• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Recipes
    • Recipes
    • Breakfast
    • Lunch & Dinner
    • Desserts & Baking
  • About Me
  • Contact
  • Work with Me
  • Cookbook

blood orange upside down cake

February 21, 2019 13 Comments

Share12
Pin1K
Tweet
Share
1K Shares
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

Blood Orange Cake is light and fluffy with a surprise crumb layer on the bottom, and a luscious layer of juicy blood oranges on top! Easy to make but it will completely wow anyone who lays eyes on it!

Blood orange upside down cake on a black plate. this recipe

It’s blood orange season and I’m taking full advantage! I think I’ve gone through about 3 bags full already. No shame – they’re just SO good! I think my fingers are permanently stained hot pink, too, after making this cake a few times – but it was worth it. Now, let’s talk about how to make this cake. If an upside down cake seems intimidating to you – never fear, it’s actually SUPER simple.

Blood orange upside down cake on a plate.

How to Make an Upside Down Cake

First, we’ll let our fruit, in this case it’s blood oranges, rest in a bowl of sugar, to get the fruit juices going. Don’t skip this step! Then we’ll generously butter a cake pan, dot it with some more butter, and arrange our orange slices. Start with the center slice, then overlap in rings, moving outward.

Blood orange slices in a cake pan.

Mix up the batter – it’s super simple, and super moist thanks to the addition of greek yogurt. When you add the orange juice, the batter may turn an odd gray color – but it’ll return to a normal color as you add the remaining ingredients.

Cake batter in a bowl.

Mix up the crumb topping (er, I guess it ends up on the bottom, but you get the point. Hehe.). Pour the batter over the oranges, and sprinkle the crumb topping over the batter. Then bake away!

Crumble topping over cake batter in a pan.

This cake bakes for about an hour – a toothpick inserted into the center should come out clean or with a few moist crumbs on it. We’ll let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes, but not longer, because the fruit juices can start to harden and the cake can get stuck.

Baked upside down cake in a pan.

Flip the cake out of the pan, and prepare to fall in love with those gorgeous oranges! If you have a few oranges that stuck in the pan, don’t fret – it happened to me too. Just gently pick them up and press them back into place on the cake. No one will ever know. Let the cake cool for a few more minutes, then cut into it!

Blood orange upside down cake on a plate.

Blood orange upside down cake on a plate.

And that, folks, is how you’re going to make the most show-stopping cake in the room. Promise me you’ll treat yourself to a piece of this beauty – ok? Ok. Now, run out and get yourself some blood oranges.

Did you make this recipe? Snap a photo and leave a comment! 

Be sure to follow bluebowlrecipes on instagram and tag #bluebowlrecipes with your photo! You can also post a photo of your recipe to the bluebowlrecipes Facebook page. I’d love to see what you make!

4 from 2 votes
Print

Blood Orange Upside Down Cake

Light and fluffy with a surprise crumb layer on the bottom, and a luscious layer of juicy blood oranges on top! Easy to make but it will completely wow anyone who lays eyes on it!

Course Dessert
Cuisine Dessert
Keyword Blood Orange Desserts, Blood Orange Recipes,, Easter Desserts, Easy Upside Down Cake
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Cake Cooling 20 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 20 minutes
Servings 10 slices
Calories 490 kcal
Author Stephanie Simmons

Ingredients

  • 4 blood oranges 3 for slices, the 4th for zest + juice
  • 2/3 cup granulated or cane sugar
  • 5 tbsp butter + additional for greasing the pan

For the Cake

  • 1 stick butter, softened
  • 1 cup + 3 tbsp cane or granulated sugar
  • 2 tbsp brown sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • zest of one blood orange
  • 2 tbsp orange juice
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 and 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1 cup full fat greek yogurt or full fat sour cream

For the Crumb Layer

  • 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
  • 3 tbsp white whole wheat flour can sub AP flour
  • 1/4 cup cane or granulated sugar
  • 4 tbsp melted butter
  • pinch of salt

Instructions

  1. Prep: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

    Butter a 9 inch cake pan well. Cut the 5 tbsp butter into small chunks and scatter them in the bottom of the pan. Set aside. 

    Slice your blood oranges: cut each end off, then stand the orange on end and slice the outer skin off. Cut into thin slices. Set on a large plate and pour the 2/3 cup of sugar over them. Let sit for 5 minutes. 

    Lay oranges in an even layer in the bottom of the pan and set aside. 

  2. Make the cake batter: Cream softened butter in a large mixing bowl until smooth and creamy. Then ad the sugar and mix until creamed together. Mix in one egg at a time. Add the orange zest, orange juice, and vanilla and mix until just combined.

    In a smaller bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, 1/3 of the mixture at a time, alternating with the greek yogurt. Scrape the bowl to make sure everything is combined. Pour batter over the oranges in the cake pan. 

  3. Make the crumb topping: In a small bowl, stir together the flours, sugar and salt. Add the melted butter and stir until different size crumbs form. Sprinkle the crumbs over the cake batter. 

  4. Bake: Bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour. When done, a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake will come out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then run a knife around the edge to loosen and then invert the cake onto a cooling rack. Don't let it sit longer than this because the oranges can begin to stick in the bottom of the pan. If the cake seems to be sticking, gently but firmly tap on the bottom of the cake pan with the butt of a butter knife while the cake pan is flipped upside down on the cooling rack. If any stray oranges stuck to the pan, gently remove them and place them back on the cake. 

    Let cake cool for 20 minutes before cutting and serving. 

  5. Store: Store at room temperature for up to 4 days, tightly covered with foil, plastic wrap, or in a large tupperware container. 

Recipe Notes

NOTE: You may notice that I left the orange peel on in the cake pictured here. I tried it again without the peels and liked that result better - the peels didn't lose their bitter taste in the oven so I recommend cutting them off. 

 

The One-Bowl Baker

Order my new book:

The One-Bowl Baker

today!

One-Bowl recipes for incredible cookies, brownies, cakes, and breads made easy enough for anyone to bake!

Order Now:

Walmart // Amazon // Barnes & Noble // Target // Booksamillion // Bookshop // Indie Bound // Book Depository

Get the Bonus e-Book!

Filed Under: Cake & Cupcakes, Desserts & Baking, Spring, Winter Tagged With: blood orange, cake, upside down cake

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Comments

  1. teri c says

    February 14, 2020 at 10:13 am

    I made this cake and it was delicious..no peels on. I would have liked a more caramelized finish to the oranges than mine turned out pale. Other than that, I’ve been asked to make it again.

    Reply
    • Stephanie Simmons says

      March 2, 2020 at 6:27 pm

      Glad to hear you enjoyed the take, Teri! Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment. 🙂

      Reply
  2. Gigi says

    February 1, 2020 at 5:49 pm

    Looks delicious! Can’t wait to make this..
    Do you store any leftovers in fridge or leave on counter?

    Reply
    • Stephanie Simmons says

      February 3, 2020 at 1:35 pm

      Hi Gigi! I leave on the counter, covered well, for about 2 days – longer than that I would keep it in the fridge. Happy baking!

      Reply
  3. Jenny says

    April 7, 2019 at 7:28 am

    How many eggs are in this recipe, I don’t see them listed in ingredients.

    Reply
    • Stephanie Simmons says

      April 7, 2019 at 10:10 am

      Sorry Jenny! My mistake 🙂 it’s 2 eggs!

      Reply
  4. Michael Wild says

    April 7, 2019 at 2:49 am

    I am quite confident that nobody ever successfully made the cake following this recipe as it doesn’t say how many eggs go into the batter.

    Reply
    • Stephanie Simmons says

      April 7, 2019 at 10:10 am

      Hi Michael. That’s my mistake – sorry about that. It should say 2 eggs.

      Reply
      • Michael Wild says

        April 7, 2019 at 3:01 pm

        Thanks! Will give it a go soon!

        Reply
  5. CeAnn says

    February 25, 2019 at 10:54 am

    3 stars
    The cake is beautiful. I agree with your note about removing the peels. I left the peels on and found it quite bitter. I also think I would add a bit of orange juice to the bottom of the pan before adding the orange slices.

    Reply
    • Stephanie Simmons says

      February 27, 2019 at 11:09 am

      Thanks for your feedback CeAnn! ❤️

      Reply
  6. Natalie says

    February 25, 2019 at 2:08 am

    5 stars
    WOW this cake is stunning! I love blood orange!

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Blood Orange Upside Down Cake ~ Gastronomy-Art | Food Art says:
    March 23, 2019 at 3:01 pm

    […] SOURCE: bluebowlrecipes.com […]

    Reply

Primary Sidebar

Hi. I’m Stephanie

I’m a Mom & Grandma-taught cook + baker, and I’m excited to share my love of all things food with you!

Learn more

Order my new book

One-Bowl recipes for incredible cookies, brownies, cakes, and breads made easy enough for anyone to bake!

Order now

Reader Faves

A spoon dipping into a jar of caramel sauce.

simplest homemade salted caramel sauce

maple bacon cupcakes with brown butter frosting and candied bacon

homemade blueberry pop tarts

blueberry spinach salad with honey balsamic dressing

perfect breakfast quiche

best-ever 5 ingredient brownies

Seasonal Picks

A jumbo blueberry muffin on a cooling rack.

bakery-style jumbo blueberry muffins

s’mores tart with toasted marshmallow meringue

key lime pie bars with macadamia nut crust

one-bowl lemon poppyseed muffins

rhubarb upside down cake

strawberry scones

Subscribe for recipes

FeedFeed

Footer

  • Privacy Policy
Blog Meets Brand

© 2022 Blue Bowl Recipes. All Rights Reserved.

X

Subscribe For 5 Exclusive Recipes!

Join our mailing list to receive exclusive content, new recipes, and more. Sign up now to receive an ebook of 5 exclusive recipes!

 

Loading Comments...