Cherry Cornmeal Upside-down Cake
Yesterday was our last day in Tofino, and still I hadn’t really made anything summery, except maybe one huckleberry crumble. No plum butter cake or crostata or pie. I had been waiting to do something with the summer apricots and cherries abundant at Beaches grocery when I was not at risk of passing on my phlegmy flu. It’s still hanging on – in fact, it turned around and took another run at me.
There were 12 people in the house, most of them kids, and only one of those kids not a boy 8 or under. Everyone kept buying cherries. There were bags everywhere, and stray cherries left on plates at almost every meal. This was made like most any upside-down cake, with butter and brown sugar in the bottom of the pan, this time with a wee splash of balsamic vinegar – a hit of acid makes a big difference, but feel free to use lemon juice instead. (In fact, feel free to swap the cherries for thickly sliced apricots or peaches or plums.) The cherries go almost as dark as prunes.
The fruit starts to cook down as you mix up the cornmeal batter, which you then pour over the fruit and bake. What else can you do when it feels like your brain is trying to escape from your head through your face?
Cherry Cornmeal Upside-Down Cake
AuthorJuliePreheat the oven to 350°F. Place 1/4 cup butter with brown sugar and vinegar in a 9-inch cake pan or cast iron skillet; set in the oven until melted, then stir until smooth and add the cherries. Return to the oven while you mix up the cake batter - the cherries will start to soften and release their juices.
In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt. In a large bowl, beat the remaining 1/4 cup butter, oil and sugar for a minute or two, until starting to get pale and fluffy; beat in the eggs and vanilla.
Add the flour in three additions, alternating with the milk in two additions, beating just until incorporated after each. Spoon batter over the cherries in the pan or skillet, and spread to cover the cherries.
Bake cake until top is golden and springy to the touch, about 45 minutes. Cool for about 5 minutes, then run spatula around the edges of the cake to loosen.
Invert onto a serving plate while it's still warm.
Ingredients
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Place 1/4 cup butter with brown sugar and vinegar in a 9-inch cake pan or cast iron skillet; set in the oven until melted, then stir until smooth and add the cherries. Return to the oven while you mix up the cake batter - the cherries will start to soften and release their juices.
In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt. In a large bowl, beat the remaining 1/4 cup butter, oil and sugar for a minute or two, until starting to get pale and fluffy; beat in the eggs and vanilla.
Add the flour in three additions, alternating with the milk in two additions, beating just until incorporated after each. Spoon batter over the cherries in the pan or skillet, and spread to cover the cherries.
Bake cake until top is golden and springy to the touch, about 45 minutes. Cool for about 5 minutes, then run spatula around the edges of the cake to loosen.
Invert onto a serving plate while it's still warm.
Yum, this looks fantastic! Love the idea of a cornmeal cake with the cherries…seems like the flavors would go really well together.
Never would have thought to do something like this with cornmeal. I will have to try it. Looks delicious 🙂
Sorry you felt bad for most of your holiday 🙂
The cake looks absolutely divine in all of that upside down glory. Hope you are feeling better soon!
i’m always looking for more ways to cook with cherries. Gotta use em up while they’re in season right?? Especially BC cherries! Delish!
PS. I swear, I decided not to bake anymore in the next couple weeks (too much baked deliciousness going on)… and now everyone is posting my most preferred baked snacks!
Bless you. I am going cherry crazy and needed something new. I love baking with cornmeal.
Gosh, I hope you’re feeling better, Julie! This looks so simple and yummy. My favourite way to enjoy dessert. And anything cornmeal based is good with me!
Mmmm! I have a recipe for a blackberry cornbread that I have been dying to try and this just reminded me of it!
omg this looks so delicious, I bet the cornmeal gives it an amazing texture
This looks so delicious! I love the addition of balsamic and I’ll bookmark this one. It needs to get made 🙂
This is in the oven right now! I only had two cups of cherries that needed using up, and I only have 8-inch cake pans. So I decided to go ahead with the smaller amount of cherries… but then once the batter was mixed I could see there was still no way it was all going to fit.
So I split the cherries into two pans and dumped the batter on… then saw the part where it says to ‘spoon’ it on. Ooops. I think I have a cherry-free zone in the middle (I did some gentle stirring to try to fix it)
Anyway, it smells very good… I’m not sure how long to cook it in two halves so I’m starting with 20 minutes and will keep checking it until it’s done. I imagine it’ll take somewhat less than 45 minutes this way.
^^ it took 25 minutes, and I stacked them when done so I have a layered upside down cake 🙂 And it’s YUMMY
Thanks for the recipe! I love cooking with cornmeal too. Being without cherries I made mine with apples, cinnamon pear balsamic vinegar and almond extract. My coworkers thank you, and so do I!
By the way, it was really easy to make at 3:00 in the morning, finishing around 4:40, and if you are concerned about waking up a significant other (husband in my case) you can make it without a mixer. :))