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Saturday, September 28, 2013

Fresh Fig Upside Down Cake


We have a healthy and happy fig tree (follow that link for Susanna's post a few years back) in our backyard gardens and the fig harvest has been abundant this year.  We've served them as a part of the morning snack on a Traveling Herb Seminar bus trip.  We've served them alongside orange slices and fresh scones during Afternoon Tea in the tea room.  And last night, we prepared an upside down cake using fresh figs and pine nuts.  What a buttery dessert this was... a pure and sinful dessert... all in one! 
Fresh Fig Upside Down Cake
1/3 c. butter, melted
1/3 c. brown sugar
10 - 12 ripe figs, cut into 1/2 inch slices
1/3 c. toasted pine nuts, divided
1-1/3 c. flour
1 c. sugar
2 tsps. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 c. butter, room temperature
2/3 c. milk
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. freshly zested lemon peel
1 egg

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pour melted butter into bottom of an 8" square baking pan. Sprinkle brown sugar evenly over bottom of pan. Arrange fig slices in single layer over bottom of pan. Tuck pine nuts (2 Tbsp.) into spaces around figs, pressing into brown sugar. Set aside.

Sift dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder and salt) into large mixing bowl. Add softened butter, milk, vanilla, lemon zest, and egg. Beat on medium speed about 2 minutes, scraping sides of bowl. Stir in remaining pine nuts. Pour over figs in prepared baking pan.

Bake for about 40 minutes, or until cake tests done. Cool in pan about 5 minutes. Loosen cake around edges of pan. Place serving platter over cake and turn over. Shake gently, then remove pan. Serve warm.

4 comments:

  1. I wish I had been on that bus tour! Our fig production was interrupted by the stink bugs and pill bugs! We had some figs but not to make this delicious looking cake. Thanks for the recipe though. Maybe next year we will have a better production.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Figs, pinenuts, and cake = an equation of delight! This looks and sounds SO GOOD!

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  3. Must run and check my figs. They are slow at ripening and not sure I have many, but this would be the perfect way to use them. It sounds just mighty fine!

    ReplyDelete

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