Plum-Cardamom Upside-Down Cake
Updated October 5, 2025
David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Hadas Smirnoff.
- Total Time
- 1 hour 20 minutes, plus cooling
- Prep Time
- 10 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
FOR THE TOPPING
Unsalted butter, for greasing pan
1 cup/220 grams packed light brown sugar
2 pounds plums, pitted and sliced into wedges (about 7 plums)
2 tablespoons lemon juice
FOR THE CAKE
1 ⅓ cups/260 grams granulated sugar
4 large eggs, at room temperature
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup/113 grams unsalted butter, melted
1 ⅓ cup/170 grams all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
Pinch of salt
Nutritional analysis per serving (8 to 10 servings)
67 grams carbs; 103 milligrams cholesterol; 391 calories; 4 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 7 grams saturated fat; 13 grams fat; 1 gram fiber; 130 milligrams sodium; 5 grams protein; 52 grams sugar
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Generously butter a 9-inch springform pan. Coat the bottom of the pan evenly with light brown sugar. Toss plum slices with lemon juice, then arrange in a single layer on the sugar, skin side down. Set aside.
- Step 2
Put granulated sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment (or in a sturdy mixing bowl if using a whisk). Add the eggs and vanilla, and beat on medium until the mixture begins to thicken, about 5 minutes. Add butter. Increase speed a bit and continue beating until mixture is fluffy, another 5 minutes.
- Step 3
Sift together flour, baking powder, cardamom and salt. On low speed, add flour mixture to egg-sugar mixture. Stir briefly to incorporate into a smooth batter.
- Step 4
Spread the batter over the plums in the prepared pan. Bake until a tester inserted in the center comes out clean, about 1 hour.
- Step 5
Let the cake rest in the pan for 10 to 15 minutes, then invert over a cake platter. Loosen and remove pan. Cool completely to room temperature.
Private Notes
Comments
And what kind of plum? Three types are at my grocery store: very big black plums, medium size purple plums (round and slighty red skin) and small Italian prune plums. I just made the classic plum torte recipe (which does not specific what type of plum) and it was a total failure: the ripe purple plums I got stayed firm and did not cook down like in the picture. The result was: a boring white cake with hard plum halves on top. So before I do this recipe PLEASE let us know: WHAT KIND OF PLUMS?!
Approach with caution! The pear/plum confusion should have been a tip-off, but there are a number of problems. 1. The amount of plums called for is weirdly high and left me with a bunch of leftover slices (3-4 avg purple is enough). 2. Strongly recommend a parchment circle. 3. The beating times are way too long (maybe for by-hand vs. stand mixer)? I followed them against my better judgement and the batter collapsed. Cake still rose but had a chewy texture. Guessing 2-3 min is more accurate.
“Generously made with any kind of pear” while probably true, plum is in the title so is this from a different recipe? Perhaps I’ll try with 6 of one, half a dozen if the other.
This recipe is FANTASTIC. It would work beautifully with any fruit. The only change I made was to use less sugar for the topping and in the cake itself. Cake was the best I've made in a very long time! This is a keeper for all seasons.
I have made this three times, omce with Santa Rosa plums, once with black plums and once with strawberries. All three were fantastic. Make sure to wrap your springform pan in aluminum foil and place on a baking sheet as the caramel can seep out into your oven. I followed the recipe but added vanillaca paste and rdamom extract as well as the ground cardamom. Absolutely love this recipe!
Excellent cake, eating it several days later and it's maybe even better. I started with some plums that were just ok, flavor was mild and flesh was either too firm or too mushy - but they transformed in the oven and they taste fantastic. I used parchment paper in a regular pan instead of springform. I subbed in some cinnamon for half the cardamom, and a little bit of almond extract for some of the vanilla extract. Flavors are balanced, texture is dense and moist in the best way.