Upside Down Fig And Hazelnut Cake Recipes

UPSIDE-DOWN FIG CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°. Grease bottom and sides of a 9-inch cake pan with 2-inch sides with 1 teaspoon butter. Line bottom of pan with parchment paper; grease top of parchment paper with ½ teaspoon butter. In a small saucepan, melt ½ cup butter over medium-low heat. Stir in brown sugar and honey, and cook, stirring frequently, for 4 minutes or until sugar dissolves and mixture is smooth. Let cool slightly; pour sauce into prepared pan. Arrange fig halves, cut sides down, in concentric circles over sauce. In a large bowl, beat remaining 1 cup butter at medium speed with a mixer for 1 to 2 minutes or until creamy. Add sugar and vanilla, and beat for 3 to 4 minutes or until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon; gradually add to butter mixture alternately with milk, beginning and ending with flour mixture, beating just until combined after each addition. Spoon batter over figs in prepared pan. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center of cake comes out clean. Cool in pan on a wire rack for 1 hour. Carefully run a knife around edge of cake to loosen, and invert onto a serving plate.

FIG-HAZELNUT CHEESECAKE WITH HONEY-BOURBON DRIZZLE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 285 degrees F (140 degrees C). Cover the bottom plate of a 9-inch springform pan with aluminum foil and snap plate into the ring. Coat the sides of the pan with butter.
• Process vanilla cookies in a food processor to yield 2 cups of crumbs. Transfer to a bowl and add butter; use a fork to blend. Press crumb mixture into the bottom of the pan. Top crust with 1/2 the figs and 1 cup hazelnuts.
• Place cream cheese in a large bowl and beat using an electric mixer on low speed for 5 minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl. Sift sugar and flour together in a bowl and add to the cream cheese mixture. Add sour cream, buttermilk, vanilla extract, and hazelnut liqueur, beating thoroughly. Add eggs 1 at a time and mix on low speed until yolks disappear. Pour batter into the prepared pan.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 60 minutes without opening the oven door. Turn off oven and leave cheesecake inside with door closed for 60 minutes more, allowing residual heat to set the cheesecake. Open oven door slightly at 1 hour and leave cheesecake in the cooling oven for another 30 minutes. Remove cheesecake from oven and let cool at room temperature for 60 minutes more.
• Refrigerate cheesecake for 1 hour. Unhook pan clasp and slowly remove ring, making sure not to touch the sides of the cake. Place cheesecake in the freezer, covered or uncovered, 8 hours to overnight. Remove from freezer 1 hour before serving.
• Prepare the topping just before serving: Place honey in a microwave-safe bowl and heat slightly. Stir in bourbon. Arrange hazelnuts around edge and in the center of cheesecake. Drizzle honey-bourbon mixture on top.

UPSIDE-DOWN FRESH FIG CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-inch cake pan with 2-inch sides. Line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper and butter the parchment.
• In a small saucepan over medium-low heat or in the microwave, melt 4 tablespoons of the butter. Stir in the brown sugar and honey until smooth. Pour the sauce into the prepared cake pan. Arrange the figs, cut sides down, in concentric circles over the sauce. Set aside.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. In another bowl, with an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the remaining 8 tablespoons butter with sugar and vanilla until lightened in color and texture, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the eggs 1 at a time, beating until well combined after each. Beating on low speed just until combined after each addition, add dry ingredients in 3 parts, alternating with the milk in 2 parts. Spoon the batter evenly over the figs.
• Bake the cake until golden and a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean, 45 to 55 minutes. Transfer the cake to a rack and cool in the pan for 50 minutes.
• Run a thin knife around the sides of the pan to loosen. Place a serving platter on top of the pan and invert the cake. Gently lift off the pan and remove the parchment paper. Spoon over the cake any of the sauce that has run off, and serve warm.