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    Home » Recipes » Desserts (Baked) » Rhubarb Upside Down Cake

    LAST UPDATED: May 6, 2021 • FIRST PUBLISHED: May 2, 2012 By Toni Dash 26 Comments

    Rhubarb Upside Down Cake

    Jump to Recipe

    This post may include affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    rhubarb upside down cake in skillet

    This vintage recipe for Rhubarb Upside Down Cake is easy to make either in a skillet or cake pan. Light, fluffy, sweet cake combined with tangy rhubarb is a favorite.

    rhubarb upside down cake in skillet

    Our Farmer’s Market has now been open for a few weeks and the parade of fresh things has begun again.

    Something I’ve appreciated about eating as a locavore is the specific period of time a given produce item is available.

    I realize it seems that it might be more convenient to have things available indefinitely but you can liken it to a favorite holiday; if it was around all year, the spikes of appreciation of what comes with it would be missing.

    stalks of rhubarb

    Over the winter I grouped newly discovered vintage recipes into mental categories by fruit or vegetable, waiting for the right timing to give them a whirl.

    With the onset of rhubarb I’ve dipped into the wooden recipe box that produced Dark Honey Cake and found this Rhubarb Upside Down Cake recipe.

    The recipe resides on a fragile, browned newspaper clipping I’m guessing from the 1930’s after seeing dates in that range on similarly aged clippings in the box.

    rhubarb upside down cake newspaper clipping
    The fragile original recipe of Mrs. Clarence Hicks. I provided more specifics below as some of the recipe details were open to interpretation.

    The recipe suggests the cake can be prepared in a pan or skillet. I have not prepared an upside down cake in a skillet before but feeling I’d ‘right side up’ piece by piece, rather than turning out the cake in its entirety, I ventured that method.

    I felt the rustic use of a cast iron skillet mirrored the charm of the original recipe.

    The cake is delicious with exactly the right amount of tartness from the rhubarb.

    Rhubarb Upside Down Cake
    A slice of rhubarb upside down cake
    grating nutmeg
    When grated, nutmeg has a much lighter aroma and taste, almost with citrus overtones. You can purchase whole nutmeg in the spice department. Whenever I use it in recipes I try to grate it fresh.
    Did you make it? Please RATE THE RECIPE below!
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    rhubarb upside down cake in skillet

    RHUBARB UPSIDE DOWN CAKE

    This vintage recipe for Rhubarb Upside Down Cake is easy to make in a skillet. It's a perfect combination of sweet fluffy cake and tangy rhubarb.
    5 from 12 votes
    Print Save Recipe Recipe Saved! Pin Rate
    Course: Dessert
    Cuisine: American
    Prep Time: 15 minutes
    Cook Time: 45 minutes
    Cooling Time (estimate): 30 minutes
    Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
    Servings: 8
    Calories: 509kcal
    Author: Toni Dash
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Ingredients

    • ½ cup light brown sugar
    • 1 ½ cup granulated sugar divided
    • ½ cup butter
    • 1 cup heavy whipping cream
    • 1 egg
    • 1 ½ cup all purpose flour regular or gluten-free measure-for-measure flour blend*
    • 2 teaspoons baking powder
    • 4 cups rhubarb trimmed and rough chopped
    • nutmeg sprinkle, preferably freshly grated

    Instructions

    • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

    Skillet Method

    • (This method uses a skillet and does NOT turn the entire cake over at the end. If you would like to use a pan or turn the cake over, see the NOTES section below).
      In a 10 inch oven proof skillet (I used cast iron), melt brown sugar, ½ cup of the granulated sugar and the butter over medium heat stirring occasionally.
    • While the sugar and butter are melting, in a large bowl combine the remaining 1 cup of sugar, cream, egg, flour and baking powder; stir until fully combined.
    • When sugar-butter mixture is completely melted, add the rhubarb and stir to combine. Sprinkle with nutmeg.
    • Spoon the cake batter over the rhubarb mixture and spread to cover as much as possible (note: the batter is thick more like a biscuit batter so try to form a layer but it will end up cooking together so don’t worry of there are some spots open).
    • Bake for 40-45 minutes. Cake is done when a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean and the cake has begun to brown on the top.
    • Allow to cool before slicing. When serving turn the slice over on the plate, exposing the rhubarb side on the top.
      Fabulous with a scoop of Vanilla Bean ice cream!

    Notes

    Ingredients notes
    *If making a gluten-free version we recommend using Bob’s Red Mill gluten-free 1-to-1 Baking Flour as the base flour.
    When grated, nutmeg has a much lighter aroma and taste, almost with citrus overtones. You can purchase whole nutmeg in the spice department. Whenever I use it in recipes I try to grate it fresh.
    Cake pan method – to turn cake upside down
    If you would like to turn out the entire cake instead of making it in a skillet:
    • I would suggest using a 9 inch pan (square or round),
    • place the pan in the heated oven for the first step of melting the sugars and butter.
    • Then proceed with the rest of the recipe not using the stove top.
    • TO REMOVE FULL CAKE FROM A PAN: If you have baked the cake in a pan and wish to turn the entire cake over, allow cake pan to cool for 5 minutes on a cooling rack (note: do not allow it to sit longer or it may be difficult to remove from the pan).
    • Run a dinner knife along the sides of the pan to ensure it is freed up and turn onto a serving plate. Be careful as the cake and pan will still be quite warm.
    • Cool about 45 minutes.
    Recipe attribution: Mrs. Clarence Hicks

    Nutrition

    Calories: 509kcal | Carbohydrates: 73g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 23g | Saturated Fat: 14g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 92mg | Sodium: 128mg | Potassium: 354mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 52g | Vitamin A: 884IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 137mg | Iron: 2mg
    Did you make this recipe?Mention @boulderlocavore or tag #boulderlocavore!

    Originally published: May 2, 2012

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    ABOUT THE AUTHOR

    TONI DASH
    Toni Dash head shot

    Toni Dash, is a Certified Nutrition Coach and the writer/blogger, photographer, recipe developer and creator of Boulder Locavore®. She has been developing easy to make, well-tested recipes since 2010. Her seasonal recipes bring excitement to the dining table for both gluten-free and gluten diners. Toni has been featured in numerous publications and on culinary websites for her creative, delicious recipes and travel features. For more details, check out her About page.

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    Comments

    1. karin@yumandmore says

      May 17, 2012 at 11:00 am

      5 stars
      gorgeous!! so glad to have a new “upside down” recipe as I don't like the pineapple one.

      Reply
    2. lindsay | rosemarried says

      May 08, 2012 at 3:46 am

      5 stars
      I love that it's farmers market season again! And I looooove that it's rhubarb season. This recipe is so simple and rustic and wonderful. I made rhubarb bars last week but I still have more rhubarb in my fridge! I just might have to make this lovely recipe.

      Reply
    3. Kim Bee says

      May 05, 2012 at 4:50 am

      This is so amazing. My dad was a huge rhubarb fan. We still get it growing in our yard from years ago when it was his house. This is fabulous.

      Reply
    4. Vicki @ WITK says

      May 04, 2012 at 1:26 pm

      I've never baked with rhubarb, I should head to our farmers market this weekend and check to see who has some!

      Reply
    5. Samantha says

      May 04, 2012 at 2:51 am

      5 stars
      What a perfect spring dessert! (or breakfast….) I adore rhubarb in all of its tart ruby glory. I should see if the neighbor minds me raiding their patch…

      Reply
      • Boulder Locavore says

        May 04, 2012 at 4:32 am

        I'd guess if you made them this cake in return they'd be happy to let you pick whenever you like!

        Reply
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    About Toni Dash

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    Welcome! I’m Toni. I’m a Certified Nutrition Coach and my goal is to MAKE YOUR LIFE EASIER with delicious, well-tested recipes and travel tips! More About Me …

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