This delicious Peach Upside Down Cake with Bourbon combines the sweetness of ripe peaches with the rich flavor of bourbon, making it the perfect dessert for potlucks and summer cookouts.

You can use fresh, frozen, or canned peaches for this upside down cake and the brand of bourbon of your choice.

Birdeye view of a whole bourbon peach upside down cake on a wooden server.

Ingredients

It's easy to make a delicious Peach Upside Down Cake with Bourbon with the simplest of ingredients. In this section, we'll break down the ingredients needed for this peach upside down cake and the caramelized bourbon soaked peaches.

granulated sugar
brown sugar
peaches, cut into ½ inch wedges (fresh, frozen, or canned peaches)
Bourbon, your choice of brand
all-purpose flour
ground nutmeg
ground cinnamon
baking powder
baking soda
salt
unsalted butter
eggs
vanilla extract
milk

A peach upside down cake made with bourbon on a wooden platter with a bowl of peaches.

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Instructions to Make Peach Upside Down Cake with Bourbon

To make the peach bourbon topping, the first thing we need to do is soak the peaches in two tables of bourbon. Then, we cut a place a round piece of parchment paper into the cast iron skillet.

You do not need to do this part if you don't want to but it will help the upside down cake release quicker and easier from the skillet when inverting it.

Make the Bourbon Peach Topping

The next thing we do is melt ¼ cup of butter in a parchment paper lined 10-inch cast iron skillet by placing the skillet over medium heat. Once the butter has melted, add ½ cup of brown sugar to the skillet and allow it to melt.

Stir the mixture until the brown sugar has dissolved before placing the peaches in the sugar mixture. Place the peaches in rings to cover the cake completely. Once the peaches are placed, remove the skillet from heat to let the sugar mixture cool.

An upside down peach cake with bourbon glaze with a slice cut out of it.

Preparing the Cake Batter

To prepare the cake batter, we need to whisk together 1 ½ cups of all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, cinnamon, and salt in a medium bowl.

Then, In a separate large bowl, beat the unsalted butter and the granulated sugar until light and fluffy. Add in the eggs one at a time, as well as the vanilla extract.

Gradually add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, alternating with the milk until the ingredients are combined. Do not over mix.

A slice of upside down cake made with bourbon soaked peaches with ice cream.

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Assembling the Cake

To assemble the cake, we need to gently pour the cake batter over the peaches, spreading it evenly making sure not to move the peaches around in the skillet. Dropping spoonfuls of batter can help prevent the peaches from sliding.

To remove any air bubbles that may be trapped in the batter, tap the skillet gently on the counter.

A fork with a piece of upside down cake with peaches and ice cream.

Baking the Upside Down Cake

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Transfer the oven safe skillet to on top of a baking sheet and bake until te top of the cake is golden brown.

Baking time is 35-45 minutes. Check the center of the cake with a toothpick to make sure the center comes out clean. Once the cake is baked, allow the cake to cool for 15 minutes before trying to invert the cake.

To invert the cake, use a knife to loosen the edges of the cake from the skillet and carefully invert the skillet onto a serving platter. Peel back the parchment paper and serve the cake with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

A slice taken out of an upside down cake topped with bourbon glazed peaches.

📖 Recipe

Yield: 8 slices

Bourbon Peach Upside Down Cake

Name: Bourbon Peach Upside Down Cake
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 55 min
Yield: 8
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 2 cups sliced peaches, thawed if frozen; 3 tablespoons bourbon; 1/4 cup butter; 1/2 cup brown sugar; 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened; 1 cup granulated sugar; 2 large eggs; 1 teaspoon vanilla extract; 3/4 cup milk; 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour; 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg; 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon; 1 teaspoon baking powder; 1/2 teaspoon baking soda; 1/2 teaspoon salt

This delicious Peach Upside Down Cake with Bourbon combines the sweetness of ripe peaches with the rich flavor of bourbon, making it the perfect dessert for potlucks and summer cookouts.

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 45 minutes

Total Time 55 minutes

Ingredients

Bourbon Peach Topping

2 cups sliced peaches, thawed if frozen
3 tablespoons bourbon
¼ cup butter
½ cup brown sugar

Upside Down Cake

½ cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
¾ cup milk
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Soak the peaches in three tablespoons of bourbon.
Cut and place a round piece of parchment paper into a cast iron skillet or other oven-safe skillet.
Melt ¼ cup of butter in the paper-lined 10-inch cast iron skillet over medium heat.
Once the butter has melted, add ½ cup of brown sugar to the skillet and allow it to melt.
Stir the mixture until the brown sugar has dissolved before placing the peaches in the sugar mixture.
Place the peaches in rings to cover the bottom of the skillet completely. Add remaining juices to the skillet.
Once the peaches are placed, remove the skillet from heat to let the sugar mixture cool.
Whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, cinnamon, and salt in a medium bowl.
In a separate large bowl, beat the unsalted butter and the granulated sugar until light and fluffy.
Add in the eggs one at a time, as well as the vanilla extract.
Gradually add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, alternating with the milk until the ingredients are combined. Do not over-mix.
Gently pour or spoon the cake batter over the peaches, spreading it evenly making sure not to move the peaches around in the skillet.
Tap the skillet gently on the counter to remove any air bubbles.
Place the oven-safe skillet on top of a baking sheet and bake for 35- 45 minutes or until the top of the cake is golden brown.
Check the center of the cake with a toothpick to make sure the center comes out clean.
Once the cake is baked, allow the cake to cool for 15 minutes before inverting the cake.
Use a knife to loosen the edges of the cake from the skillet and carefully invert the skillet onto a serving platter.
Peel back the parchment paper, slice, and serve the cake with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Notes

You do not need to use parchment paper in the skillet but it will help the upside down cake release quicker and easier from the skillet when inverting it.

You can use frozen, fresh, or canned peaches for this recipe. When using canned peaches, drain them from the syrup before using When using frozen, allow them thaw before using.

Peach Upside Down Cake with Bourbon

Ingredients