Skip to main content

Backyard Citrus Upside-Down Cake

4.0

(35)

Photo of a lemon upsidedown cake.
Photo and Food Styling by Joseph De Leo

I call this a “backyard cake” because in Southern California, and Los Angeles in particular, so many of us have a lemon, orange, or tangerine tree in our backyards. Sometimes they’re in the front yard, or planted on the strip of land between the sidewalk and the curb, but you are never more than a block away from a citrus tree. The natural pectin in the citrus, combined with the sugar, creates a pudding-like upside-down layer that’s similar to a buttery marmalade.

Read More
Native American people made these with cornmeal dumplings, simmering them with wild grapes, which were harvested at their peak sweetness.
Serve a thick slice for breakfast or an afternoon pick-me-up.
Easy lemon icebox pie recipe with a graham cracker crust and whipped cream topping.
This cake was created from thrift and was supposedly named after its appearance, which reminded people of the muddy Mississippi River bottom.
A quick-fix dinner thanks to store-bought tortellini and chicken broth.
There are many things that appeal about a Basque cheesecake—it's crustless (one less job) and is meant to look “rustic” with its wrinkled and jagged sides.
Yes, it's a shortcut in a microwave. It's also a gooey, fudgy, wildly good chocolate cake.
Palets bretons are oversize cookies that feature butter, and because they’re from Brittany, they’re traditionally made with beurre salé, salted butter.