Sticky apricot upside down cake

Are you looking for a new treat with your cuppa? This sticky apricot upside-down cake is a seriously delicious treat. We can almost taste it now! The apricot halves basked in a faux caramel of melted butter, brown sugar and spices- nursing with punchy flavour in every bite!

The sticky topping makes for a the perfect complement for the tarty fruit, and offers a textural contrast to the buttery cake. Adding the almond flour further brings out the apricot flavour. This rustic beauty is perfect by itself, but you can serve it with whipped cream or ice cream, if you want to be fancy.

Ingredients

FOR THE TOPPINGS

• 4 tbsp unsalted butter, melted, plus more for greasing
• Flour, for dusting
• 1/2 cup light or dark brown sugar, packed
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp fine sea salt
• 8 medium apricots, rinsed and dried

FOR THE CAKE BATTER

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup almond flour
• 1teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 tsp fine sea salt
• 6 tbsp room temperature unsalted butter
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1/2cup whole milk

Method

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare the topping: Lightly grease and flour a 9-inch cake pan or an 8-inch square baking pan.
2. In a small bowl, stir together the melted butter, brown sugar, cinnamon and 1/4 tsp salt. Spread the brown sugary mix in an even layer on the bottom of the pan.
3. Cut the apricots in half and remove the pits. Arrange the apricots, flesh-side down, evenly over the bottom of the pan.
4. Prepare the cake batter: Add the flour to a medium bowl. Sift in the almond flour, then use your fingertips to break up any clumps that don’t fit through the sieve. Add the baking powder and salt to the bowl and whisk to combine.
5. In a large bowl with an electric hand mixer, or in a stand mixer with the paddle attached, beat the butter and granulated sugar on medium until combined and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the vanilla extract, then the eggs, one at a time, mixing until smooth. Use a rubber spatula to scrape down the bottom and sides of the bowl.
6. Add 1/3 of the flour mixture, then 1/2 of the milk, mixing to combine. Continue alternating the additions of flour and milk and mixing, scraping down the sides of the bowl, just until all is combined.
7. Spread the batter in an even layer over the apricot halves. Bake until the cake is set and doesn’t jiggle when shaken, is golden brown on top, and a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean, about 35 minutes.
8. Remove pan from the oven, and place on a cooling rack for 5 minutes. With the cake still in the pan, turn the pan over onto a serving platter. Wait 1 minute, then remove the pan.