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21 October 2026

Orange & Cardamom Upside-down Cake With Orange Sea Salt Caramel

Prep: 30 minutes

Make: 1 hour

Serves: 10

Orange & Cardamom Upside-down Cake With Orange Sea Salt Caramel

Whether you're hosting friends for dinner or looking for a delicious weekend baking recipe, this orange upside-down cake is sure to be a crowd-pleaser.

A big thank you to the lovely Steph Peirce for creating this beautiful recipe using our delicious oranges!

Ready to give it a go? 

Ingredients

Orange Syrup

4 oranges

1 lemon

1 cup caster sugar

Cake

Reserved zest of 2 oranges and 1 lemon

5 eggs

250g caster sugar

2 tsp vanilla extract

150g butter, melted

60ml light olive oil

150ml full-fat milk

290g plain flour

2 tsp baking powder

½ tsp ground cardamom

Pinch of salt

Orange Sea Salt Caramel

Reserved orange syrup

25g cold butter

100ml cream

1 tsp vanilla extract

¼–½ tsp flaky sea salt

Finely grated zest of 1/2 an orange

To Serve

Vanilla bean ice cream

Method

  • Preheat the oven to 165°C bake and grease and line a 20cm round cake tin on the base and sides.

  • Orange Syrup: Finely zest 2 oranges and the lemon, reserving the zest for the cake. Then juice the 2 oranges and half the lemon into a saucepan with the sugar and bring to a simmer. Thinly slice the remaining 2 oranges and simmer in the syrup for 10 minutes. Pour through a sieve, reserving the syrup in a small saucepan and setting the oranges aside to cool. Set aside 3 tablespoons of the syrup to brush over the cake after turning it out. Use the remaining syrup to make the orange sea salt caramel.

  • Cake: Arrange the cooled orange slices in the base of the tin, starting from the centre and working outwards, slightly overlapping each slice. Use the remaining slices to line the sides. Beat the eggs and sugar for 8–10 minutes until thick and pale. Beat in the vanilla. Whisk together the butter, olive oil, milk and reserved zest, then gently fold into the egg mixture. Sift in the flour, baking powder, cardamom and salt and fold until just combined. Pour into the tin and bake for 55–60 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Cool for 15 minutes before carefully turning onto a serving plate. Brush the reserved orange syrup over the orange slices on the top of the cake for a glossy finish.

  • Orange Sea Salt Caramel: Bring the remaining syrup to the boil and cook for 7–10 minutes, until deep amber but not smoking. Remove from the heat and whisk in the butter, cream, vanilla, sea salt and orange zest until smooth.

  • To Serve: Serve with vanilla bean ice cream and plenty of warm orange sea salt caramel sauce.

We love seeing our fresh NZ oranges turned into something so delicious! A huge thank you to Steph Peirce for sharing this gorgeous recipe. If you give it a go, we'd love to see your creation - tag us on Instagram @twistedcitrus 

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