As much as I love a chocolate based dessert for a dinner party, I think most people would prefer a simple dessert featuring fruit.
My mom recently picked up Bake From Scratch’s new special edition magazine. Its all about one layer cakes. Its such a great magazine and I will probably make at least 3/4 of the recipes in it. The one that caught my eye was their blackberry upside down cake.
I was bringing the cake to an Italian themed dinner and wanted to make some changes to make it more fitting. In the end, I took only a few elements from the original recipe but it was definitely inspired by it.
I used olive oil as the fat in the cake. I also included semolina flour to give it a nutty flavour. A little lemon juice also brightens up the flavour!
Its a beautiful one bowl batter.
In the bottom of a nine inch pan you pour melted butter, brown sugar and a single layer of blackberries. You pour the batter on top of this and bake it until golden brown.
This isn’t essential for the cake but I definitely will continue to include it. Its a mix of toasted slice almonds, brown sugar and butter. I threw a few pinches of sea salt in there as well.
When the cake comes out you see the beautiful, jammy blackberry topping. Cover it with the caramelized almonds and top with some more blackberries.
Its both an everyday and show stopping dessert.
Blackberry Upside Down Cake
Cake
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup olive oil
3/4 cup maple syrup
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup lemon juice
4 cups fresh blackberries
1/4 cup melted butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit. Grease a 9 inch round cake pan. Pour the melted butter into the pan and swirl it around. Sprinkle the brown sugar on top and layer a single layer of blackberries in the bottom. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl combine the dry ingredients. Add in the olive oil, maple syrup, buttermilk and lemon juice. Stir together until just combined. Pour this into the prepared pan.
- Bake the cake for about 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to sit for about five minutes before turning out on serving plate.
Caramelized Almond Topping
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
2/3 cup sliced almonds, toasted
Salt, a few pinches
Directions
- In a frying pan melt the butter, add the brown sugar and swirl until dissolved. Add in the toasted almonds and cook for another 2 minutes until caramelized. Add in the salt.
- Layer this on top of the upside down cake. Top with remaining blackberries. This can be served warm or at room temperature.
