Peach Upside-Down Cake

Thought I'd try post while the is cake still warm!  Makes a change - usually the post is well after the event and you'd be lucky if there is any cake left!!!

This is very similar to the ubiquitous Fruit Pastry Cake which I have made several times.  I love adding a mix of fresh fruit like raspberries, peaches and kiwi.  Blueberries are really good too!  I find it's great for sharing at work as you can make it in a large tin and cut it into squares - enough to go round!  If you google Fruit Pastry Cake you will find enough recipes floating around.

Nicely browned and risen after baking

There is a reason why the base of the tin should be lined!

The original recipe calls for peaches and I had nectarines at home - to me they are the same except they are fuzz-free.  I tweaked the recipe a little as this is my second time baking it and although the original is good, I didn't see the point of baking this with brown sugar as it made the cake look a murky brown colour and not very appetising.  Also it calls for 250g sour cream.  This I found was far too much and it made the cake heavy and dense - hubbs (Mr Leaf) still liked it as it was moist.

If you dust enough icing sugar on it no-one will see the patches!

Peach Upside-Down Cake (adapted from "cakes & bakes from my mother's kitchen" ~ Linda Collister)

4 fresh nectarines (original recipe calls for large peaches)
125g unsalted butter, softened
185g caster sugar (changed from light soft brown sugar)
3 eggs, separated
185g self-raising flour
90g greek natural yoghurt (reduced from 250g of sour cream, I had yoghurt in fridge so used that)
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar (the original recipe does not include this)
icing sugar for dusting

17cm / 7" square tin (23cm springform cake tin, base lined and lightly greased)

Preheat oven to 180C / 350F / gas 4.

Score the nectarine into quarters and twist the fruit to open.  Remove the stone and arrange the quartered fruit on the bottom of the prepared cake tin and set to one side. 

Put the butter and sugar in a large bowl and beat until the mixture is light and fluffy.  Add the egg yolks 1 at a time, beating well after each addition.  Fold the flour and yoghurt in 2 batches.

In a separate grease-free bowl, whisk the egg whites until they are foamy.  Add the cream of tartar and continue to whisk until they form stiff peaks.  Using a large metal spoon, fold the egg whites into the cake mixture in 2 batches.  Spoon the mixture over the fruits and bake in the preheated oven for 40-50 minutes, until the top is golden and the centre springs back when gently pressed.

Leave to cool in tin for 10 minutes, then carefully turn out and peel off paper.  Dust with icing sugar.

 Don't forget to line the base of your tin with paper!  I omitted this step and found parts of the cake stuck to the tin!  Being non-stick, I did manage get them out and lay them back on the cake where they came from - a liberal shaking of icing sugar and if you won't tell, no-one will know!!!

Wonderful served warm from oven with vanilla ice-cream or a dollop of softly whipped cream!



Found some photos from when I first made this in October 2010 (I did mean to blog it!).

I didn't have enough peaches (only 3) so I cut them into 1/6 to fill the pan.

 See, the cake is quite dense and not a very attractive shade of butterscotch.  I think it would look more appealing if it was a golden yellow cake.  I was disappointed with the outcome as I felt it too heavy.  When I follow a recipe book I expect the results to be good.  I decided that if I were to make it again I would make it like Fruit Pastry Cake which always turns out well.

Ice cream goes down well with most cake - think I was out of vanilla here and had Ben & Jerry's!