This chocolate and orange upside down cake recipe is perfect for those who love the chocolate-orange flavour pairing.
We love upside down cake and make them throughout the year to showcase seasonal fruits to the max. This chocolate and orange cake is a little different to the average chocolate orange cake as I have made it using seasonal blood orange.
What are blood oranges?
While the name is not the most romantic these delicious oranges have a fabulous flavour so are so well worth seeking out.
Blood orange are the name given to varieties of orange with crimson, almost blood-coloured flesh.
The distinctive dark flesh colour is due to the presence of anthocyanins, a family of polyphenol pigments common to many flowers and fruit, but uncommon in citrus fruits. Chrysanthemin is the main compound found in red oranges. Wikipedia
There are several varieties of blood oranges and are available between December and May depending on the variety. But they tend to be at their most plentiful in the first few months of the year.
Just like all cakes of this type, this Blood Orange and Chocolate Upside Down Cake showcase the fruit's wonderful colour, shape and flavour to the max.
Luckily the cake works equally well with navel oranges at other times of the year, meaning that you can enjoy this easy, pretty and delicious cake any time you want.
Chocolate orange flavour combination
Of course what better flavour pairing is there than chocolate orange! Undoubtedly a favourite flavour combo for many people. A chocolate cake makes a perfect foil to blood oranges.
And if I was to tell you that there is real chocolate, as well as cocoa powder, in this chocolate cake, you know that you're not going to be disappointed.
Upside down cakes really do allow the fruit to be the star of the show, both in terms of flavour and prettiness. This chocolate and blood orange upside down cake is no different. It simultaneously has that 'wow' effect when it's turned out from the tin, showing off the slices of orange and their segments, as well as smelling delicious, and of course, tasting amazing with that much-loved chocolate orange flavour pairing.
Upside down cakes
As much as I have a huge appreciation for all out fancy cakes (the effort and skill which goes into them is phenomenal), I equally love simple everyday cakes. Upside down cake recipes are just perfect for an everyday cake and so very much a favourite of mine.
Not only are they quick and simple to make, and are perfect with a pot of tea during the afternoon or eaten as dessert following a family meal, they also make great use of fruits.
How to make an upside-down cake.
If you're new to making upside down cakes, trust me, they're incredibly easy and worth the few minutes of prep time. It's simply a case of arranging the fruit on the bottom of the cake tin, topping it with the cake batter and popping it in the oven to bake!
There's no need to make any fancy frosting either (though on this cake a drizzle of chocolate to contrast the colours and flavours can be really effective). And the exciting part is, of course, turning the cake out of the tin to see the wonderful fruits shown off in all their glory.
📖 Recipe
Chocolate Orange Upside Down Cake
Equipment
- 18 cm (7in) deep round cake tin
Ingredients
- 2 -3 blood oranges or regular oranges if blood oranges are out of season
- 50 g (2oz) milk chocolate
- 125 g (4oz) butter unsalted & softened
- 125 g (4oz) golden caster sugar
- 2 large eggs lightly beaten
- 1 -2 tablespoon milk
- 100 g (3½oz) self-raising flour
- 25 g (1oz) cocoa powder
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180℃ (160℃ fan)/350°F/gas mark 4. Grease and fully line the cake tin with baking parchment or greaseproof paper.
- Finely grate the zest from one of the oranges and set the zest aside. Using a small paring knife cut the peel and pith away from 2 or 3 orange (depending on size). Cut the orange into slices & arrange in the base of the cake tin to completely cover the base.
- Break 50g (2oz) chocolate into small pieces and place into a heatproof bowl and place over a pan of hot water stirring until melted. Remove the bowl from the pan when it has almost finished melting (the residual heat will allow it to melt completely). Set aside to cool.
- Place 125g (4oz) soft butter and 125g (4oz)sugar into a bowl and beat together until very pale and fluffy. Add the grated orange zest and beat again to combine. Gradually add 2 beaten eggs a little at a time, beating well after each addition. then beat in 1 tablespoon milk.
- Sieve 100g (3½oz) flour and 25g (1oz) cocoa into the mixture. Use a spatula or large metal spoon to fold this in gently. Then fold in the melted milk chocolate. You should have a nice dropping consistency - add a further tablespoon of milk if necessary.
- Carefully spoon the prepared batter over the arranged orange slices. Spreading out gently to level. Use the back of a spoon to make a slight indentation to the centre of the batter.
- Bake the cake tin in the centre of the oven for about 50 - 55 minutes until a cake skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Once baked, remove from the oven and place onto a cooling rack.
- Turn out the cake. Allow the cake to cool for 5 minutes before turning out from the tin. Remove the lining paper and allow to cool.
Notes
To Prepare Oranges:
- Imagine the orange as a globe, the stalk ends being the 'poles'. Use a small paring knife to cut off the two poles to create a flat surface. Rest the orange on the flat surface that you've just cut. Holding the orange steady on the work surface use the paring knife to cut away the skin and white pith, aiming not to cut into the orange flesh. Do this by cutting strips of peel from the north pole to the south pole curving the knife as you cut around the naturally round shape of the orange. Continue removing strips of orange peel until the orange is completely peeled.
- Turn the oranges on to the sides before before slicing so that you cut across the segments.
- Removen pips from the orange slices before arranging them in the cake tin.
Katt says
This cake was delicious! Perfect for a spring garden party. One change I made was to add a blood orange glaze (1/2c unsalted butter, 1.5c brown sugar and 1/2c blood orange juice boiled to a syrup) to the pan before putting the orange slices down and the cake batter on top. It really took the cake to another level keeping it moist and a little bit sweeter.
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
Hi Katt, So pleased you liked the cake. Your addition of a glaze sounds lovely which I would make the cake a little more dessert rather than cake with afternoon tea.
Balvinder says
Oh, this ones a stunner! Oranges and chocolate make everything so pretty and tempting!
Carole ryan says
What a great cake lovely flavour all my friends love it and easy to make but it looks so impressive
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
Thank you Carole I'm so glad you like it and yes for such a simple cake io think it does look impressive even without blood oanges.
Jo Allison / Jo's Kitchen Larder says
I've baked your gorgeous cake earlier today Angela and it has got huge thumbs up from all of us! It was my first upside down cake ever and definitely not the last! My blood oranges weren't as gorgeously coloured as yours but the flavour was 100% there. Fantastic, easy to follow recipe! Thank you lovely! x
Angela - Only Crumbs Remain says
Aww that's so good to hear Jo 🙂 It's always lovely to hear when people have found a recipe easy to follow and have enjoyed eating it too x Thankyou so much for sharing a pic of it on SM too - it really made my day 🙂
I'm a huge fan of upside down cakes (though I think you may have guessed that!) I've got another one brewing up in my mind which I'm hoping to try out later this week. 🙂
Angela x
Rebecca Grace says
Oh, MAN, that cake looks good! I am an absolute fiend for chocolate, but I don't know that I've ever eaten anything that paired chocolate with oranges. We used to always do a pineapple upside-down cake for my dad's birthday, but my family is getting tired of that recipe. I think I'm going to try this recipe next time!
Midge @ Peachicks' Bakery says
So pretty! This is the only time in the year when I really miss being able to eat oranges as blood oranges are just amazing!
Deepika|TheLoveOfCakes says
As much as I love orange and chocolate together, I have never used them in baking! But this upside down cake is so gorgeous Angie! It makes me want to bake this real soon ...Love how pretty the oranges look after baking the cake!
Recipes Made Easy says
Looks fabulous. I haven't found any very red blood oranges this year, wondering if the winter has been too mild in the Med or if I have just been unlucky.
Monika Dabrowski says
Orange chocolate is one of my favourite dessert combinations too, this cake looks beautiful (as usual), I'll have to try to find blood oranges, haven't actually seen them anywhere recently. Thank you for bringing your gorgeous cake to #CookBlogShare:)
Jess Cantoni says
OH my gosh, this looks so pretty! I love blood oranges! I've never actually made an upside down cake! x
Cat Sach says
I'm embarrassed to say I've never tried a blood orange! Your cake looks so delicious. I'll have to go hunting for some blood oranges x
Recipes Made Easy says
I remeber being put off them as a child too but I discovered them while studying many moons ago and just adore them