Is it too early for cranberry sauce upside-down cake? We say NO! This delicious twist on a classic dessert will have your taste buds dancing. This Cranberry Sauce Upside Down Coffee Cake recipe has whole canned cranberries and pecans. This cranberry pecan cake will impress your guests with something unexpected for Thanksgiving or Christmas dinners or holiday parties.
Upside down cakes are always fun to make whether it’s in bundt cake pans or in round cake pans. We have even made them in muffin tins like this Upside Down Mini Pineapple Cake recipe. They always make a pretty presentation like this beautiful cranberry pecan cake. This upside down cake is perfect for Fall with the rich flavors of cranberries, orange and pecans. And a great way to use up leftover cranberry sauce.
This post contains affiliate links which means if you make a purchase we might receive a small commission at no additional cost to you.
We served it with the addition of a dusting of powdered sugar for a pleasing contrast to the deep color of the Cranberry Sauce Upside Down Cake. And it’s a delicious way to kick off the holiday season.
Cranberry Sauce Upside Down Cake Recipe:
Ingredients for the Cranberry Pecan Topping:
- 1 tablespoon butter, softened
- ⅓ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup chopped pecans
- 1 can whole berry cranberry sauce
Ingredients for the Coffee Cake
- 1 ¼ cups flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoons ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- ½ tablespoon fresh orange juice
- 1 tablespoon orange zest
- ½ cup milk
- Powdered Sugar, for dusting the top
Equipment Needed:
- 9 inch Round Cake Pan
- Mixing Bowls
- Cooling Rack
- Powdered Sugar Duster
How to make this Cranberry Sauce Upside Down Coffee Cake:
For the Cranberry Sauce Pecan Topping
Preheat your oven to 350° F and grease a 9 inch round cake pan with nonstick cooking spray. In a mixing bowl, stir together the softened butter, brown sugar, and chopped pecans.
Spread the butter, brown sugar, pecan mixture in the bottom of the cake pan.
Spoon and carefully spread a layer of the cranberry sauce over the top of the pecan sugar mixture and set it aside.
For the Coffee Cake
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, cloves, and salt. Set it aside.
In a separate bowl, beat together the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar until light and fluffy.
Add the eggs one at a time into the cake batter beating them between each addition.
Mix in the orange juice and orange zest.
Add the dry ingredients and the milk, alternating the two ingredients and beating after each addition, until all the ingredients have been added.
Carefully spread the cake batter over the top of the cranberry sauce in the baking pan. Place the cake in the preheated oven and bake for 40 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove the Cranberry Sauce Upside Down Cake from the oven and place on cooling rack.
Allow the cake to cool in the pan for around 10 minutes, then run a knife around the edges and carefully invert the pan onto a serving dish and allow the cake to cool completely before serving.
Dust the cranberry sauce coffee cake with powdered sugar before serving, if desired.
This Cranberry Upside Down Cake recipe makes 15 servings.
Fall Cake Recipes:
- Caramel Apple Upside Down Bundt Cake
- Brown Butter Pear Cake
- Old Fashioned Gingerbread Cake
- Peach Coffee Cake
Click HERE to save this Cranberry Sauce Pecan Upside Down Cake Recipe to Pinterest
Cranberry Sauce Upside Down
Ingredients
Ingredients for the Cranberry Pecan Topping:
- 1 tablespoon butter softened
- ⅓ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup chopped pecans
- 1 can whole berry cranberry sauce
Ingredients for the Coffee Cake
- 1 ¼ cups flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoons ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- ½ tablespoon fresh orange juice
- 1 tablespoon orange zest
- ½ cup milk
- Powdered Sugar for dusting the top
Instructions
For the Cranberry Sauce Topping
- Preheat your oven to 350° F and grease a 9 inch round cake pan with nonstick cooking spray. In a mixing bowl, stir together the softened butter, brown sugar, and chopped pecans.
- Spread the butter, brown sugar, pecan mixture in the bottom of the cake pan.
- Spoon and carefully spread a layer of the cranberry sauce over the top of the pecan sugar mixture and set it aside.
For the coffee cake
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, cloves, and salt. Set it aside.
- In a separate bowl, beat together the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar until light and fluffy.
- Add the eggs one at a time into the cake batter beating them between each addition.
- Mix in the orange juice and orange zest.
- Add the dry ingredients and the milk, alternating the two ingredients and beating after each addition, until all the ingredients have been added.
- Carefully spread the cake batter over the top of the cranberry sauce in the baking pan. Place the cake in the preheated oven and bake for 40 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove it from the oven and place on cooling rack.
- and carefully invert the pan onto a serving dish and allow the cake to cool completely before serving.
- Dust the cranberry sauce coffee cake with powdered sugar before serving, if desired.
Nutrition
Gabby
Monday 2nd of December 2024
People are missing out on this! Even without the cranberry, the cake itself is the perfect texture and moisture (and I cut to 3/4 c sugar). Will be using as a base for other cakes :)