Blueberry Upside Down Cake – Simply Stacie

8 April 2024

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This Blueberry Upside Down Cake is a summer favorite! It features a simple cake mix base that’s infused with lemon flavor, baked to soft and fluffy perfection, and topped with a thick layer of juicy, caramelized blueberries.

A slice of blueberry upside down cake on a spatula.

This Blueberry Upside Down Cake is one of my favorite recipes from one of my grandma’s vintage cookbooks. It’s the perfect dessert to whip up in the summer and it’s made with just a few simple ingredients.

This recipe starts with a cake mix for the easiest prep ever. That is mixed with lemon, then baked over a bed of juicy blueberries. Once it’s baked, you flip it over for the most beautiful presentation!

This cake is seriously easy to make and doesn’t require any fancy techniques, tools, or ingredients.

Why You’ll Love Blueberry Upside Down Cake

Cake mix base. This recipe keeps the prep extra quick and easy by starting with a cake mix!
Fresh or frozen blueberries. I love this dessert in the summer with plump, juicy fresh blueberries, but you can make it any time of the year with frozen blueberries too.
Yields two cakes. This recipe is designed to make two 8” round cakes, so it’s perfect for entertaining, gifting, or bringing to a summer potluck.

Ingredients

The full printable recipe card with measurements and instructions is found at the bottom of the post.

Butter – I like to use salted butter for a little extra flavor, but unsalted will work too.
Sugar – We’re coating the baking pans in sugar for the sweetest caramelized exterior.
Blueberries – Fresh is best, but frozen will work if that’s what you have on hand.
Lemon Zest – A little bit of lemon zest adds the perfect layer of zing to the boxed cake mix.
Cake Mix – We’re using yellow cake mix for our base to keep this recipe extra easy!

How to Make Blueberry Upside Down Cake

Step One: Prepare two cake pans by greasing with cooking spray and melted butter, then sprinkling with sugar to coat the inside of the pan.
Step Two: In a bowl, mix together the zest of one lemon and blueberries. Divide the mixture evenly between the two pans.

Steps to make blueberry upside down cake.

Step Three: Prepare the cake mix according to the box instructions, then stir in the zest of another lemon. Spread evenly, then bake at 375ºF until a toothpick comes out of the center clean.

Step Four: Let the cakes cool slightly, then turn them over onto a platter and dig in!

Equipment Needed

These kitchen tools will help you make this recipe.

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What to Serve with Blueberry Upside Down Cake

This blueberry upside down cake is a deliciously sweet treat all by itself. However, you can always make it even more decadent by topping it with whipped cream, serving it with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream, or topping it off with even more fresh berries.

Recipe Tips and Tricks

Grease, butter, and sugar the pans. I spray each pan with a layer of cooking spray followed by a coating of melted butter, then a sprinkle of sugar. The oil prevents sticking, the butter adds flavor and creates lightly crisped edges, while the sugar just adds the best flavor.
Divide the batter evenly. Make sure that your two cake pans are evenly filled with the batter so they bake at the same rate.
Check for doneness. To make sure that your cakes are done, insert a toothpick into the center. If it comes out clean, then they’re ready to go.
Cool before flipping. Once the cake is baked, I recommend giving it 10 minutes to cool before you flip it onto the platter. This gives it a little bit of time to set so that it doesn’t just crumble when you turn it upside down.
No round cake pans? Square will work too! Just be sure that they’re 8” in length/width so as to not alter the baking time or thickness of the cakes too much.

Variations and Substitutions

Swap the fruit. No blueberries on hand or looking to switch things up? This recipe works great with tons of your favorite fruits. Try it with raspberries, strawberry slices, blackberries, peaches, you name it.
Use frozen blueberries. Fresh blueberries not in season? Use frozen blueberries instead! No need to thaw them first. Just follow the recipe as instructed.
Try another cake mix. I usually use a yellow cake mix, but you can totally swap it out for another variety such as white cake mix or even lemon cake mix for a fruity flavor twist.

A slice of blueberry upside down cake on a plate with a fork.

Storage Instructions

This blueberry upside down cake can be stored covered or wrapped in plastic wrap at room temperature for up to 2 days or in the fridge for up to 5 days.

Can this be frozen?

It can! To freeze your cake, let it cool completely, then wrap the cake pan tightly with plastic wrap followed by foil. Store in the freezer for

When you’re ready to enjoy, simply let it thaw first in the fridge. Keep in mind that the texture of the blueberries will be different and they may make the cake slightly soggy as they thaw.

What is the Point of an Upside Down Cake?

The first upside down cake, a pineapple upside down cake, was a recipe invented in the 1920s to encourage the use of canned pineapple. The novelty of it was that the cake was baked with the topping on the bottom in a sugar-coated pan. The result, once flipped right side up, was a perfectly baked cake topped with deliciously caramelized pineapple.

Now, upside down cakes are made using a variety of different fruits, but the fun of an upside down cake remains!

Can I Use Frozen Blueberries?

Yes, you can use frozen blueberries. If you’re making this recipe in the summer months, fresh blueberries will be easier to find. In the winter months? Not so much. Go ahead and use frozen blueberries, but don’t thaw them or they will discolor the batter.

What Cake Pan is Best for Upside Down Cake?

There is no pan designated to an upside down cake. I use two round 8” cake pans for this recipe, but if you don’t have round cake pans you can use square ones too.

If you don’t have cake pans at all, you can make one cake in a 9×13” baking dish. It may be slightly more difficult to find a serving platter that fits the cake, but otherwise it will work just fine!

A slice of blueberry upside down cake on a plate with a bite off the end.

When Should You Flip an Upside Down Cake?

You can flip an upside down cake right-side-up as soon as it has cooled out of the oven for 10 minutes. This gives it just a little bit of time to finish setting up. If you try to flip it right away, then you’ll end up with a big mess rather than a well-structured cake.

Blueberry Dessert Recipes

Love blueberry desserts? I have a few more recipes for you to try.

You’ll also love Fruit Cocktail Cake, Pig Pickin Cake, Pineapple Cake, Rhubarb Crumble Cake, Fruit Cocktail Dessert, Cool Whip Cookies, Chocolate Cake Batter Fudge and Cake Mix Cobbler.

Follow me on Instagram @simplystacieblog, Facebook at Simply Stacie, TikTok @simplystacierecipes or Pinterest at @simplystacie and let me know how you liked this recipe and my other recipes.