Fig Upside Down Cake

Yes, I know my last post was a cake and here I am back again so soon with another cake. Well, truth be told, I do have a weakness for cake. But more importantly, with figs in season for such a short time more, I figured you needed this cake recipe. Besides, swimsuit season is over -- go for broke. (OK, I can hear all you folks in the Southern hemisphere right now as you squeeze into your Speedos - Just eat a smaller piece, alright? Life is too short.) 

The figs in the cake were from my friend Ellie's fig tree. I wish I could say they were from my yard. But the fig below is, in fact, from my very own fig tree. It's the only ripe fruit I've harvested from it this year -- and it's a biggie. With any luck, the other figs will ripen before the frost hits. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

I used a cast iron skillet to make this cake. If you don't own one, you should. They transmit heat so uniformly and they're such versatile pans, you can cook anything from omelets to cakes in them. Plus they last forever. This one is 42 years old. Yikes, that sentence just gave me the willies. I have pans older than most of my readers? Oh well, at least I'm still here to write about it. moving on.....

 Melt the brown sugar and butter and place the figs cut side down.

 Mix the batter (it will be thick) and place it carefully over the figs.

 Bake at 350 degrees and flip it immediately (and carefully) onto a large plate. This cake is best enjoyed when warm, so gather some friends around and dig in. 

For another great version of a fig upside-down cake, check out Greg's blog post on SippitySup here.

Upside Down Fig Cake

printable recipe here

8 T. butter

1/2 cup sugar + 2 T.

2 eggs

2 cups all-purpose flour

3 t. baking powder

1/2 t. salt

1/4 t. ground cinnamon

a few gratings of nutmeg

1/2 cup milk

For the top part (it will become the top when flipped)

4 T. butter

1/2 cup brown sugar

figs, cut in half (the amount depends on how large they are - I needed about 1 1/2 dozen for this one)

In a 10-inch cast iron skillet, melt the butter and brown sugar. Arrange the fig halves over the sugar and butter, cut side down. 

For the cake batter, beat the butter and sugar until light. Beat in the eggs. Sift dry ingredients together. Beat half of dry ingredients into creamed mixture and beat in half of milk. Repeat, beating well. Batter will be thick.

Pour into the pan over the fig/brown sugar/butter mixture. Bake in oven at 350 degrees for about 30-35 minutes. Serve warm if possible.