Peach Almond Upside-Down Cake

Just another one of my daily kitchen adventure creations. Perfectly ripe summer peaches topped with a batter that is just sweet enough to complement the juicy peaches. Use up that summer fruit and make an upside down cake for breakfast or tea time!

Most of the sweetness in this recipe comes from the peaches themselves, which lend a wonderful flavor and make you feel like you're holding on to the last bits of summer - here in London, we need that feeling!

I've always wanted to make an upside-down cake (honestly, I wanted my first one to be pineapple, but I couldn't resist when I saw the peaches in my fruit bowl) and I'm so glad I did. My dad even sent me a text from work telling me how much he enjoyed the cake! Hopefully that convinces you further to try out this recipe. You could technically switch out the peaches with any stone fruit of your liking, for that matter.

Ingredients
3 tbsp unsalted butter, divided
4 tbsp natural applesauce
1 cup + 3 tbsp sugar, divided
4 medium firm but ripe peaches, peeled and sliced
1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup almond meal
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract
3/4 cup whole milk

Instructions
Preheat oven to 175 C.
Butter a 9" round cake pan. Unfortunately, baking paper won't cut it here, so use a pastry brush and lightly coat the pan in butter.
In a small pan, melt one tablespoon of butter, 3 tablespoons of butter and 1 tablespoon of water. Cook for about 5-7 minutes, until thicker and golden brown. Pour mixture into base of cake pan and tip to distribute evenly.
Cut peaches into slices/wedges and arranged closely on top of the caramel-y mixture in cake pan.
Beat the 2 tablespoons of butter, 1 cup of sugar and 4 tablespoons of applesauces until thoroughly mixed and light. Add in eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. Mix in the vanilla and almond extracts.
Whisk together the flour, almond meal, baking powder and salt.
While mixer is running, alternatively add in the dry mixture and milk into the butter/sugar/applesauce mixture, until batter is smooth.
Pour and smooth batter over peach slices in pan.
Bake for 45 minutes, until firm in center. Check that a toothpick comes out clean at this point. The very end might be gooey because the peaches will obviously be wet. Remove and let cool.
Invert on a platter and cut into large slices.
Embrace the goodness and enjoy!