Upside Down Strawberry Rhubarb Cake

Sweet strawberries paired with tart rhubarb are a classic relationship in the culinary world, and make a perfect upside down strawberry rhubarb cake.

Find more olive oil cake recipes here.

Relationships are a funny thing. There are some people you meet in your life and you instantly click. Sweet strawberries and tart rhubarb are a match made in heaven. Like that BFF that you never run out of things to talk about: a perfect relationship that stands the test of time.

I have used this combination to make strawberry rhubarb jam, strawberry rhubarb crisp and even strawberry rhubarb creamsicle popsicles. So why not an upside down cake?

Ingredients you need

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• Rhubarb: You can use fresh or frozen rhubarb. Frozen rhubarb should be thawed first and may turn a little mushy while it bakes.
• Strawberries: Although you could use frozen berries, I prefer fresh strawberries because it holds its shape while baking.
• Unsalted butter: The cake is baked with olive oil, but I always bake my fruit in butter in upside down cakes.
• Brown sugar: You can use light or dark brown sugar. This is mixed with the butter and fruit for the fruit topping.
• Lemon juice: A little lemon juice is used to help the fruit retain its color.
• Whole milk: I always have full fat milk in my fridge, so that is what I primarily bake with. Fat adds moisture and flavor to your cake, so don’t be afraid of it. You can use low fat milk or to make it vegan, us almond milk.
• Eggs: When I bake, I primarily use large eggs. You can use flax meal to make this cake vegan. I go into this in more detail below.
• Extra virgin olive oil: If you’ve read my blog before, then you learned your lesson on how to bake with olive oil. Your baked goods are only as good as the ingredients you put into it. Choose a mild tasting olive oil for this cake recipe, not a peppery one.
• Plain yogurt: I like to use Greek or Persian yogurt when I bake. You can also use homemade yogurt. I’ve got a fabulous post and video to teach you how to make yogurt here.
• Pantry staples: All purpose flour, granulated sugar, vanilla extract, baking powder and salt.

Step-by-step directions

1. Melt the butter. Melt butter in a cast iron skillet. When bubbling, stir in brown sugar.
2. Add the fruit. When sugar is dissolved, spread it evenly across the bottom of the pan. Combine chopped fruit and lemon juice in a bowl then spread it evenly over the bottom of the pan.

For a deep purple color, cook fruit until soften for about 5 minutes and then remove from heat. For a vibrant red color and firmer fruit topping, remove pan from heat immediately after added to the pan.

3. Start the cake batter. Whisk together sugar and olive oil until sugar has dissolved. Mix in yogurt, milk and vanilla into sugar mixture until combined then add eggs.
4. Add the flour. In another bowl combine flour, baking powder and salt. Mix flour mixture into yogurt mixture and stir until just combined.
5. Bake. Pour cake batter evenly over the fruit in the pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
6. Cool the cake. Allow cake to cool for 10 minutes in the pan. Run a knife blade along the sides of the cake to insure a clean removal.
7. Flip it! Place serving plate over the cast iron skillet and carefully invert the cake. Keep the pan in place until the cake falls into the plate. Remove skillet and allow cake to cool to room temperature before serving.

Recipe tips and FAQs

Whey you are caramelizing fruit for an upside down cake, I find that cast iron pans work much better than regular cake pans. They easily go from stove top to oven. If you do not have one, you can cook everything in a regular pan and then transfer to a greased 9-inch cake pan.

A 9-inch pan will result in fruit on the sides and a cake about 1 ½-inches thick. The flower decorated cake you see in the pictures was made with a larger 10-inch pan, so the cake came out a little thinner. Either size pan will work.

Upside Down Strawberry Rhubarb Cake

Laura Bashar | Family Spice

Sweet strawberries and tart rhubarb are a classic pairing—and they shine in this easy upside down cake. Baked in a cast iron skillet, this strawberry rhubarb dessert is rustic, fruity, and perfect for spring or summer gatherings.

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Additional Time 1 hour hr

Total Time 1 hour hr 40 minutes mins

Course Cakes

Cuisine American

Servings 10

Calories 302 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 2 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoon light brown sugar packed
• 5 oz sliced rhubarb
• 1 lb sliced strawberries
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1 ½ cup all purpose flour
• 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
• ⅛ teaspoon salt
• ¾ cup granulated sugar
• ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
• ½ cup plain Greek yogurt
• ¼ cup milk
• 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 large eggs

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Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 350ºF.
• In a medium sized bowl combine lemon juice with chopped fruit.
• Using a 9-inch cast iron skillet, heat over medium-high heat and melt butter. When butter is bubbling and just starts to brown, stir in brown sugar.
• Cook until sugar has dissolved into the butter and starts to melt, then spread sugar mixture evenly across the bottom of the pan.
• Stir rhubarb and strawberries with lemon juice into the brown sugar. For a deep purple color, cook fruit until soften for about 5 minutes and then remove from heat. For a vibrant red color and firmer fruit topping, remove pan from heat immediately after added to the pan.
• In a medium-sized bowl whisk together flour, baking powder and salt.
• In a large bowl, whisk together sugar and olive oil until sugar has dissolved.
• Stir in yogurt, milk, vanilla and eggs into sugar mixture until combined.
• In batches, mix flour mixture into yogurt mixture and stir until combined.
• Pour cake batter evenly over the fruit in your cast iron pan.
• Place cake in the oven and cook for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
• Allow cake to cool for 10 minutes in the pan.
• Run a knife blade along the sides of the cake to insure a clean removal. Place serving plate over the cast iron skillet and carefully invert the cake. Keep the skillet on the plate until the cake falls into the plate.
• Remove skillet and allow cake to cool to room temperature, about 1 hour before serving.

Notes

Thick Greek yogurt, like the Fage brand, is used in this recipe. If you do can not find thick yogurt, drain your regular yogurt with a cheese cloth or coffee filter until it becomes thick like sour cream.

When using a cast iron pan, I usually let the cake sit in the pan for about 10 minutes after I take it out of the oven. Then I run a knife along the edges to make sure that nothing is sticking. Place large platter over the pan and flip it, leaving it sitting on top until the cake cools completely.

TO STORE: You can store any leftover cake on the counter, covered with foil or plastic wrap, as long as the room is cool and not hot. Because of the wet fruit topping, though, I prefer to cover and refrigerate leftovers. It will keep in the fridge for up to 5 days.

TO FREEZE: You can also freeze leftover cake. Wrap slices in foil and freeze for up to 4 months.

Nutrition

Serving: 1sliceCalories: 302kcalCarbohydrates: 37gProtein: 6gFat: 15gSaturated Fat: 4gPolyunsaturated Fat: 11gCholesterol: 63mgSodium: 133mgFiber: 2gSugar: 20g

Keyword rhubarb cake, strawberry rhubarb cake, strawberry rhubarb upside down cake, strawberry upside down cake

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Nutritional information is an estimate provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the actual nutritional information with the products and brands you are using with your preferred nutritional calculator.

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