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Prep time
7 minutes
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Cook time
40 minutes
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Serves
5 to 6
Author Notes
Welcome to Plus One, a column by Food Editor Emily Ziemski where small-but-mighty additions—ingredients, sauces, toppings—that instantly upgrade whatever’s on the table are the star of the show. Today, a swap from the classic upside down cake for bright, winter produce.
My favorite ’90s food trend has to be the halved grapefruit with bruléed sugar on top. I’d devour those shiny pink segments in their juicy, sugary glory. A little sweet, a little tart, and a little crunchy—the coral-hued fruit played tug-of-war with my taste buds until I was desperately tipping the little half straight into my mouth hoping for just a touch more juice.
Hot on the tails of that memory, I wanted to make a cake that paid homage to my favorite winter citrus. The base here is a mix of gritty cornmeal and tender cake flour, which has the lowest protein content of baking flour at around 6 percent. This means the gluten won’t really develop the same way it would in a bread or cookie, so the finishing crumb is super fluffy and tender. For flavorings, in comes tarragon: a stringy-leafed herb that is very licorice-forward similar to fennel (a common partner to grapefruit in many a wintry citrus salad). And lastly, a sprinkling of demerara sugar—a large, crunchy granulated sugar that has just a touch of molasses—on the bottom of the cake pan yields that signature brulée crunch to the nestled grapefruit slices.
—Emily Ziemski
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Watch This Recipe
Grapefruit & Tarragon Upside-Down Cake
Ingredients
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1
grapefruit, zested then peeled, de-seeded, and sliced into ¼-inch-thick rounds
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1/3 cup
demerara sugar
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1/2 cup
unsalted butter, melted, plus more for greasing pan
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1 cup
light brown sugar
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2
large eggs
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1 teaspoon
vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
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1 cup
cake flour
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3/4 cup
yellow cornmeal
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2 teaspoons
baking powder
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1 teaspoon
kosher salt
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1/2 bunch
tarragon, de-stemmed and finely chopped
Directions
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Heat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease an 8-inch cake pan, then line the bottom with parchment. Sprinkle demerara sugar evenly over parchment. Keeping an even layer, line the bottom with the grapefruit slices, trying not to overlap.
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In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, blend the butter and brown sugar together until thoroughly combined and slightly airy. Add the eggs, zest, and vanilla and beat on medium speed until thoroughly combined. Sift in dry ingredients and blend on medium-low speed until incorporated. Fold in tarragon. Pour mixture over assembled grapefruit slices.
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Bake, rotating the pan halfway through, 30 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. Remove from oven and transfer to a cooling rack. After resting at least 15 minutes, gently invert cake onto a serving stand. Serve once cooled, or tightly wrap (or place in an airtight container) and store in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
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