Vegan Strawberry Upside Down Cake

It is strawberry season again.  Well, not in Oregon, but it is in California, which means we get truck loads of fresh ripe strawberries showing up in the stores.

I couldn't resist making this recipe a week or so ago.  It was always my go to upside down cake recipe and I've used it for over 20 years.  I modified it since we went vegan.  If I remember right it is originally from a Betty Crocker cookbook.

I've never been a big fan of cooked pineapple but love upside down cakes.  My favorite is to use fresh sliced peaches, but since they aren't in season and I had a few pints of strawberries in the fridge I thought I'd try them.  They worked out really well.

** Strawberries are on the dirty dozen for pesticide residue, so please only buy organic.

STRAWBERRY UPSIDE DOWN CAKE

INGREDIENTS:

2 Tbsps vegan Margarine, melted
1/3 cup packed Brown Sugar
1 Tbsp Water
Fresh fruit such as Strawberries or Peaches

1-1/3 cup Flour
2/3 cup Sugar
2 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Cinnamon
2/3 cup Non-Dairy Milk
1/4 cup vegan Margarine, softened
1 Flax Egg (1 Tbsp ground flax seed + 3 Tbsp warm water)
1 tsp Vanilla

DIRECTIONS:

1.  Preheat oven to 350˚F (176˚C) and coat an 8 or 9 inch cake tin with non-stick cooking spray.

2.  In the cake tin, add the brown sugar and the melted 2 tablespoon of margarine. Use a fork to stir around to combine.  Add in the 1 tbsp of water and stir again.  It should level out on the bottom of the tin.

3.  Place your fruit in a pattern over the sugar mixture and set aside.

(ready to top with the cake batter)

4.  To make the cake batter combine in the bowl of an electric mixture the flour, sugar, baking powder, and cinnamon.  Stir to combine.  Add the softened margarine, flax egg, vanilla, and non-dairy milk and beat until well mixed about 1 minute.  Batter will be fairly thick.

5.  Pour batter over strawberries and bake for 30-35 minutes until toothpick comes out clean.  Warning, if you use an 8 inch pan the sugar mixture may bubble out the sides while baking.

(Ready for the oven)

6.  Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes before inverting onto a serving plate.  Let cool or serve warm with vegan ice cream.

**I find that this recipe is best when served the day it is made or the next day.  It has a tendency to absorb moisture after that and can get quite dense.  It is a fairly heavy cake to begin with to stand up to the fruit topping.

- Bon Appetit

" But how will I eat cake if my head is over there and my hands are over here?" - Marie Antoinette

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