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Strawberry Upside Down Cake is a sweet strawberry dessert, made with fresh strawberries, and a made from scratch light yellow cake, that makes a beautiful presentation.

It’s strawberry season. Are you looking for ways to use up fresh strawberries?

This Strawberry Upside Down Cake is my latest favorite Strawberry Dessert, and looking at my blog, you know I love making Strawberry Recipes, like my Strawberry Crumb Bars, Shoney’s Strawberry Pie, Strawberry Shortcake, Strawberry Cheesecake Salad, or Strawberry Bread.

Similar to a Pineapple Upside Down Cake, except it uses fresh strawberries instead of pineapple. There are many Strawberry upside-down cakes that use frozen strawberries, strawberry gelatin, or marshmallows. This is not one of those recipes.

Made from scratch with fresh strawberries, and a light, summery homemade yellow cake, this Strawberry Upside Cake is much easier to make than you would expect.

I love making this cake for Mother’s Day, Valentine’s Day or Easter. However, it can be served anytime you want a strawberry dessert.

How To Make Strawberry Upside Down Cake

What Do I Need To Make Strawberry Upside Down Cake?

Ingredients and Substitutions

Strawberries. You will need about 1 pound of strawberries for this recipe, preferably fresh strawberries but frozen strawberries would work in a pinch. They may change the texture slightly and change the look a little bit on the top of the cake. You will need to slice them vertically. You could slice them horizontally but I think that slicing the strawberries vertically makes a prettier presentation.
Sugar. With the strawberries I use white sugar and just a tablespoon of brown sugar. Using the white sugar gives a nicer, cleaner, more strawberry-color presentation than using brown sugar. However, if you prefer to use brown sugar like what is used in a traditional pineapple upside down cake. You certainly could and it would be delicious also.
Butter. You will need a stick of butter (8 tablespoons) to melt in the 9-inch cake pan and then the other half of the butter is used in the cake.
Flour. I used all-purpose flour.
Baking Powder. Be sure the baking powder is fresh and has not gone past its expiration date.
Salt. You’ll need a little salt.
Eggs. You’ll need 2 eggs.
Vanilla. I highly recommend using pure vanilla and not imitation.
Sour Cream. If you don’t have sour cream, you could use milk or yogurt.

High Level Instructions

For more detailed instructions, scroll down to the printable recipe card just above the comment section.

Make The Strawberry Topping.
1. Melt the Butter in a 9-inch cake pan in the oven.
2. Sprinkle white sugar over the butter, plus a little brown sugar. (See recipe card below for amounts.)
3. Layer sliced strawberries over the top of the butter and sugars.
Make The Yellow Cake.
1. In a large mixing bowl, mix together eggs, and sugar.
2. Add in melted butter (that has cooled slightly), vanilla and sour cream.
3. Mix together until combined.
4. Add flour, baking soda and salt.
5. Mix until it is well combined and smooth.
6. Spread the cake batter over the top of the strawberries in the cake pan.
Bake The Cake
1. Bake the cake in a pre-heated 350 degree F oven for 35 to 40 minutes.
Cool The Cake
1. Let the cake cool for about 10 minutes.
Serve The Cake Upside Down
1. Place a plate over the top of the cake pan and invert.
2. Carefully remove the cake pan, and serve with whipped cream and fresh strawberries!

What To Serve With The Cake

Whipped Topping or Vanilla Ice Cream with Fresh Strawberries and maybe a sprig of mint makes a nice presentation.
Serve as a dessert for any meal.

Tips For A Successful Upside Down Cake

Grease Sides of the Cake Pan. Butter and Flour the sides of the cake pan. The melted butter on the bottom will take care of the bottom of the pan. By greasing the sides of the pan, it will help prevent the cake from sticking to the sides of the cake pan when it comes time to invert the cake before serving.
Use Real Butter and not margarine. Real butter provides the best flavor and texture.
Slice strawberries vertically instead of horizontally for a pretty presentation. Slice off the tops (the green part) first, and then slice each strawberry vertically. Don’t worry if you already sliced your strawberries horizontally. It will still be delicious. This is to make a nice presentation.
Use Mostly White Sugar. I like to use mostly white sugar in the topping with only 2 tablespoons of brown sugar. This is mostly for presentation purposes. The white sugar keeps the bright color of the strawberries in tact whereas the brown sugar will give the strawberries a more dark, muddy color.
Fresh Baking Powder. Fresh baking powder makes a big difference in the rise and texture of the cake. Often baking soda sits on a pantry shelf and may have gone past the expiration date. If it does, throw it out. Be sure to use the baking powder before it expires.
Don’t Over Mix the Batter. When making the cake you want to mix it just enough but not over mix it.
Keep The Oven Door Closed. Do keep an eye on the cake through the oven glass, but don’t keep opening and closing the door as that will change the temperature of the oven. You want to keep the oven temperature constant while the cake cooks.
Don’t Cool The Cake Too Long. Let the cake cool for 5 to 10 minutes but no longer than 10 minutes. This amount of time will allow you to successfully invert the cake without the strawberries sticking to the cake pan instead of the cake. If you wait too long, the likelihood of the strawberries sticking to the bottom of the pan increases.
Run a Knife Around The Sides. After the cake has been baked and cooled for a few minutes, run a knife around the edges of the cake to prevent the cake from sticking to the sides of the cake pan.
Inverting The Cake. Invert the cake in one swift motion and don’t stop and start.

Go ahead and give this cake a try especially now that strawberries are in season. Then come back and leave a comment and let me know how you liked it!

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