot halves, making sure not to disturb your circular patterns. If the cake base is too thick you may need to add a bit more milk.
- 5
Bake in a 350°F oven for 40 minutes. Then allow cake to cool for at least 5 minutes before removing the outer ring of the spring-form.
- 6
Place your serving plate over the top of the cake and invert carefully to transfer the cake upside-down onto your serving plate (apricots up).
- 7
Serve with whipping cream.
A note from Sharon
Drink pairing: Cointreau over ice (an orange liqueur).
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