Yield: 6 - 8 servings

Salted Caramel Apple Upside-Down Gingerbread Tea Cake

Salted Caramel Apple Upside-Down Gingerbread Tea Cake

Ingredients

For Tea Concentrate:

  • 1 cup water
  • 1/4 cup apple juice
  • 5 Salted Caramel Black Tea bags (I used Bigelow)

Bottom Layer:

  • 6 Tbl. butter, melted
  • 2/3 cup dark brown sugar
  • 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
  • 1 maraschino cherry half, (stem removed)
  • 3 large Granny Smith apples, peeled or unpeeled, thinly sliced into 1/8" slices

Cake Layer:

  • 1 (4.5 oz.) box Gingerbread Mix, (I used Betty Crocker)
  • 1 1/4 cups chilled tea concentrate (*ingredients above)
  • 1 extra-large egg
  • 1/4 tsp. cinnamon

Topping:

  • caramel sauce, homemade or store-bought, warmed
  • kosher salt
  • whipped cream, Cool Whip or Redi Whip

Instructions

  • Make Tea Concentrate:
  • Heat water and apple juice to boiling in microwave, remove, add tea bags, cover and steep for 25 minutes. Remove tea bags squeezing out excess water from bags using back of spoon, stir in dark brown sugar until dissolved, let cool down, then chill.
  • For Bottom Layer:
  • Spray pan with non-stick spray. Place a parchment paper round onto bottom well. Melt butter, pour into pan, and swirl to cover bottom evenly. Set aside.
  • In medium bowl, mix together the dark brown sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle evenly over butter.
  • Place cherry half in center. Spiral apple slices, overlapping around cherry. Then do a second layer of apples laying them halfway over first layer of apples and going to outer edge to cover surface.
  • For Cake:
  • In large mixing bowl, whisk cake mix, tea concentrate, 1 egg and cinnamon until well mixed.
  • Pour cake batter over apples, level, pop into preheated oven, and bake for about 42 minutes or until cake is done.
  • Let rest 2-3 minutes, place a cake platter or plate on top of pan, flip over releasing cake onto plate.
  • Carefully peel off parchment paper not disturbing apples and cherry.
  • Let cool a little until warm.
  • Heat caramel sauce, drizzle over cake. (As much or little as you like.) Sprinkle top with kosher salt.
  • Slice and serve topped with whipped cream.

    • Notes

    *I used a very old, antique 10" round deep-dish pan for this, but you can easily use a 9x9 pan if you don't have one this size.