This beautiful apple upside-down cake is a show-stopping fall dessert with perfectly layered caramelized apple slices on a tender almond and quinoa flour cake.
This gluten-free apple upside-down cake is a delicious and stunning way to mix up your fall dessert game. It's baked upside down and flipped just before serving to wow guests with an impressive buttery apple topping. If you're looking for a new apple dessert recipe to bring to the table this year, look no further!
Why You’ll Love This Apple Upside-Down Cake Recipe
- Tender, caramelized apples. The apples bake at the bottom of the pan and that direct heat means they get soft (but not too soft!), sticky, and delightfully caramelized. So good!
- Perfect moist cake. The cake layer is absolute perfection too, with a light fluffy texture and cozy cinnamon flavor.
- Gluten-free—but everyone will love it. The almond and quinoa flour combo makes this upside down apple cake gluten-free, but it’s so good, it’s a dessert everyone at the table will enjoy. (This gluten-free fresh apple cake is always a hit too.)
What You’ll Need
Scroll down to the recipe card to find the ingredient quantities and recipe instructions.
- Coconut oil
- Coconut sugar –You could also use a pure cane or brown sugar if you prefer.
- Apple – Cut the apple into thin slices; the thinner they are, the more they’ll soften and caramelize!
- Olive oil – This adds a rich, delicious flavor to the apple upside down cake. Plus it makes your cake dairy-free!
- Honey – You can also use maple syrup if you prefer.
- Eggs – To add structure to the cake and help it rise in the oven. I recommend letting these come to room temperature.
- Quinoa and almond flour – These powdery gluten-free flours have a rich, nutty flavor that's delicious with apples.
- Baking powder
- Cinnamon – Essential for that cozy flavor you expect in an apple cake. (If you want to try something different, I think cardamom would be nice too, or use apple pie spice.)
- Salt
What Apple Is Best For Cake?
I recommend using tart apples for this recipe. They'll get nice and sweet as they cook, but tend to hold their texture well. Any of these apples will work:
- Granny Smith
- Honeycrisp
- Braeburn
- Pink lady
How to Make Apple Upside-Down Cake
- Mix the coconut oil and sugar. Combine the two in a bowl, then spread the mixture onto the bottom of a round cake pan coated with cooking spray.
- Add the apples. Arrange the apples over the coconut oil mixture.
- Make the batter. Beat the olive oil, honey, and eggs, then whisk in the dry ingredients.
- Bake. Pour the batter over the apples. Bake at 350ºF for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the apple upside-down cake is golden brown and baked through.
- Cool. Let the cake cool completely in the pan, then run a butterknife along the edges to loosen it and invert onto a serving plate. Slice and serve.
Tips and Variations
- Make it with pears. Or use half pears, half apples. A nice firm pear (or Asian pears, which are round like apples) is lovely in an upside-down cake.
- Tent with foil. If you notice the cake is starting to brown too quickly, you can tent it with foil, which will slow down the browning while still allowing the inside of the cake to bake.
- Add almonds. Scatter sliced almonds over the coconut oil mixture before adding the apples for a little bit of crunch and nuttiness.
- Let the cake cool completely. You want to make sure the cake is fully cool before attempting to remove it from the pan. Otherwise, your apples may stick to the cake pan and you'll miss the impressive presentation.
Serving Suggestions
After you've inverted the cake, slice it and serve it at room temperature with a dollop of whipped cream (or coconut whipped cream) or cottage cheese ice cream. Add a sprinkle of cinnamon, or, if you want to get really decadent, try drizzling the cake with caramel sauce and scattering chopped pecans over the top.
How to Store
You can keep this apple upside-down cake at room temperature for about a day, but after that, I recommend storing it in the refrigerator in an airtight container. It will keep for 4 to 5 days; let it come to room temperature before serving.
Can I Freeze This Recipe?
Yes, this cake freezes beautifully! Wrap it tightly or store it in an airtight container for up to 2 months. Thaw it in the refrigerator before serving.
More Gluten-free Fall Desserts
- Perfect Gluten-Free Vegan Apple Crumb Pie
- Perfect Gluten-Free & Dairy-Free Pumpkin Pie
- Gluten-Free Fig Cake
- Gluten-Free Pumpkin Cookies
- Gluten-Free Apple Crisp
Apple Upside-Down Cake
Ingredients
for the apples:
- 3 tablespoons softened coconut oil
- 1/3 cup coconut sugar
- 1 large apple
for the cake:
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup honey
- 3 eggs
- 1 1/4 cups almond flour
- 1/4 cup quinoa flour
- 3/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Spray a 9" cake pan with cooking spray.
- Beat together the coconut oil and sugar. Once combined, transfer into the baking pan.
- Use your hands to spread the mixture out as evenly as possible along the bottom of the pan (it's okay if there are some "holes").
- Arrange the apple slices on top of this mixture in any shape or pattern you'd like. Set the pan aside.
- In a mixing bowl, beat together the olive oil, honey and eggs. Whisk in the dry ingredients until you have a smooth batter.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
- Pop the cake in the oven for 25 – 30 minutes, until its golden brown and cooked through (use the cake tester method to check). If it starts to brown too quickly on top, cover it with foil.
- Remove the cake from the oven then let it cool completely. Loosen the sides of the cake with a knife then flip it onto a plate. Slice and serve!
Notes
Nutrition
