The festive season is well and
truly upon us. December is a month of indulgence; so many parties, weddings,
events (UpperCrust Magazine’s 10th Food & Wine Show is
taking place in Mumbai this weekend) and of course Christmas! Festive baking is
one my favourite things to do and I just love how the kitchen fills up with the
aromas of cinnamon, raisins and gingerbread, not to mention mulled cider on the
side…
truly upon us. December is a month of indulgence; so many parties, weddings,
events (UpperCrust Magazine’s 10th Food & Wine Show is
taking place in Mumbai this weekend) and of course Christmas! Festive baking is
one my favourite things to do and I just love how the kitchen fills up with the
aromas of cinnamon, raisins and gingerbread, not to mention mulled cider on the
side…
This year, I decided to bake something
I had never tried before. After watching several contestants on MasterChef
Australia bake upside-down cakes, I thought I too would give it a try. I
Googled it (but of course) and there were tons of pineapple and apple cake recipes,
but I really wanted to use these gorgeous oranges available in the market. Then
I came across Eric Lanlard’s recipe for an Orange upside down cake on Baking Mad, and it
seemed perfect. Eric is a French patissier and a celebrity chef who owns the
luxury cafe-patisserie Cake Boy in London; he has written multiple books on baking (I’m currently coveting his book Home Bake) and he has his own baking
show on British telly. Oh, did I mention that he is cute too?!
I had never tried before. After watching several contestants on MasterChef
Australia bake upside-down cakes, I thought I too would give it a try. I
Googled it (but of course) and there were tons of pineapple and apple cake recipes,
but I really wanted to use these gorgeous oranges available in the market. Then
I came across Eric Lanlard’s recipe for an Orange upside down cake on Baking Mad, and it
seemed perfect. Eric is a French patissier and a celebrity chef who owns the
luxury cafe-patisserie Cake Boy in London; he has written multiple books on baking (I’m currently coveting his book Home Bake) and he has his own baking
show on British telly. Oh, did I mention that he is cute too?!
I have adapted his recipe
slightly, so here’s my Spiced Orange Upside-down Cake. This
recipe serves 8-10 people, depending upon portion sizes! You can scale up the
recipe as per your requirement. You can change the spice levels as per your
taste. Also, experiment with other fruits.
slightly, so here’s my Spiced Orange Upside-down Cake. This
recipe serves 8-10 people, depending upon portion sizes! You can scale up the
recipe as per your requirement. You can change the spice levels as per your
taste. Also, experiment with other fruits.
You’ll need:
For
the Cake
the Cake
- 150g All-purpose Flour
- 150g Butter (I use salted butter; if you’re using unsalted butter, remember to add a pinch of
salt to the dry mix) - 150g Caster Sugar
- 3 Eggs
- 1tsp Baking Powder
- 1 Vanilla Bean, scraped (or
1tsp Vanilla Essence) - 2tsp Cinnamon Powder
- 2tsp Orange Zest
For
the Poaching Syrup
- 1 large Orange
- 1-2 sticks of Cinnamon
- 1 Star Anise
- 100ml Water
- 100g Sugar
How to:
- To make the poaching syrup,
mix the sugar and water in a heavy-bottomed saucepan and set it on low heat. - Meanwhile, slice the orange
into thin round slices, keeping the peel on.
- Once the sugar is almost
dissolved, add the cinnamon & star anise to the syrup. Place the orange
slices in. - Simmer for about 10-15
minutes, stirring occasionally. - Turn off the heat and let the
orange slices soak in the syrup.
- Preheat the oven to 180C.
Grease an 18cm cake tin and set aside. - Sift together the flour and
baking powder. - Cream the butter and sugar.
Add eggs one at a time and beat well. - Add the dry mix, about 1/3rd
at a time and keep mixing till well incorporated. - Add the vanilla, cinnamon
powder and orange zest. - Remove the orange slices from
the poaching syrup and arrange at the base of the cake tin till it’s covered
well. - Pour the cake batter over the
orange slices and bake for 40-45 minutes, or till a knife inserted in the
centre comes out clean. - Let it cool completely and then
turn it over onto a plate or cake stand.
- Slice and serve with some of
the poaching syrup.
love this hot looking cake; nice recipe and totally looks scrumptious. I have never attempted an orange upside down cake; gotta try this
Thank you, Priya! If you do try it, let me know how it turns out 🙂
i totally expected to start smelling the cinnamon, vanilla and orange zest while reading ur blog!!!!
im dont cook, however, it is not too much for me to ask one of my family members to make this one for me! YUM!
Hi, thank you so much! Hope you do get someone to make it & you can enjoy it 😀
Yum! I wanna try this out!
Thanks! Do try & let me know how it turns out 🙂
I tried it and brought it to work to show off cos it looked so amazing (and I'm really NOT a good baker)Tastes amazing too and everyone wants the recipe, so thanks! 🙂
So glad you liked it!! It's one of my favourite cakes to bake 🙂