Vegan Blood Orange Upside Down Cake

This upside down vegan blood orange cake is fluffy, tender and melts in your mouth. It uses only 6 ingredients, can be made gluten free and is perfect for morning or afternoon tea!

This is honestly the best upside down cake I've ever had! The addition of blood orange juice (an acidic ingredient) makes the cake utterly moist and soft. And the caramelised blood oranges are simply gorgeous!

What to expect from this vegan orange cake

If you're after a simple, delicious but visually spectacular cake, this is the cake for you!

I love that this cake is made in just one bowl. The most difficult step is chopping the rind off the blood oranges (and cleaning the red aftermath). But the taste and visual impact of the final cake is totally worth it!

Alternatively, check out my vegan orange cake using a whole orange!

Step by step video: how to make vegan blood orange cake

6 ingredients you'll need

All-purpose / plain flour. Whole wheat or spelt flour can also be used but will result in a less fluffy cake.

Almond flour / blanched almond meal to add moisture and a hint of almond flavour which really complements the blood oranges. If you're allergic to nuts or don't have access to almond flour, I've listed an alternative in the grey recipe box at the bottom of this page.

Cane sugar which can be slightly reduced (details are in the grey recipe box). Or if you would like a healthy blood orange cake, you can use coconut sugar instead, although this will make the cake slightly darker.

Blood oranges, blood orange juice and zest. The blood oranges are used to top the cake and the juice/zest are used to flavour the cake. The juice/zest gives the cake a beautiful natural pink/orange colour! You can also use regular oranges and/or mandarins (keeping mind that mandarins have a more subtle taste).

Light tasting oil such as sunflower, rapeseed or olive oil. Olive oil will actually complement the flavour of the oranges!

Baking powder for that rise and salt (optional) for extra punch.

If you're feeling fancy, you can also add a dash of vanilla extract or orange blossom water to this vegan blood orange cake!

Preparing the topping for the cake

Don't be intimidated by slicing the blood oranges. It's easy once you get the hang of it!

I personally found the easiest method for cutting the blood oranges were:

1. Slice one end off a orange. Keep the ends for juicing later.
2. Place the orange flat side down on the chopping board. This makes the next step SO much easier (no one wants to cut a rolling orange!).
3. Following the shape of the orange, cut the rind off the sides. It doesn't need to be perfect! And of course, you can leave some rind on the orange.
4. Place the 'naked' orange on it's side and slice carefully. It really helps if you have a sharp knife for this!

Tip: if you accidentally cut too much into an orange, you can use it to patch up gaps in the topping or simply juice that orange for the actual cake ;).

Alternatively, you can cut the whole orange into slices *then* cut the rind off each individual slice. However, this is a little more time consuming.

Next, grease the bottom of your cake tin and sprinkle some sugar on top. It helps if your cake tin is air tight and enclosed (like a regular cake tin or spring form tin). I used a loose bottom cake pan which worked but some of the juices of the blood oranges leaked through the gaps (no biggie, just a heads up)!

Next, I randomly arranged my blood orange slices on the cake base. You can create a pattern if you'd like but I simply couldn't be bothered! And try to make sure there aren't any big gaps between the orange segments.

Preparing the cake batter

This step is SUPER easy. Simply add all the dry ingredients to a large bowl and mix until combined. Add all the wet ingredients and mix until there are no lumps of dry flour (some general lumps are fine).

The cake batter is relatively thin which helps create a moist and beautiful final crumb! Pour the cake batter into your cake tin on top of the blood oranges then bake :).

Baking the cake

We are baking the cake at a slightly lower temperature than normal. This helps create a flatter cake and minimises any chances of the oranges burning!

Once the cake has finished baking, I'd recommend:

1. Cutting the small dome of the cake (if any). We don't want to invert a domed cake because gravity will cause the cake to crack in the middle.
2. While the cake is hot and still in the tin, tug on the baking paper a little to help loosen the cake. This prevents the caramelised oranges from sticking to the tin.
3. Let the cake sit in the tin for 20 or so minutes. When the cake cools, it'll become sturdier which makes it easier to invert :).
4. Invert the cake onto a serving plate. Simply place a plate on top of the cake tin (with the serving side face down). Then turn the cake upside down so it is released on the plate. You should hear a very satisfying 'plop' noise.
5. Remove the cake tin and peel away the baking paper!

How to serve this cake

The cake is amazing by itself whether it's warm or at room temperature. It definitely doesn't need any frosting but you can dust it with powdered sugar if you'd like.

I also love serving the vegan blood orange cake with a dollop of thick coconut yoghurt, cream or ice cream :).

I hope you enjoy this recipe xo

See my other easy vegan cake recipes

• Whole Orange Cake
• Whole Lemon Cake
• Mandarin Orange Tart
• Vegan Pistachio Lemon Avocado Cake
• Easy Vegan Lemon Drizzle Cake

This post was originally published in 2018 and updated in 2021 with more helpful information and to simplify the recipe.

Please leave a comment below if you made this recipe, have any questions or thoughts! Your comment will help other readers and Rainbow Nourishments.