Star Fruit Upside Down Cake @LucyBurdette

LUCY BURDETTE: Star fruit are not a common produce ingredient in Connecticut to say the least. I’d certainly never cooked or baked with one. But here in Key West over the past month, I’ve seen piles of them distributed to interested folks at our church and at the Key West Woman’s Club. I thought they might turn out well in an upside down cake, and would certainly look pretty! It could be very festive for New Year's Eve... (We sampled one before baking--John described it as refreshing, but not a strong flavor. Definitely not as sweet as pineapple...)

Ingredients 

2-3 star fruit, depending on size

10-12 Maraschino cherries, de-stemmed and blotted dry

12 Tbsp butter, divided

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 Tbsp honey

1 and 1/2 cup unbleached flour

1 and 1/2 tsp. baking powder

¼ tsp salt

1/2 cup sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

2 large eggs

1/2 cup milk

Preheat the oven to 350. Butter a 9 inch cake pan, bottom and sides. (I used some of the butter above, figuring there's plenty in the recipe already!) Cut a piece of parchment paper to the size of the pan, put it in the bottom and butter that too. 

Slice the star fruit thinly and poke out the seeds.

Melt 4 oz of butter in a small pan. Add the honey and brown sugar and heat, stirring until smooth. 

Pour the mixture into the prepared pan and then place the fruit in a shape that pleases you. Dot with cherries that have been blotted dry with a paper towel.

Meanwhile, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt in one bowl. Measure milk into a glass measuring cup. In another bowl, beat the butter and sugar and vanilla with a mixer until they are light in color. 

Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each. On low speed, add the dry ingredients in three parts, alternating with the milk until everything is mixed nicely. 

Smooth the batter over the fruit. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until a knife comes out clean. Let the cake rest on a rack for an hour. 

Then place your serving plate over the top and gently invert the cake onto the platter. Mine slid out beautifully, leaving the parchment paper in the pan. 

Could it be any cuter??

ps Don't tell those cute star fruit, but the pineapple version has more flavor:). I know that Maraschino cherries are full of chemicals, but they sure were delicious here! And one last thing, a dollop of whipped cream would not have been remiss...

Lucy Burdette writes the Key West food critic mystery series. A DISH TO DIE FOR is on bookshelves right now. A CLUE IN THE CRUMBS will be published August 8, 2023. 

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Frozen Peach Upside Down Cake

This summer has been very busy for us. While I hate to admit it, trips to the grocery store have been a bit of an afterthought. That wouldn't be a problem if fresh fruit would just stay fresh!

So I reached for frozen peaches. That's kind of pathetic since this is peach season, but sometimes you just use what's on hand. Right?

It was a day when I was juggling a number of things so I wanted to make something very easy for dessert. This is a great recipe for people who don't cook a lot or are timid about baking. The peaches went into the cast iron pan frozen. How easy is that?

The cake portion is very basic. I recommend using some nutmeg or cinnamon to perk it up. On the other hand, we found the simple cake to be the perfect foil for the super sweet peaches.

We ate it with whipped cream on top, but it's perfectly good plain.

Frozen Peach Upside Down Cake

1/2 cup dark brown sugar
4 tablespoons butter
1 bag frozen peaches

1 stick (8 tablespoons butter) room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs (room temperature)
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350.

In a cast iron pan, melt the butter and mix in the brown sugar. Arrange the frozen peaches in the pan on top of the sugar. I started in the middle and made sort of a round flower shape, but you could also set them up in straight lines if you like. Some peaches will be thicker than others. As far as I could tell, that didn't make a difference. Set aside.

Cream the butter with the sugar. Add the eggs and beat well. In a bowl, mix together the baking powder, cinnamon, and flour. Add flour mixture 1/3 at a time, alternating with the milk. Add the vanilla and beat. Pour over the peaches and bake for 35-45 minutes or until lightly brown and a cake tester comes out clean.

Melt butter with brown sugar.

Arrange the peaches.

Pour batter over it and bake.