Rhubarb season is the perfect time to enjoy a Rhubarb Upside Down Cake, an easy dessert that combines the tartness of fresh rhubarb with the richness of a moist cake. This beautiful cake is a game changer, a fluffy cake with tender sweet/tart rhubarb that gets caramelized and melt-in-your mouth good. It is easy to make and is the perfect vessel for your local farmer’s market rhubarb. 

This is an upside down cake, so you layer your pan with sliced rhubarb (macerated with vanilla bean and sugar,) top it with a thick and creamy batter, and then finally with a shortbread-like crumble. When you invert the cake, the crumble topping becomes into a crust of sorts, giving each bite lots of layers and dimension, buttery crumble on the bottom, melt-in-your-mouth cake, and then tart and tangy rhubarb on top. It’s really so wonderful.

Ingredients for Rhubarb Upside-down Cake Recipe:

• Unsalted Butter
• All-purpose flour
• Sugar
• Salt
• Rhubarb
• Vanilla bean paste, vanilla extract (or vanilla beans scraped from a pod.)
• Baking Powder
• Lemon
• Large eggs, room temperature
• Sour cream

Supplies for Upside-down Rhubarb Cake:

• tall sized 9 inch cake pan or springform pan
• Large Bowl
• Separate bowl for topping
• Wire rack
• Electric mixer

Instructions:

1. Preheat your oven to 350°F. Butter and flour your 9 inch pan and wrap the ourside with foil.  Dot the bottom of the pan with butter.  Toss the rhubarb pieces with sugar and vanilla. Spread rhubarb into the bottom of the pan evenly. 
2. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, set aside. Cream the remaining stick of butter and cup sugar with a mixer on medium speed until pale and fluffy.
3. Add in zest and vanilla. Add eggs, 1 at a time, until incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl.
4. Add the flour mixture on low speed in 3 additions, alternating with sour cream, until smooth. (Don’t overmix!) Spread evenly over rhubarb. Sprinkle the topping over the batter (Since you flip the cake this acts almost like a crust!)
5. Bake in the preheated oven in the middle rack, on top of a cookie sheet, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and top springs back when touched, about 1 hour, depending on pan size.
6. Let the cake cool for 10 minutes, then run a knife around the edge and invert cake

Tips:

• Serve individual slices with a dollop of whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
• Garnish with additional lemon zest or fresh mint for a burst of color.
• Wrap any leftover cake in plastic wrap and store at room temperature for up to two days or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. 

This Rhubarb Upside Down Cake is the perfect way to take advantage of rhubarb season, offering a sweet and tangy twist on the classic pineapple upside-down cake. Enjoy making this easy rhubarb dessert and if you are looking for the rest of my favorite rhubarb desserts, see my faves below:

• Rhubarb Bundt Cake
• Strawberry Rhubarb Galette
• Strawberry Rhubarb Cheesecake

One note on the pans: I used a 9 inch Springform pan that I lined (on the outside,) with foil. I placed it on a cookie sheet to bake, and still some juices from the rhubarb bubbled up over the top and onto the pan.

A regular round cake pan wont do, you want something with higher edges if possible. Next time I plan to try my tube cake pan, a 9×9 square baking dish, or my 10 inch round tube pan. 

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Rhubarb Upside Down Cake

Yield: 1 9-inch cake

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Ingredients

For the Topping

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, very soft
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

For the Cake

• 1 1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons,) unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for buttering pan
• 1 pound rhubarb, trimmed and cut on a very sharp diagonal about 1/2 inch thick
• 1 3/4 cups sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste, extract (or vanilla beans scraped from a pod.)
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoon salt
• zest of 1 lemon
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 cup sour cream

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350F.

For the topping:

1. Use a fork to stir together the soft butter, flour, sugar and 1/4 teaspoon salt until crumbly. Set aside.

For the cake:

1. Butter and flour your 9 inch pan. Cut 4 tablespoons of butter into bits and dot the bottom of the pan. Toss the rhubarb with 3/4 cup sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste. Let it sit for a couple minutes and then toss again. Spread rhubarb into the bottom of the pan.
2. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, set aside. Cream the remaining stick of butter and cup sugar with a mixer on medium speed until pale and fluffy.
3. Add in zest and vanilla. Add eggs, 1 at a time, until incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl.
4. Add the flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with sour cream, until smooth. (Don't overmix!) Spread evenly over rhubarb. Sprinkle the topping over the batter.
5. Bake in the middle rack on top of a cookie sheet, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and top springs back when touched, about 1 hour, depending on pan size.
6. Let cool for 10 minutes, then run a knife around the edge and invert cake.

Notes

*I recommend a 9-inch spring form lined on the inside with foil, a bundt pan, or a 9 inch cake pan with extra high sides!

Recipe barely adapted from Martha Stewart

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