Spiced Blueberry and Carrot Upside Down Cake

Georgia Grown

This colorful upside down cake makes use of fresh Georgia Grown produce to create an unexpected dessert or midafternoon snack. Make sure to use Georgia Grown satsumas in this recipe for some natural sweetness and citrus flavor. You can find them under the brand name “Besties” at your local grocery store, or look for the Georgia Grown logo.

Although fresh Georgia blueberries aren’t in season this time of year, this could be your chance to use up some of your U-Pick frozen berry stash. If that’s not your thing, we suggest trying this with Georgia pomegranate arils if you can find them.

When arranging the berries and carrots, keep in mind that they will shrink as they cook, so more is more. Placing the carrot slices so they are almost on top of each other will ensure that you get a generous ring of caramel-glazed carrots on the top.

The spices and just a touch of fresh lemon juice complement the carrots and blueberries, and bring a bit of complexity and acidity to a cake that is as delicious as it is beautiful.

Ingredients:

  • 9-inch cake pan
  • ½ cup butter
  • ¾ cup light brown sugar, packed
  • 2 – 3 carrots, peeled, sliced on bias ¼ inch thick
  • 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries, or try Georgia pomegranate arils
  • 3 eggs, separated, room temperature
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 2 teaspoons Satsuma zest
  • ¼ cup Satsuma juice
  • 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Melt butter in a 9 inch x 2 inch cake pan in the oven. Sprinkle brown sugar evenly over the butter without mixing.

Place carrot slices around edge of pan, tightly overlapping like shingles. Place blueberries or pomegranate seeds in a ring inside the carrots, then repeat with another ring of carrots. Fill the center with additional blueberries or pomegranate seeds. Set aside.

In a stand mixer, or with a hand mixer, whip egg whites to firm peaks. Set aside in a separate container. In another bowl with a hand mixer, or in cleaned stand mixer bowl, beat egg yolks and sugar until light lemon in color and still thick, about 1 minute. Add vanilla extract, spices, salt and Satsuma zest, beating until incorporated.

Alternate flour and juices, adding small amount at a time, incorporating well before each addition. Once batter is well combined, fold in a small portion of the whipped egg whites to lighten the batter, then gently fold in the rest until batter is light and smooth.

Spoon batter into cake pan over fruit. Smooth batter gently, being careful not to deflate egg whites or disturb fruit layer. Bake in preheated oven 25 – 35 minutes or until center springs back when touched. Remove from oven and let rest 30 minutes.

To unmold the cake, run a knife around the outside, place the serving plate over the cake pan, and flip carefully. Serves 6 – 8.