Peach Upside Down Mini Cakes (Cupcakes)

4.77 from 88 votes

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These super moist and tender peach upside down mini cakes are bursting with peaches in every bite. Easy to make, this recipe is a keeper for that indulgent peach season!

Why you’ll love this peach cake recipe:

Peaches are in season!!! I love peach season SO much. And these individual peach upside down cakes are one of my absolute favorites.

  • Bursts of juicy fruits in every bite – thanks to overload of peach cubes in the batter.
  • You won’t even miss the frosting, as these mini cakes are topped with brown sugar glazed peach slices.
  • Plus, effortlessly beautiful presentation!

How to make peach upside down cupcake:

While it might look a bit complicated, it’s truly easy to make these mini cakes. Watch how I made this cake on Instagram.

1. To prepare the topping:

  1. Slice 2 peaches into thin slices, then cube the rest for the batter. No need to peel the peaches!
  2. Spray a standard size muffin pan with non-stick cooking spray.
  3. Divide brown sugar and butter into 12 equal parts and place in to 12 muffin cups.
  4. Then arrange 3 slices of peach in each muffin cup over the butter and brown sugar. (Fan them out nicely! It’ll look pretty once cooked. ;))
Step by step photos of preparing the peach topping.

Tip

Yes, you can slice 1 tablespoon of butter into 12 pieces.

Cut a tablespoon of butter in two equal sizes, then cut each one into two equal pieces. Then finely, slice each piece into 3 equal parts.

2. To make the batter

  1. Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
  2. In a large bowl, whip butter and sugar until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Then add egg and vanilla extract and beat for another 3 minutes. It should be super fluffy and white. This step is key for soft and fluffy cake!
  3. Now, add half of the dry ingredients into the butter mixture and beat until just about combined. Then stir in buttermilk followed by the remaining flour mixture. Mix until just combined and no dry flour patches is visible.
  4. Fold in chopped peaches into the batter.
Step by step photos of making peach cake batter.

3. Bake

  1. Divide the cake batter into the prepared muffin cups.
  2. Bake the mini cakes for about 25 minutes at 350°F, or until inserted toothpick comes out clean.
  3. Cool the cakes in the pan for 5 minutes, and then run a butterknife (or a small offset spatula) around the edges to release the sides.
  4. Place a wire rack on top of the muffin pan and invert it to release the cupcakes. Be gentle removing the pan. Sometimes, peach slices fall slowly.

Tip

I love using my large cookie scoop for filling the cupcake pans. It’s mess-free and yields uniform cakes.

Side by side images of making peach upside down cupcakes.

Serve warm peach upside down cake topped with vanilla ice cream!

Buttermilk substitutes:

I realize not everyone have buttermilk in the fridge like we do. (We sure love our buttermilk pancakes!) However, there’re 2 easy substitutes for buttermilk:

  • Option #1: 1/3 cup sour cream, or plain Greek yogurt + milk (or water) to make 1/2 cup. Stir well before using.
  • Option #2: 1/2 cup of milk + 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice (or white vinegar). Stir and let it sit for 5 minutes for milk to curdle.
Mini peach upside down cakes on wooden board.

Readers Feedback and Variations:

This recipe is LOVED by many, many people!! And I get ton of feedback and variations. So here’re some awesome feedbacks and variations from those who tried it.

  • People love how these little cakes are not too sweet.
  • Cinnamon is very popular addition!
  • Besides peach, this recipe also works great with plums, blueberries, and nectarines.
  • Fresh macerated peaches make a fabulous topping along with vanilla ice cream!
  • Chopped pecans were a great addition.
  • Frozen peaches didn’t caramelize, but it was still delicious.
  • Canned peaches worked good as well.
  • Egg replacement per Maïna: 1 heaping tablespoon of ground flax seeds + 3 tablespoon of water, whipped together and let to thicken for 5 minutes. Worked like a charm!

If you made this recipe, we’d love to hear your feedback as well!!

A round peach upside down cake on a larger serving plate.

Storing Tips:

Store the peach upside down cake in the fridge, covered, for up to 2 days, if they last that long anyway. 🙂

These cakes don’t freeze well.

If you love peaches, try this grilled peach and mascarpone ice cream!!

Peach upside down mini cakes on a white serving plate with vanilla ice cream and sliced peaches.
4.77 from 88 votes

Peach Upside Down Mini Cakes

These super moist and tender peach upside down mini cakes are bursting with peaches in every bite. Easy to make, this recipe is a keeper for that indulgent peach season!
Prep: 30 minutes
Cook: 30 minutes
Total: 1 hour
Servings: 12 mini cakes

Ingredients

For topping:

  • Non-stick cooking spray
  • 1 tablespoon (15 g) unsalted butter cold
  • 6 teaspoons (5 g) light brown sugar

For cake batter:

  • 3 fresh peaches Note 1
  • 1 ½ cups (190 g) all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 2/3 cup (130 g) granulated sugar
  • 1/3 cup (75 g) unsalted butter at room temperature
  • 1 large egg at room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • ½ cup (120 ml) buttermilk at room temperature (Note 2)

Instructions 

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F (177° C). Spray muffin pan with non-stick cooking spray.

To prepare the topping:

  • Cut 1 tablespoon of butter into 12 equal parts. (TIP: cold butter is easier to cut.) Place each butter piece in 12 muffin cups.
  • Sprinkle ½ teaspoon of brown sugar into each muffin cup.
  • Slice 1-2 peaches into thin slices. Arrange about 3 slices into the bottom of each muffin pan.

To make the cake batter:

  • Cut the remaining peaches into small cubes. You should get about 1 cup of cubed peaches. Set aside.
  • In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
  • In a mixing bowl with paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar together until fluffy and creamy, about 2 minutes.
  • Add egg and vanilla extract and beat it for another 2-3 minutes, or until well combined. The mixture should be fluffy and white. (Note: It's totally normal for the mixture to curdle right after adding egg, but keep mixing and it'll turn nice and fluffy!)
  • Add half of the flour mixture into the batter, beat for 1 minute on low speed.
  • Stir in the buttermilk and beat for another minute.
  • Add the remaining flour mixture and beat just until combined. Don't overmix the batter, or it'll make tough cake.
  • Fold in the cubed peaches.
  • Divide the batter into 12 muffin pan cups. (TIP: This large cookie scoop makes this step super easy – one scoop of batter in each muffin cup.)
  • Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until inserted toothpick comes out clean.
  • Cool the cakes in the pan for 5 minutes. Then carefully run a butter knife around the edges to release the cake from the sides. Now, place a wire rack over the muffin pan and carefully turn the pan upside down to remove the cakes.
  • Serve the mini cakes warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Video

Tips & Notes

Note 1a: It’s not necessary to peel the peaches. You can, if you want to. 
Note 1b: Some people have successfully made this recipe with frozen and canned peaches. Frozen peaches didn’t caramelize well though.
Note 2: You can substitute DIY version for buttermilk. I shared 2 options in the post above.
Note 3: You can make one 9-inch cake instead of mini cakes. Simply bake it for about 40 minutes. Watch this video where I doubled the recipe and made a dozen mini cakes and 1 big cake.

Nutrition

Servings: 1 mini cake
Calories: 190kcal
Carbohydrates: 29.6g
Protein: 2.9g
Fat: 7.1g
Sugar: 16.8g
Sodium: 120.2mg
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American

This recipe was originally published in August, 2014.

Hi, I’m Shinee!

Welcome! I’m so happy you’re here! I believe anyone can cook restaurant-quality food at home! And my goal is to help you to become a confident cook with my easy-to-follow recipes with lots of tips and step-by-step photos.

4.77 from 88 votes (16 ratings without comment)

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286 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Very delicious, I would definitely add a bit of cinnamon next time and a bit more butter and brown sugar to the pan as mine did not caramelize and just seemed to bake into the cake. BUT will definitely try again, and again. Sooo good.

    1. Yay, I’m so happy you tried and loved the recipe, Angie! And you’re right, you can easily customize it to your taste! Thank you for your feedback!

  2. 5 stars
    I made this as instructed. It was delicious. A few minor points for next time would be: I would like more butter/ brown sugar on bottom and peaches on bottom were not as pretty as in picture.

  3. 5 stars
    I made this for fellowship at church today. Outstanding! No one expected they were peach upside down cupcakes and were impressed. Definitely will make them again.

  4. 5 stars
    These were delicious! Just the right amount of sweetness. I will definitely be making these again.

  5. 2 stars
    My peaches also stuck to the bottom of the pan, and I generously greased. The cakes were also not sweet at all. It was light and fluffy though!

    1. I haven’t made these yet, but here’s a hint to keep muffins from sticking. I do this for my pineapple upside down cake and muffins. Cut out circles of parchment paper and put in bottom of the greased cups in muffin pan or cake pan. Then put in your butter, brown sugar and peach slices. Scoop your batter in each cup and bake. After taking out of the oven and cool, take muffins out and put on a cooling rack. Then peel off the parchment paper.

  6. Has anyone actually made this with canned peaches? I would love to make this but peaches will not be in season for a few more months!

  7. This recipe didn’t turn out. All of the peaches and goo stayed in the bottom of the muffin pan (YES,I did grease the pan) and had to dig out and placed on top of muffin. It wasn’t cake like, more like a Bisquick biscuit.