peach & pecan upside down cake

Recipe by
Sanity Chek
Annapolis, MD

Variation on a pineapple upside down cake. The cake is from scratch and worth the effort because the cream cheese in it makes it a soft dense cake just as yummy as the top of the cake. Time will vary based on size pan you use (how shallow) and your oven. Bakes 45-50 minutes. In a convection oven, this cake took me 48 minutes. As usual, your family will be hovering over you asking when its ready. Thankfully this one is great when warm.

yield 8 serving(s)
prep time 25 Min
cook time 50 Min
method Bake

Ingredients For peach & pecan upside down cake

  • 2
    fresh peaches, peeled/sliced 1/4 in" thick
  • 1/4 c
    chopped pecans
  • 5 Tbsp
    melted butter
  • 3/4 c
    loosely packed brown sugar
  • 1 c
    granulated sugar
  • 1 stick
    butter, room temperature
  • 4 oz
    cream cheese, room temperature
  • 1 1/3 c
    all purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 tsp
    baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp
    salt
  • 2 lg
    eggs
  • 2/3 c
    milk
  • 1 pinch
    nutmeg
  • 1 1/2 tsp
    vanilla extract

How To Make peach & pecan upside down cake

  • 1
    Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease only the sides of either a 9" cake pan or your pan of choice with some butter. I used a 7x11" ceramic pan. Just remember, you should have a plate or serving dish bigger than the pan you are baking in that you will use when you turn the cake upside down at the end.
  • 2
    Sprinkle the brown sugar in the bottom of your pan. Drizzle with your melted butter. Get a fork and mash the brown sugar around so all of it has some butter and so that it is even across the bottom of the pan. If there's any hard lumps in your sugar, you should break them up here. Some folks like to melt these two together in another pan until it looks like caramel...but if your goal is to use the fewest amount of pans necessary, the method for this recipe works perfectly and saves time.
  • 3
    Line up your sliced peaches on top of the brown sugar in a pattern you like. In between the peaches and anywhere there is a spot open, fill with chopped pecan pieces. Just make sure the pecan pieces are sitting on top of the brown sugar, not the peaches, so they will get caramelized when baking. Set aside.
  • 4
    Using a food processor or a mixer, mix together the granulated sugar and the butter for a couple minutes. Then add the cream cheese, mix for another minute.
  • 5
    Add in the eggs, milk, vanilla. Mix together until combined. Add all the rest of the dry ingredients a little at a time...mixing until it looks like a nice creamy batter, not lumpy. About a minute or two on medium or low speed.
  • 6
    Pour over the peaches and bake in oven for 45-50 minutes. Check the cake at 45 minutes regardless. Stick a toothpick in just the cake, avoiding going as deep as the brown sugar topping, and if it comes out clean you're good to go. The top of your cake (which is really the bottom) should be dark golden brown and maybe even have some juices bubbling on the sides or seeping through the middle of the cake. That's all fine.
  • 7
    Let cool 10 minutes just so you don't burn yourself when trying to tip the pan upside down. Take a knife to the sides of the pan and make sure the edges of the cake are not stuck to the sides. Tip the cake and tap the bottom before lifting. The cake will come out easily. If any pieces are stuck to the pan, just put them in the place on the cake where they belong. Not a problem! Serve warm or cooled, whichever way you prefer. Enjoy!

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