Happy Apple Season! It’s been very close to a year since I started Deb’sPotsBlog and we’ve come full circle back to the orchard; yesterday was our big family fruit and veggie picking expedition. All the grand nieces and nephews had a wonderful time climbing trees (shhhh…), stomping on ripe tomatoes, and digging sweet potatoes. Afterwards, everyone came back to the house and had a swim and a big supper of pasta, salad, and cookies.

And, in keeping with time-honored tradition, today is for baking! I have developed an incredible new apple recipe and can’t wait to share it with you! It’s loosely based on Sally Schneider’s Pineapple Upside Down Cake.

This one combines a bunch of favorite flavors: apple, caramel, vanilla, and salt. It’s like a caramel apple, but cake!

Salted Caramel Apple Upside Down Cake

This is a small cake, serving 2-4.

It may be made with gluten free flour.

1 large apple, peeled and sliced*
2 tbs. butter
2 tbs. light brown sugar
2 eggs, room temperature
1/3 cup organic cane sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/3 cup all purpose flour
several large pinches of your favorite sea salt

*You want a variety that is good for baking and will also hold its shape. Jonagolds are perfect, as are Golden Delicious, which you see here.

Preheat the oven to 375°. Heat a 6.5 inch cast iron skillet over medium high heat and add the butter. When the butter begins to melt, add the sugar and stir. When the mixture begins to bubble, place the apple slices in a spoke pattern in the bottom of the pan. Sprinkle in a little salt.

Cook for 3-4 minutes over medium high heat until the apples begin to soften a bit. Remove from heat and let cool while you make the batter.

Begin beating the eggs with a good pinch of salt on high speed using a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. You could also do this with a hand-held mixer, but I think it would be very challenging to do without power tools. Add the sugar and beat for 5-6 minutes until tripled in volume and light in color. Add the vanilla and beat to combine.

Fold in the flour using a rubber spatula. Pour the batter over the apple slices and smooth with the spatula.

Bake for 18 minutes or until browned and set.

Let cool for 10 minutes. Run a paring knife around the edge of the cake. Place a plate over the skillet. If the handle is still hot, use a pot holder. Take a deep breath. Quickly and confidently, invert the skillet and plate together in one swift motion. Take another breath and remove the skillet. If there are any bits of apple or caramel still in the skillet, use the rubber spatula to spruce up the situation.

Serve immediately with vanilla or salted caramel ice cream or whipped cream. A bit more salt might be nice, too.