Gluten & Dairy-Free Nectarine Upside Down Cake
A few weeks ago, good friends of mine from Uni were visiting with their delightful three month old baby boy. I wanted to bake something and one look out the kitchen window to our Nectarine tree bursting with fruit and I knew I couldn’t see another piece of fruit go to waste!
I had preserved a whole pile and was picking a bowl every day but still I couldn’t stop the fruit falling to the ground. So cake. Cake was the answer on this particular day in a bid to use up a whole lot of beautifully sweet Nectarines all in one go. However, if you didn't have Nectarines, I'm sure any type of fruit would work just as well.
I looked on-line and found this recipe which was the inspiration for this cake. It is completely gluten-free, dairy-free, refined sugar-free and totally scrumptious and delicious. It’s a little rustic but I like that and topped with toasted coconut chips and served with freshly whipped cream, it was perfect on a rainy summer's day snuggling a ball of three month-old warmth! For a dairy-free option, simply serve with coconut yoghurt.
Gluten & Dairy-Free Nectarine Upside Down Cake – serve 10
12 small nectarines, or enough to cover the bottom of the cake tin, washed and sliced
4 Tbspn pure maple syrup
1 ¾ cup ground almonds
¼ tsp coarse iodised sea salt
¼ tsp baking soda
2 Tbspn pure maple syrup
3 large free-range eggs
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
4 Tbspn coconut oil, melted
4 Tbspn coconut chips
Whipped cream, Greek yoghurt or coconut yoghurt to serve
Pre-heat the oven to 175°C. Grease and line a cake tin with baking paper.
Cut the nectarines in half and remove the stone. Slice into thin pieces. Pour the 4 Tbspn of pure maple syrup into the cake tin and spread out. Place the nectarine slices around the outside of the cake tin working your way in a circle and then moving inwards until the base of the cake tin is covered in nectarine slices. You can slice any leftover nectarine into smaller pieces and fit them into any gaps.
Place the ground almonds, salt and baking soda into a large bowl and mix well. Add the second measure of pure maple syrup, eggs, vanilla and coconut oil and fold gently together.
Pour the batter over the nectarines and spread out gently so that the nectarines are completely covered in the mixture.
Bake for about 25-30 minutes or until cooked and a skewer inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean.
Once cooked remove from the oven and let cool in the tin for at least 30 minutes. Once cool, transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
In the meantime, heat a pan over a medium heat and place the coconut chips in the pan. Toast, stirring regularly until slightly golden brown. Leave to cool.
Once the cake is cool, transfer to serving plate and top with toast coconut chips and a dusting of icing sugar if you prefer (for a refined sugar-free version, leave the icing sugar off).
Serve with freshly whipped cream or yoghurt.
Store covered with cling film or in an air-tight container in the fridge. Will last for 4-5 days.
