DESSERT RECIPES

Cranberry Upside-Down Cake

Updated

A tender vanilla butter cake baked over a layer of cranberries in cinnamon-and-clove sugar, then flipped to reveal a glossy ruby topping. A festive dessert for Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Prep
20 min
Cook
35 min
Total
1 hr 15 min
Yield
8 servings
Illustration of Cranberry Upside-Down Cake

This upside-down cake turns a bag of cranberries into a showpiece. The berries bake in a spiced sugar layer at the bottom of the pan, bursting into a sticky, jewel-red topping, while a simple buttery vanilla cake rises above them. Turned out onto a plate, the tart fruit and soft crumb balance each other nicely.

A holiday favorite from the KitchenSimplicity archive, it suits the whole stretch from Thanksgiving to Christmas. The scent of cinnamon and cloves makes it feel festive, and it is at its best served slightly warm, perhaps with a spoonful of whipped cream.

Tips

  • Serve the cake slightly warm, when the topping is at its glossiest; leftovers keep covered at room temperature for up to 2 days.
  • Frozen cranberries can go straight into the pan without thawing.
  • Add 1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest to the batter for a classic cranberry-orange pairing.
  • Don’t let the cake cool completely in the pan, or the sugary topping may set and stick.

Cranberry Upside-Down Cake

Prep
20 min
Cook
35 min
Total
1 hr 15 min
Yield
8 servings

Ingredients

  • For the cranberry topping:
  • 2 tablespoons (28 g) unsalted butter, softened, for the pan
  • 1/2 cup (100 g) granulated sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1 3/4 cups (about 175 g) fresh or frozen cranberries
  • For the cake:
  • 6 tablespoons (85 g) unsalted butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup (100 g) granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 1/4 cups (155 g) all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup (120 ml) milk

Steps

  1. Heat the oven to 350°F. Rub the bottom and sides of an 8-inch round cake pan generously with the 2 tablespoons of softened butter; use all of it so the topping releases cleanly.
  2. Stir together 1/2 cup sugar, the cinnamon and the cloves, and scatter the mixture evenly over the buttered bottom of the pan. Spread the cranberries on top in a single layer.
  3. In a mixing bowl, beat the remaining 6 tablespoons butter with the remaining 1/2 cup sugar until light and creamy. Beat in the egg and vanilla.
  4. Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together in a separate bowl. Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture in three parts, alternating with the milk in two parts, beginning and ending with the flour. Mix just until smooth after each addition.
  5. Spoon the batter over the cranberries and spread it gently into an even layer, taking care not to disturb the fruit.
  6. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the top is golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
  7. Cool the cake in the pan on a rack for 20 minutes. Run a thin knife around the edge, set a serving plate over the pan and carefully invert. Lift off the pan, and spoon any cranberries that stick back onto the cake.

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