Rhubarb Upside Down Cake

I base my rhubarb equivalent on the good old recipe of pineapple upside down cake. Versions of Rhubarb Upside Down Cake can be tweaked depending on how sweet or tart you like your fruit. I use a large glass cake pan 9 x 13 if using a boxed cake mix for this dessert (yes I do use boxed cake mixes on occasion when my kitchen time is limited or I would rather be outside than inside). Make the batter a little thicker than the box recipe by leaving 1/4 cup of water and adding a dollop of sour cream.

I have also been known to make several smaller cakes at one time since they freeze well and make great potluck additions at the last minute. I use 2 – Pyrex 6 x8 with the handy plastic lids or even 2 – glass 9 inch pie plates for this recipe.

The biggest hint for any upside down cake is to coat the inside of your baking vessel with non-stick spray or a good swipe of softened butter. When it is time to flip the cake over you will thank me for this reminder.

The amount of rhubarb you use will also depend on how thick of a fruit layer you are looking for. For the large baking pan I use about 2 cups of fairly small diced pieces.

Rhubarb Upside Down Cake

350 degrees 30- 40 minutes

Bottom Layer

2 cups of diced rhubarb

¼ to ½ cup brown sugar

1 t. cinnamon or allspice

¼ t. ginger

Cake

2 ½ Cups cake flour or 2 cups all-purpose flour

1 ¼ Cups sugar

3 ½ t. baking powder

½ t. salt

½ Cup (1 stick) melted butter

1 Cup milk

¼ Cup sour cream

1 t. vanilla

2 eggs

 

Heat oven 350 degrees. Mix ingredients for bottom layer in bowl and set aside.

In mixing bowl add all cake ingredients. Mix at low speed until all incorporated then high speed for 2 minutes. Take a moment to scrape down sides and bottom with spatula and give it another ½ minute on high speed to make sure you are not missing any large clumps.

Liberally spray non-stick on the pans or swipe with melted butter. Re-mix the set aside bottom layer and spread evenly over the bottom of the pans.

Spread cake mix over the tops of the rhubarb mixture. Place pans on middle rack of pre-heated oven. Use toothpick or lightly touch top of cake to check if cake is cooked through. Top should be golden brown and bottom bubbly and fragrant.

Remove pans from oven and let cool slightly so you don’t burn yourself but still warm to the touch. Place a tray or serving platter on top of cake and flip entire thing over. Let the warmth of the cake and topping set until cool before removing the baking pan.

For cakes that are destined to go into the freezer rather than fresh eating, there is no need to flip. After the cake is completely cool, cover tightly and pop into the freezer.