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    Home » Cakes

    Apricot Cherry Upside Down Cake

    Published: May 5, 2022 · Modified: May 5, 2022 by Jere Cassidy · This post may contain affiliate links. · 25 Comments

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    Pinterest pin for an upside down cake.

    Thank you summer for all the great fruits you produce.  Baking a cake in the middle of summer may sound crazy because it's hot, but when I have beautiful sweet and fresh apricots and big plump cherries I can't resist making our favorite Apricot Cherry Upside Down Cake.

    A baked apricot cherry upside down cake on a white tray.
    Upside down apricot cake with cherries

    This page may contain affiliate links, please see my disclosure for policy details.  I earn commissions if you shop through the links on this page.

    Summer stone fruits are simply the best. They are sweet, juicy, and flavorful,  and are perfect for baking.  What are your favorites... peaches, nectarines, or maybe plums? One of my favorites is apricots and I love the flavor of apricots best when they are cooked or baked.

    I have a lot of apricot recipes and these Apricot Parmesan Pinwheels are a favorite and are quick to make using apricot preserves. They make a great savory appetizer.

    Pin this recipe for later!

    Jump to:
    • Pin this recipe for later!
    • Why we love this cake
    • 🍑Ingredients🍒
    • Let's bake a fruit cake
    • Variations
    • Cake FAQ's
    • More favorite cakes
    • Recipe

    Why we love this cake

    • Upside down cakes are perfect for showing off fruit after all the fruit is what's on top.  The vanilla-scented cake itself is very moist and flavorful and the best part of this cake is flipping it over to see the buttery caramel covering the fruit and dripping down the sides of your cake.
    • You can definitely use canned cherries but today I had these beautiful fresh cherries which means they have to be pitted.  And, I learned my lesson, get a cherry pitter to make your life easier.
    • For the apricots cut in half remove the pit and slice into large sections.  And, the best part, no peeling.
    • All upside-down cakes start with melting butter and sugar in your cake pan.  I personally always make my upside-down cakes in a cast-iron skillet, why, because I remember my mom doing that and I thought it was so cool to make a cake in a skillet.

    🍑Ingredients🍒

    Ingredients to make an apricot and cherry cakes.
    Ingredients for this awesome apricot cake recipe

    Let's bake a fruit cake

    For this recipe, you can bake the cake in a 10" iron skillet, or a 9" cake pan. Heat the oven to 350 degrees F.

    Step 1. Prepare the fruit first. Pit the cherries and cut them in half. Using a cherry pitter makes this fast and easy. Slice the apricots in half and remove the pit, then slice.

    Pitted cherries ad sliced apricots.
    Pitted fresh cherries and sliced apricots

    Step 2. Make the easy caramel glaze by adding butter and brown sugar and white sugar to the skillet.

    Step 3. Place the skillet over medium heat and cook the mixture until melted and bubbly. This should take about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat.

    Step 4. Lay a circle of apricots of the fruit on top of the hot sugar mixture. I used 16 apricot slices.

    Step 5. Now add the sliced cherries.

    The fun of making the upside-down cakes is making a pattern with the fruit so when you flip the cake over you can see your beautiful work of fruit art.

    Butter, sugar, apricots, cherries in a cast iron skillet.
    Make a buttery glaze and add fruit

    Step 6. In a large mixing bowl beat the softened butter and sugar until light and fluffy on medium speed. You can use a stand mixer or an electric mixer. Then beat in the eggs one at a time.

    Step 7. With the mixer on medium speed, mix in half of the flour and then scrape the bowl.

    Step 8. Mix the vanilla and milk together in a measuring cup then pour into the bowl and mix on medium-low speed until combined.

    Step 9. Mix in the rest of the flour until you have a nice smooth dough.

    Mixing tip - Beating eggs one at a time into creamed butter allows the eggs and butter to create an emulsion, this helps the cake rise and have a tender crumb.

    Step 10. Pour the batter over the fruit and spread it to the edges of the pan.

    Step 11. Bake the cake for 40-45 minutes. Remove from the oven and let sit for 10 minutes.

    Step 12. Now get prepared to do what you may think is impossible.  You are going to take this screaming hot pan and flip it over onto a serving plate. Please put your fancy oven mitts on, get your serving plate ready, and take your time.  Put the serving plate on top of the skillet, pick up the skillet by the handle, and put your hand on top of the serving plate, now flip.   You can do it!!!

    Step 13. Aaah, done!  Now watch that sweet buttery caramel as it glazes the fruit and drips down the sides of the cake.

    Cake batter in iron skillet and the baked cake.
    Making the upside down cake

    I consider this the ultimate apricot cake recipe. The caramelized fruit on top of the marvelous fluffy and tender yellow cake makes such a beautiful and delicious dessert.

    A baked upside down apricot cake.
    A showstopper Upside down apricot cake
    A slice cherry upside down cake.
    A cherry fruit cake with apricots

    Variations

    • You can replace the apricots with peaches, nectarines, or plums.
    • You can make this with just one fruit for a cherry upside-down cake, or an apricot upside-down cake.
    • Replace the cherries with blackberries or raspberries.
    • If you can't find fresh apricots, or you want this upside-down cake in the middle of winter when stone fruits are still on the tree, using frozen sliced apricots makes a great option.
    • Frozen cherries are also an option, just let them thaw for about 20 minutes before using.

    Another favorite upside-down cake recipe is for individual Grilled Pineapple Upside Down Cake that is perfect to make for campouts, bbq, or for any day you are grilling.

    Cake FAQ's

    How do you know when an upside-down cake is baked?

    It should take about 45 minutes to bake this cake, then insert a toothpick into the center of the cake to see if it comes out clean. If so, then it's baked.

    How do you keep the center of the upside-down cake from getting soggy?

    Make sure the fruit you are using is fairly dry and not soaking in liquid when placing it on top of the glaze.

    More favorite cakes

    • Strawberry Cake With Fresh Strawberries
    • Easy No-Bake Strawberry Shortcakes
    • Mountain Dew Bundt Cake
    • Maple Spice Cakes with Maple Glaze|Acorn Cakelets

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    Recipe

    Apricot cake with cherries and a green teapot.
    Print Pin
    4.97 from 33 votes

    Apricot Cherry Upside Down Cake

    This Apricot Cherry Upside Down Cake has a very moist butter cake topped with sweet apricots and tart cherries covered in a decadent sweet buttery glaze.
    Prevent your screen from going dark
    Course cakes, Desserts
    Cuisine American Dessert
    Prep Time 30 mins
    Cook Time 40 mins
    Total Time 1 hr 10 mins
    Servings 10 servings
    Calories 247kcal
    Author Jere' Cassidy

    As an Amazon Associate I earn income from qualifying purchases.

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    Equipment

    • 10 inch Iron Skillet
    • Cherry Pitter

    Ingredients

    Glaze and Fruit Ingredients

    • ½ cup brown sugar
    • ¼ cup granulated sugar
    • 3 tablespoons butter
    • 3 apricots, pitted
    • 1 pint cherries about 12 oz.

    Cake Ingredients

    • ½ cup butter, softened
    • ¾ cup granulated sugar
    • 2 each eggs
    • 1 ½ cups AP flour
    • ¼ teaspoon salt
    • 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla
    • ½ cup milk

    Instructions

    Getting started

    • Heat the oven to 350° F. You will need a 10-inch iron skillet or a 10-inch cake pan.
    • Cut the apricots in half and remove the seed and slice, Pit the cherries and cut them in half.

    Make the Glaze

    • Melt the butter and sugars in the iron skillet over medium heat until melted and bubbly. Remove from the heat. If using a cake pan, melt the butter and sugars in a skillet or saucepan then pour into the cake pan. Careful, this will be hot.
    • Top the glaze with the fruit in a circular pattern any way you like. I prefer starting with the apricots slices in the center of the pan and then adding the cherries around the apricots. I used 16 apricot slices.

    Making the Cake

    • In a large mixing bowl add the softened butter and the sugar and mix on medium speed until light and fluffy, then beat in the eggs one at a time.
    • Measure the flour, salt, and baking powder together, then stir to combine. Mix the vanilla and milk together in a measuring cup.
    • Beat in the half the flour then all the milk on medium speed, then the rest of the flour. Mix just until the flour is mixed in.
    • Pour the batter over the fruit and smooth with a spatula.
    • Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until golden brown and bubbly.
    • Remove cake from oven and let sit for 10 minutes.
    • With oven mitts, place a serving plate over the skillet and gently flip the cake upside down onto the plate. The cake will still be hot so be careful. Leave the skillet or pan upside down on the plate for a minute until the cake and topping have been released.
    • Serve this cake warm or at room temperature. Store leftovers in the refrigerator for three days.

    Notes

    The amount of fruit will vary by the size of your skillet or pan.
    • For this recipe, it used two apricots.
    • A pint of cherries is about 12 ounces and two cups of whole cherries.
    Be very careful when flipping the skillet over, it will be very hot.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1 | Calories: 247kcal | Carbohydrates: 28.1g | Fat: 13.6g | Cholesterol: 66mg | Sodium: 223mg
    Tried this recipe? Pin it today!Mention @onehotoven or tag #onehotoven!

    First published: April 5, 2018, Last updated: May 4, 2022, for better readability.

    Sliced and ready to eat

    Pin It!

    Pinerest pin for apricot cake.

    Thank you for stopping by the One Hot Oven blog.  Please leave a comment to say Hello or just let me know what you are baking these days, I always love hearing from fellow bakers. Have any questions or just want to chat about the recipe? My contact information is on my about page, and I’ll be happy to help.                                                                                                                                                     

    About Jere'              

    From learning to cook on a farm in Indiana to culinary school in California, my passion for food is never-ending.  Turning on my oven to bake something for friends and family is my happy place, and I am glad to be here at One Hot Oven sharing both sweet and savory family-friendly recipes for your cooking and baking inspiration.

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    Comments

    1. Elizabeth

      May 14, 2022 at 10:31 am

      5 stars
      Apricots and cherries are two of my favorite fruits so I knew I’d love this cake! So easy to make and really really good. Thanks for the recipe!

      Reply
    2. Kayla DiMaggio

      May 11, 2022 at 7:17 am

      5 stars
      Love this apricot cherry upside down cake! It was so delicious and a huge hit!

      Reply
    3. The Sudden Cook

      May 11, 2022 at 6:54 am

      5 stars
      Making it in a skillet! Wow never thought of that - I'm definnitely going to try this this weekend - just maybe replacing apricots with pineapple:)

      Reply
      • Jere Cassidy

        May 12, 2022 at 5:22 am

        Pineapple will be just as good!

        Reply
    4. Luke

      May 11, 2022 at 6:30 am

      5 stars
      Such a perfect cake to make with so much flavour, and all the fruit on top is delicious, perfect for afternoon tea for the Queens Platinum Jubilee celebrations 😉

      Reply
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    Jere Cassidy owner of One Hot Oven

    Welcome, I am Jerè. I love sharing recipes both sweet and savory that inspire you to bake at home. Food has a way of bringing us all together, from a simple batch of cookies to a three-tier cake.

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