Description
An easy chocolate cherry upside down cake recipe featuring juicy cherries caramelized on top of moist chocolate cake, with optional chocolate ganache. Perfect weeknight dessert ready in 50 minutes.
Ingredients
For the Cherry Layer:
- 2 cups fresh or frozen pitted cherries (I grab whatever’s on sale)
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons butter
For the Chocolate Cake:
- 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1 tablespoon white vinegar (lemon juice works too)
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For Optional Chocolate Ganache:
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips
Instructions
- Set oven to 350°F and butter a 9-inch cake pan thoroughly, then dust with flour. I learned to be generous with both after my second cake stuck completely to the bottom.
- Mix milk with vinegar in a small bowl and leave it alone for 5 minutes while you prep everything else. It’ll look weird and curdled – that’s exactly what we want happening.
- Combine cherries, sugar, and cornstarch in a medium bowl until fruit is well-coated. Dot your prepared pan bottom with butter pieces, then spread cherry mixture evenly across.
- Whisk all dry ingredients together in your largest bowl, then mix wet ingredients in a separate bowl. Pour wet into dry and stir just until you don’t see flour streaks anymore – overmixing makes tough cake.
- Pour batter over cherries carefully and spread with a spatula. Don’t worry that it looks thin; it needs to flow around the fruit properly.
- Bake 30-35 minutes until the center springs back when you press it lightly. A toothpick should come out with just a few damp crumbs clinging to it.
- Cool exactly 5 minutes, then run a knife around edges and flip onto your serving plate in one confident motion. Leave the pan sitting on top for 2-3 minutes before lifting it off slowly.
Notes
Room temp eggs and milk mix way easier, but cold cherries actually hold their shape better when you bake them
That cornstarch isn’t optional – skip it and you get cherry soup on the bottom of your cake
Shake the pan gently before flipping. If the whole cake jiggles together, you’re good to go
Biggest mistake I see people make: letting it sit too long before the flip. Five minutes, then GO
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American