I don't want to point fingers, but Vlad's favorite dessert types are with apples. So, since these fruits are the freshest this time of the year, I decided to make as many sweets using them as possible.

For instance, last weekend, I made an interpretation of a very classic dessert - caramel apple upside-down cake. I chose it because it brought me back to my childhood years when my mom used to make it on a regular basis. She used to glaze everything with cream and make it all festive.

However, we are not very into the cream glaze, so I made a change or two on her recipe. The result is an easy apple upside-down cake with crunchy walnuts that brings that extra something to the table. This being said, let me walk you through the recipe.

• The first thing you have to do is to prepare your caramelized apples. That will be your base and then your cake's topping. This being said, peel your apples and slice them as nicely as possible (try and make them prettier than mine).
• Pour the lemon juice all over your apple slices. This will prevent them from browning until you are ready to use them.
• Melt your butter in a saucepan. Add the granulated sugar and let it caramelize at medium heat. You don't want to burn it. Stir from time to time. This whole process should not take more than 3-4 minutes.
• While you wait, grease a round cake pan. I have a glass tart dish that I use for this kind of cake, but you can go with a classic cake pan.
• Pour the caramel mixture into your pan and make sure it is well distributed on all of the pan's surface. Arrange the apple slices on the caramel.

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• Sprinkle the brown sugar and the cinnamon on it, add dollops of ghee all over them, then bake in the preheated oven at 180 degrees Celsius (350 F) for 20 minutes.
• While this happens, you can prepare your batter.

There are many upside-down apple cake recipes, and each of them uses some kind of a different cake batter. I personally prefer a sponge cake one, so this is what we'll be focusing on next.

• Separate the egg whites from the egg yolks. Put your whites in a mixer bowl and whip them until stiff and firm.
• In another bowl, mix the soft butter with the sugars until combined. Add one yolk at a time, mixing all the way. Bring in the milk and the vanilla paste. Then, add the flour, salt, and baking powder.

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• Transfer your egg whites into the butter-yolk mixture, one tbsp at a time, stirring continuously while this happens.

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• Finally, add the chopped walnuts and stir to combine.

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• Take the cake pan out of the oven and pour your batter over the apples.
• Return the pan to the oven and bake for another 20-25 minutes or until golden and well done. If you are not 100% sure that the cake is baked, you can do the toothpick test.

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• Once again, take the cake pan out of the oven and let it cool down for 10 minutes.
• Run a knife around the edges of the cake. This will loosen it from the pan's sides, and you will be able to take it out.
• Place a wide cake plate on top of your pan and invert the cake.
• Serve warm with vanilla ice cream, coat it in whipped cream or just as it is. It's delicious either way.

See? Easy, peasy, lemon squeezy.

Now, leaving the joke aside, what I love about this dessert is that it's super easy to prepare, and it tastes really fancy. I can honestly say that for me, this recipe is the best upside-down apple cake simply because it has that extra layer of crunchiness that other versions lack.

As for the wiki facts, the upside-down cake is known worldwide. You can do this simple version or go with the classic French Tart Tatin, which requires a little more technique. Furthermore, you can use other fruits as well. For instance, there is a very popular Portuguese recipe that is called bolo de ananás that uses pineapple slices instead of apples. 

* Don't forget to give us a tag on Instagram if making this cake.

** If you are looking for more apple recipes, you can check out our apple strudel.

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