I know pumpkins get all the attention this time of year, but I prefer quince recipes like quince paste or this caramel upside-down quince cake any day! This decadent cake screams: "Welcome, fall!" From the moist, cinnamon-flavored cake, to the perfectly cooked quince. The caramel drizzle is a bonus!
Why This Recipe Works
Quince is a little-known fruit that tastes so-so when eaten raw, but amazing when cooked as in this Quince Cake recipe. The quince is cooked for around 15 minutes first and then arranged over a layer of made-from-scratch caramel sauce. This ensures that the quince are perfectly tender.
The cinnamony cake is rich, moist, delicious, and easy to prepare! Cardamom would be another wonderful spice to add to the cake. The reason I know that these spices work well together is that I use them in my quince jam recipe. They're a match made in heaven.
But be warned, quince is only available for a short time during the fall. So, if you really want to try this delicious quince cake recipe, don't put it off for too long!
What goes Into this Recipe
- Quince— Quince are a Fall fruit, usually available after October, at least in California. Choose quince that are blemish-free and firm. The more fragrant the better.
- Rum — Although I use pineapple rum to make this quince cake, you can use your favorite rum flavor, pineapple, or orange juice if you prefer.
- Applesauce — Tropical applesauce can easily be replaced with plain applesauce.
How to Make This Recipe
Quince and Caramel Topping
Step 1: Preheat oven to 350° and grease a 9” springform pan with a pat of butter. Set pan aside.
Step 2: Wash quince and slice into quarters. Remove the seeds and middle portion and slice each quarter into 5 to 6 slices.
Step 3: Add sliced quince to a small saucepan and cover with approximately 4 cups of water. Bring to a boil then simmer, covered, for approximately 15 minutes or until the quince is tender, drain.
Step 4: While the quince is simmering, add brown sugar, butter, cinnamon, and salt to a small saucepan. Cook for approximately 3 minutes. Add half-N-half and rum and cook for a few more minutes until deeper in color and thickened.
Step 5: Pour half to ¾ of the caramel sauce into the prepared pan and leave the rest for drizzling on the cake before serving. Arrange cooked quince slices over the caramel.
Prepare Quince Cake Batter
Step 6: In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients: flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and cloves. In another bowl, whisk eggs then add oil, milk, applesauce, and rum (or juice). Add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, beating until just combined.
Baking Instructions
Step 7: Pour the batter over the quince. Bake the quince cake until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean, approximately one hour.
Step 8: Let the cake cool in the pan for 15 minutes then invert it onto a larger dish and cool.
When you're ready to serve the quince cake, drizzle the cake with the remaining reheated caramel.
Recipe FAQs
Similar to apples and pears, quince do not need to be peeled, unless you want to peel them. The peel is very thin and becomes very tender when cooked. Personally, I leave the peel on when cooking or eating quince raw.
Quince are not generally eaten raw because they are not very juicy or sweet. However, when ripe, quince can have a pleasant taste and a tropical aroma. The fruit improves in flavor when cooked, which is why they're usually used to prepare jam, quince cake, and quince pie.
Quince have a mild, slightly sweet taste and have a unique flavor that might be compared to an unripe pear. The flesh can be dry, firm, and sometimes spongy. Quince can also be tart when not ripe. Their taste improves greatly when cooked.
Pro Tips
- Make sure to wrap the bottom of the springform pan with foil to prevent the caramel from leaking.
- Adding a foil-lined pan under the quince cake is also a great idea for easy cleanup.
- If you don't love cinnamon, replace some of the cinnamon with a variety of spices including cardamom, ginger, and nutmeg.
- You may replace the rum in the caramel sauce with a teaspoon of vanilla.
- Besides pineapple rum, you can use spiced or plain rum. Moreover, the rum in the quince cake can be left out and replaced with orange juice.
- If you are not in a hurry, cook the quince in simple syrup so that the color transforms into a beautiful shade of pink or even red, if cooked long enough.
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📖 Recipe
Caramel Upside-Down Quince Cake
Ingredients
Quince/Caramel Topping
- 1 pat unsalted butter (to butter the pan)
- 2 large pineapple quince
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- ⅓ cup butter
- ¼ tsp. cinnamon
- ⅛ tsp. sea salt
- ⅓ cup half-N-half
- 2 tbsp. pineapple rum (optional)
Cake Batter (dry ingredients)
- 2 cups flour
- 1¼ cup sugar
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- ¾ tsp. sea salt
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
- ¼ tsp. cloves
Cake Batter (wet ingredients)
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- ½ cup whole milk
- 1 4 oz tropical applesauce (or plain applesauce)
- 2 tbs. pineapple rum (or pineapple juice)
Instructions
Quince and Caramel Topping
- Preheat oven to 350° and grease a 9” springform pan with a pat of butter. Set pan aside.
- Wash quince and slice in quarters. Remove the seeds and middle section then slice each quarter into 5 to 6 slices.
- Place sliced quince in a small pot and cover with approximately 4 cups of water. Bring to a boil then simmer, covered, for approximately 15 minutes or until the quince is tender, then drain.
- While the quince is simmering, add brown sugar, butter, cinnamon, and salt to a small saucepan. Cook for approximately 3 minutes. Add half-N-half and rum and cook for a few more minutes until deeper in color and thickened.
- Pour half to ¾ of the caramel sauce into the prepared pan and leave the rest for drizzling over the cake before serving. Arrange cooked quince slices over the caramel.
Cake Batter
- In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients: flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and cloves. In another bowl, whisk eggs then add oil, milk, applesauce, and rum. Add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, beating until just combined.
Baking Instructions
- Pour the batter over the quince and bake until a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean, approximately one hour.
- Let the cake cool in the pan for 15 minutes then invert onto a larger dish. Allow to cool.
- When you're ready to serve the cake, drizzle with the remaining reheated caramel sauce.
Notes
- Make sure to wrap the bottom of the springform pan with foil to prevent the caramel from leaking.
- Adding a foil-lined pan under the quince cake is also a great idea for easy cleanup.
- If you don't love cinnamon, replace some of the cinnamon with a variety of spices including cardamom, ginger, and nutmeg.
- You may replace the rum in the caramel sauce with a teaspoon of vanilla.
- Besides pineapple rum, you can use spiced or plain rum. Moreover, the rum in the quince cake can be left out and replaced with orange juice.
- If you are not in a hurry, cook the quince in simple syrup so that the color transforms into a beautiful shade of pink or even red, if cooked long enough.
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