This strawberry upside-down cake is easily one of my favorite summer desserts. I love the combination of sweet, juicy berries and yellow cake. My favorite part, however, is that the whole thing starts with a boxed cake mix. It's so easy, which is perfect for a non-baker like me. Here's how to make the best strawberry upside-down cake recipe.
Strawberry Upside Down Cake Ingredients
You only need a handful of ingredients to make this strawberry cake recipe.
- Sugar: Just 3/4 cup of granulated sugar is all you'll need to sweeten up the strawberries.
- Cornstarch: This helps thicken up the strawberry mixture and ensures the finished cake isn't too moist.
- Strawberries: You'll need 6 1/2 cups of sliced strawberries for this strawberry dump cake recipe. That works out to be about 1 1/2 pounds of whole strawberries.
- Vanilla Extract: We love the flavor combination of vanilla and strawberry. You can use almond extract if you prefer.
- Cake Mix + Eggs, Oil, and Water: Choose a box of yellow cake mix and be sure to grab all the ingredients you'll need to make it according to the directions on the box.
- Lemon: We're using both the zest and juice to flavor the cake.
How to Make Strawberry Upside Down Cake with Cake Mix
Like classic pineapple upside-down cake, this recipe starts with fruit on the bottom. Once baked, the cake is then inverted to serve. Here's a quick look at how to make this strawberry upside-down cake recipe.
- Prepare the Fruit: Mix the strawberries with sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice, and vanilla. Once combined, pour the mixture into your baking dish.
- Make the Batter: Prepare your cake mix according to package directions and pour over the strawberries.
- Bake and Serve: Once baked, allow the cake to cool before flipping it onto a serving dish.
Ingredients
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3/4 cup granulated sugar
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3 tablespoons cornstarch
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6 1/2 cups fresh strawberries, halved or quartered if large (about 1 1/2 pounds)
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1 teaspoon vanilla extract
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1 teaspoon lemon zest
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1 (15.25 to 16.25-ounce) package (2-layer-size) yellow cake mix, plus ingredients on box to make cake
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2 tablespoons lemon juice
Directions
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Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease the bottom and sides of a 13x9-inch baking pan. Line bottom of pan with parchment paper; set pan aside.
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In a large bowl combine sugar and cornstarch. Add strawberries, vanilla, and lemon zest; toss to coat evenly. Transfer strawberry mixture to prepared pan spreading evenly.
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Prepare cake mix according to package directions. Beat in lemon juice until combined. Pour cake batter over strawberry layer and smooth evenly.
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Bake about 40 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Loosen sides of cake; invert onto a serving plate. Let cool at least 15 minutes before serving. Serve warm or cooled.
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
| 188 | Calories |
| 1g | Fat |
| 43g | Carbs |
| 2g | Protein |
| Nutrition Facts | |
|---|---|
| Servings Per Recipe 16 | |
| Calories 188.2 | |
| % Daily Value * | |
| Total Fat 1.4g | 2% |
| Saturated Fat 0.5g | 3% |
| Cholesterol 0mg | 0% |
| Sodium 239.8mg | 10% |
| Total Carbohydrate 43.1g | 16% |
| Dietary Fiber 1.8g | 7% |
| Total Sugars 27g | |
| Protein 1.7g | 3% |
| Vitamin D 0mcg | 0% |
| Vitamin C 41.9mg | 47% |
| Calcium 80.9mg | 6% |
| Iron 1mg | 5% |
| Potassium 126.1mg | 3% |
| Fatty acids, total trans 0.1g | |
| Vitamin D 0IU | |
| Alanine 0.1g | |
| Arginine 0.1g | |
| Ash 1.5g | |
| Aspartic acid 0.2g | |
| Caffeine 0mg | |
| Carotene, alpha 0mcg | |
| Choline, total 5.7mg | |
| Copper, Cu 0.1mg | |
| Cystine 0g | |
| Energy 788.2kJ | |
| Fluoride, F 3.1mcg | |
| Folate, total 39.4mcg | |
| Glutamic acid 0.5g | |
| Glycine 0.1g | |
| Histidine 0g | |
| Isoleucine 0.1g | |
| Leucine 0.1g | |
| Lysine 0.1g | |
| Methionine 0g | |
| Magnesium, Mg 12.7mg | |
| Manganese, Mn 0.3mg | |
| Niacin 1mg | |
| Phosphorus, P 118.8mg | |
| Pantothenic acid 0.2mg | |
| Phenylalanine 0.1g | |
| Phytosterols 8.5mg | |
| Proline 0.2g | |
| Retinol 0mcg | |
| Selenium, Se 1.4mcg | |
| Serine 0.1g | |
| Starch 0g | |
| Theobromine 0mg | |
| Threonine 0.1g | |
| Vitamin E (alpha-tocopherol) 0.5mg | |
| Tryptophan 0g | |
| Tyrosine 0.1g | |
| Valine 0.1g | |
| Vitamin A, IU 9.5IU | |
| Vitamin A, RAE 0.7mcg | |
| Vitamin B-12 0mcg | |
| Vitamin B-6 0.1mg | |
| Vitamin K (phylloquinone) 2.5mcg | |
| Water 68.6g | |
| Zinc, Zn 0.2mg | |
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.