• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Laughing Spatula logo

  • Bloglovin
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • YouTube
  • All Recipes
  • Most Popular
  • Chicken Recipes
  • Healthy Recipes
  • About
Laughing Spatula / Recipe Index / Desserts / Cranberry Upside Down Cake

Cranberry Upside Down Cake

By Kathi & Rachel

2 shares
  • Share
  • Email
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

Nothing says festive like a recipe with fresh cranberries! This cake comes together quickly and makes the house like a holiday dream, with spices like nutmeg, cinnamon, and a little bit of ginger.

cranberry upside down cake on a serving platter sliced

I love this recipe simply because it feels like magic!  Fresh cranberries are inedible because of their tartness, but when baked with sugar and spices, transform into a perfectly sweet, spiced jelly like layer. Add in a vanilla almond cake beneath it, and you have a bakery quality cake. Bonus? Your house will smell divine!

Easy Upside Down Cake Recipe

As far as upside down cakes are concerned, they’re pretty easy and quite impressive…Just make sure you have enough time to let it cool before you flip it, otherwise it becomes a crumbly mess! If you don’t have cranberries, you can easily substitute blueberries, raspberries, or strawberries in this recipe. Even orange slices would be festive and fabulous. 

adding sugar to cranberries

Combine sugar, brown sugar, and spices in a bowl- whisk until combined. Pour that mixture over the cranberries and until all of them are coated, then transfer them to a greased 8 inch cake pan (make sure its at least 2 inches high).

Make sure the pan is greased well! We want it to easily remove itself from the pan once we flip it. I suggest using a stick of butter to grease the pan. 

pressing down on cranberries in cake pan

Press the cranberries down into the pan (not enough to pop them, just enough to make sure they coat the pan). After that, we’ll make our cake batter. I love a little almond flavor in this cake with the cranberries, but if you prefer vanilla only, that works too. Add a little orange zest if you like! 

adding cake batter on top of cranberries

Spread the entire cake batter over the cranberries mixture, being cautious not to mix the 2. I recommend using as silicon spatula to spread. After that’s done, it’s ready to bake! 

whole cranberry upside down cake

How to Flip an Upside Down Cake

There is a bit of a technique to flipping an upside down cake. If you’ve done it once, you’ll know how to do it forever though. 

  • Let the cake cool, but not entirely. Give it a rest for about 15-20 minutes out of the oven before you flip it. A cake that is too warm will crumble when flipped. Too cool, and it won’t come out whole.
  • Give it some help. Run a knife around the exterior of the cake to help it loosen up before you flip it.
  • Use a large enough  flat plate to flip it. One that is about an inch or two around the exterior of the cake dish is perfect.
  • Place the inverted plate on the top of the cake, and flip!
  • You should have a perfect upside down cake if you followed all of these steps. 

cranberry upside down cake on a serving platter sliced

Garnishing a Cranberry Upside Down Cake

For garnishing this cake, I like to use a simple sprig of rosemary. Here’s a few more ideas: 

  • Dust with powdered sugar right before serving!
  • Add a few large scoops of vanilla ice cream to the center of the warm center of the cake just before serving (this method really only works if you are serving the entire cake, otherwise serve individually if you want in tact leftovers).
  • Orange zest with a spiral orange slice is a beautiful color, and flavor compliment to this cranberry upside down cake.

If you’re looking for other desserts for the Winter season, here’s a few more we think you’ll like!

  • Bananas Foster Upside Down Cake
  • Easy Cinnamon Roll Cake
  • Sugar Plum Cake
  • Lemon Ricotta Cake

What do you think about this recipe?Have questions?Comment below!Don’t forget to like us on Facebook, and connect with us on Instagram and  tag your @Laughingspatula recipes with #laughingspatula,while you’re at it…We love to see your pics! 

Cheers to the holiday season! – Kathi and Rachel

Cranberry Upside Down Cake

This cake comes together quickly and makes the house like a holiday dream, with spices like nutmeg, cinnamon, and a little bit of ginger.
5 from 2 votes
Print Rate
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Servings: 8 people
Author: Kathi & Rachel

Ingredients

  • 1 tbsp butter (for greasing pan)

Cranberry Sugar Layer

  • 1/4 cup white sugar
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/8 tsp ginger powder
  • 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
  • 1 3/4 cup fresh whole cranberries

Cake

  • 6 tbsp butter (room temperature)
  • 1/2 cup white granulated sugar
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/4 tsp almond extract
  • 1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/2 cup milk

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Heavily grease an 8 inch cake pan with about 1 tbsp butter.

Cranberry Layer Group

  • In a small bowl, combine 1/4 cup sugar, 1/4 cup brown sugar, and spices (ground cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg). Whisk to combine. Add cranberries to mixture and whisk until cranberries are coated, and pour entire sugar/spice/cranberry into greased cake pan. Press down cranberry gently.

Cake

  • Using an electric mixer, combine butter, sugar, vanilla extract and almond mixture. Mix on medium speed until fluffy. Set aside.
  • In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
  • With the electric mixer on low in 3 small batches, add flour mixture to butter mixture, adding small amounts of milk in each pass. Mix until fully combined.
  • Add cake batter on top of cranberry mixture, and smooth with silicon spatula.
  • Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into center of cake come out clean.
  • How to Flip Cake:
    Let the cake cool, but not entirely. Give it a rest for about 15-20 minutes out of the oven before you flip it. A cake that is too warm will crumble when flipped. Too cool, and it won't come out whole. 
    Run a knife around the exterior of the cake to help it loosen up before you flip it. Use a large enough  flat plate to flip it. One that is about an inch or two around the exterior of the cake dish is perfect
    Place the inverted plate on the top of the cake, and flip!
2 shares
  • Share
  • Email

Filed Under: Desserts, Holidays

Never miss a Laughing Spatula recipe!

Sign up for free recipes delivered straight your in box ! Sign up Here

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Maureen says

    March 5, 2023 at 12:57 am

    5 stars
    Can you use frozen cranberries?

    Reply
    • Kathi & Rachel says

      March 5, 2023 at 6:14 am

      Yes, you can use frozen. No need to thaw.

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

mother daughter picture of Rachel and Kathi Kirk
Hi! We are Kathi and Rachel, a mother daughter blogging team creating easy to prepare foods made with fresh ingredients that your whole family will love!

FREE RECIPE EBOOK!
Join our free list below and receive our Ebook: TOP 10 EASY DINNER RECIPES! The best of the best all in one little book!

YOUR FAVORITE RECIPES!

cauliflower casserole in a white baking dish

Chicken Cauliflower Alfredo Casserole

Quick Pickled Cucumbers

Quick Pickled Cucumbers

Honey Glazed Salmon with Orange and Ginger

baked cake sliced on white board

Ultimate Sour Cream Coffee Cake

Chicken Pho on a colorful cloth with ingredients for topping

Chicken Pho

pudding in a cup

5 Minute Chocolate Pudding

Footer

As Seen On

Laughing Spatula Featured on Buzzfeed
Laughing Spatula Featured on Fitness Magazine
Laughing Spatula Featured on The Huffington Post
Laughing Spatula Featured on MSN
Laughing Spatula Featured on NBC News
Laughing Spatula Featured on PBS
Laughing Spatula Featured on RedbookMag.com
Laughing Spatula Featured on Country Living

WE LOVE HELPING YOU MAKE FRESH, DELICIOUS AND SIMPLE RECIPES FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY!

  • Main Course Recipes
  • Sheet Pan Recipes
  • Fast and Fresh Recipes
  • Most Popular Recipes
  • Salad & Dressing Recipes
  • Desserts
  • Soup Recipes
  • Side Dish Recipes
  • Bloglovin
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • YouTube

Copyright © 2023 Laughing Spatula | Contact & Privacy Policy