Cake #27 - Mandarin Orange and Vanilla Upside-Down Cake

This was one of two fruity upside-down cakes I made for dinner guests (along with cake #26 - Cranberry Upside-Down Cake).  Of the two I think it was easier, tastier, and a more dramatically gorgeous presentation.  Of course, I say easier, but I do also have a mandolin, which helped immensely.  You have to create mandarin orange slices, and the mandolin - set on 3/16" - made beautiful slices.  (I'd recommend getting one - there seem to be fairly inexpensive models that are easy to use, fairly easy to clean, and will make summer sangria a snap!)

You have to boil the slices for three minutes to take out the bitter taste of the pith, and you need extra slices, as some will fall apart during the boiling process.  I thought the pile of orange slices was so beautiful, though, and the kitchen smelled amazing.

I liked the combination of orange and vanilla - as it was a bit unexpected - and the vanilla bean seeds make lovely little specs over the orange slices.

Unlike the cranberry cake, this one is meant to come out of the pan while it is still hot, and it came clean from the pan quite easily.  

You'll want a serrated knife to cut slices of cake, as the caramelized oranges do require some effort to cut through.  We served the cake with vanilla ice cream, but it wasn't necessary.  I think this would be a beautiful brunch offering just by itself.

Mandarin Orange and Vanilla Upside-Down Cake

4-5 medium mandarins, preferably Satsuma (1½ pounds), thinly sliced, seeds removed

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 vanilla bean, halved lengthwise and scraped, pod reserved for another use

1½ cups sugar

1 tablespoon fine grated mandarin zest plus 3 tablespoons fresh mandarin juice (from 1 mandarin)

1 1/3 cups plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

1½ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon coarse salt

2 large eggs

½ cup whole milk

1.       Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Bring a large pot of water to a boil.  Add mandarin slices; boil 3 minutes.  Drain.  Arrange slices in a single layer on paper towels.

2.       Place ½ cup butter in a 9-by-2-inch round cake pan.  Mix half the vanilla seeds and ½ cup sugar; sprinkle over butter.  Place pan in oven until butter melts, about 7 minutes.  Remove from oven; carefully whisk in 2 tablespoons mandarin juice.

3.       In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.  With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat zest and remaining ½ cup butter, 1 cup sugar, and vanilla seeds until pale and fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes.  With mixer running, add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition.  Reduce mixer speed to low.  Add flour mixture in 2 batches, alternating with the milk and remaining 1 tablespoon juice.

4.       Arrange mandarin slices over sugar mixture in pan, starting in the center and spiraling outward, overlapping slices slightly.  (Use slices that are completely intact.)  Gently spoon batter on top of mandarins; spread evenly with an offset spatula.  Bake until cake is golden brown and a cake tester comes out clean, 45 to 50 minutes.  Transfer pan to wire rack to cool 10 minutes.  Run a knife around edge of cake to loosen, then invert onto a serving plate; let cool before serving.  (Cake can be stored at room temperature, covered, for 1 day.)

From Martha Stewart’s Cakes