Tuesday, May 7, 2013

TwD: Fresh Rhubarb Upside-Down Baby Cakes


Today´s recipe for the Tuesdays with Dorie group are Fresh Rhubarb Upside-Down Baby Cakes. The recipe for these pretty little spring cakes was contributed by baker and culinary artist Johanne Killeen. I made these tiny cakes as per the recipe and they were absolutely gorgeous, so moist and delicious with an incredible light crumb!




The recipe for these delicious Fresh Rhubarb Upside-Down Baby Cakes is a two step process. First,  you will have to make a classic butter cake, using all purpose (plain) flour, baking powder, some fine salt (I always use fine sea salt), thick crème fraîche, unsalted butter, fresh eggs and pure vanilla extract (I used homemade vanilla sugar).




Second,  you need to make the caramel topping by using brown sugar (I used light brown sugar), a bit of bourbon (I used French Cognac), more unsalted butter and chopped nuts (I used natural almonds) and for the fruit layer you will, of course, need fresh local rhubarb that can be found everywhere around here at this time of year. As I mentioned in my April post  when I featured a Rhubarb Almond Bundt, the slightly tart rhubarb and the sweet almonds go very well together - quite a delicious taste combination.




To bake these small tea cakes, you start by spooning the hot caramel with the chopped nuts into the bottom of the buttered and floured baking molds, then you add a layer of chopped fresh rhubarb and top the fruit layer with the cake batter, filling your molds almost to the rim.




The mini cakes bake until they are puffed, golden brown, and just starting to pull from the sides of the molds, about 20 minutes. Turn them out on a rack to cool only slightly, then turn them upside down while still warm because otherwise you will not be able to unmold them as the caramel will stick to the molds when cooled. And while they are best eaten warm from the oven, they may be stored and re-heated a bit just before enjoying them.




This recipe was enough for eight mini cakes – I used my brand new mini cake molds from England for these small cakes plus two baby cakes - I used mini pie dishes for these. So, I ended up with ten servings, perfect.




These gorgeous Fresh Rhubarb Upside-Down Baby Cakes are an indulgent treat and perfect for that afternoon tea. We enjoyed them while they were still warm from the oven with no adornments but they would certainly be nice with a bit of really good vanilla ice cream or some whipped cream or even better some clotted cream. I will be making these again for sure!




To see how the other Doristas fared with this recipe, please do click here.

The recipe can be found at Erin´s blog – When in Doubt…Leave it at 35o - "Thank you very much for hosting today´s recipe"!



40 comments:

  1. I couldn't wait to see your post - I knew it would be fabulous. Your little cakes are so pretty. Beautiful presentation Andrea!

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    1. Cathleen, thank you so much, I always look forward to all your wonderful comments. This recipe was truly fabulous and I really enjoyed baking these mini cakes.

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  2. What beautiful photos. This was one yummy little cake, I too will make it often.

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    1. Cindy, this was one of the nicest recipes from the book, just the kind of recipe I adore and then there was rhubarb in it, a big hit at our house, every time.

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  3. That are some really cute baby cakes. Good tip on turning it out when it is still warm. :)

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    1. Thank you, I did burn my fingers slightly because I was a bit scared that I would not be able to unmold them but in the end, everything turned out fine.

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  4. OMG!!! Your cakes are stunning! Such beautiful pics. Great job!!!

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    1. Sandra, thanks so much, just tried to make these cakes as pretty as possible - to go with that cute name, of course.

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  5. These look absolutely beautiful. Perfect tea cakes. A perfect combo with the rhubarb. Nicely done, Andrea. Wow.

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    1. Mary, thanks so much - I could not believe that these tiny cakes would be received so well, but they were fabulous and everyone was delighted!

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  6. Very very cute! Your cakes are perfect! Teeny baby cakes!

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    1. Karen, thank you, didn´t you just love that name for these mini tea cakes, apart from the way they tasted?!

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  7. these look SO scrumptious - moist and light and delicious. I think rhubarb is SUCH an under used fruit - very English and totally delicious! Beautiful pictures with lovely spring flowers!
    Mary x

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    1. Mary, oh, what a lovely compliment - I was actually trying to do a bit of a "British" setting - two weeks ago a new "English Shop" opened downtown and I was so delighted to visit and shop "for all things British" that are usually a bit hard to find around here - so I let myself be inspired while shopping there - so glad that you enjoyed this post!

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  8. You do have the most fun collection of baking molds :-)
    Things seem to taste better when you make them in "mini" version

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    1. Cher, thank you and I could not agree with you more - "mini" is so much cuter and photogenic and does seem to taste even better. Besides, who does not enjoy individual servings, they are always so well received.

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  9. These cakes look delicious. You always do such a beautiful job:)

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    1. Geraldine, those mini rhubarb cakes made the taste testers quite happy and they were delicious, I loved them too and plan on making them again using some of that rhubarb that I bought, way too much, of course, so I am glad that I have another recipe with rhubarb.

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  10. Your tall upside down cakes are terrific Andrea! Love how you styled them with fresh flowers. Definitely a great recipe.

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    1. Paula, I would not really call these cakes "tall", the cake molds are very special little cake molds for teeny tiny tea cakes.

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  11. I am so jealous of your mini cake pans. I love the look of your cakes. I served mine plain too, but found myself wishing I had some cream to go with it.

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    1. Jora, th glad that you enjoed the post, it did take me quite a while to find these mini cake pans and I was more than happy when I finally held them in my hands.

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  12. Beautiful job, Andrea, as always. Love your mini cakes. The forget-me-nots remind us of our Northwest garden where we used to grow them. Unfortunately, they do not survive the arid high desert environment. Have a great week!

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    1. Inge and Gillian: thanks for the nice comment - I love those forget-me-nots, so fragile and so pretty! There are even some growing in our garden.

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  13. I always love your photos...and am never disappointed when I pop by. Your baby cakes are gorgeous...and I know they tasted amazing.

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    1. Liz, thanks so much, by now I think I have to stop buying more cake pans because I am running rather low on shelf space.

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  14. These look like they'd be perfect for a tea party! Beautiful photos and styling too! I thought I might be the worlds biggest sucker for fun cake pans but maybe I have a rival ? :)

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    1. Chris, I think it looks like we both are crazy about collecting different sized baking pans - got to love these mini baking pans, I can almost never resist their call.

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  15. Those cake molds make such delightful little cakes! Your baby cakes are very pretty, too. I love your presentation - you make such good use of flowers.

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    1. Teresa, thank you for the nice comment - I really enjoy flowers and the only thing better than placing them in nice vases is placing them next to my food these days.

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  16. How gorgeous, sweet friend, and I just love the beautiful blooms that you paired the cakes with. Such a picture of spring and new hope! Thank you for sharing. I wish I had one of these to go with my tea!

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    1. Monet, thank so much for your gracious comment, you always make my day when I read them. The flowers are all from our garden, they seem to grow like crazy these days and I cannot think of a better way than to place them next to some lovely mini tea cakes.

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  17. These little cakes are beautiful and your photos are gorgeous!!

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    1. Beth, so nice to hear from you again! And it makes me really happy that you enjoy the pictures of these baby cakes.

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  18. Andrea, Your cakes turned out beautifully and they look absolutely delicious! I'm a little behind on my TWD baking, but can't wait to try these!

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    1. Nice to hear from you - if you do get a chance to bake these, you will really enjoy the texture of the cakes and the slight tartness from the rhubarb - a nice and easy recipe! Perfect with a cup of tea.

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  19. Super adorable, Andrea! I love upside down cake and your baby cakes are absolutely cute! Not to mention your little cake stands and plates.. LOVE!!!

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    1. Nami, thanks so much, I bought these little cake stands in the Netherlands when we were visiting there and up to this post, I was not really sure what I should use them for but for these baby cakes they semmed to be just right.

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  20. Wow, those little cakes are really cute and the ohotos are beautifully styled. These were really delicious and I can't wait to make it again.

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    1. Thanks so much, yes, this was a delicious recipe and as you I am also planning on making them again soon - they were enjoyed by all.

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