Black Currant Chocolate Upside Down Cake

Overhead view of a slice of black currant chocolate cake on a white and green plate.

5 from 2 votes

Black Currant Chocolate Upside Down Cake

This black currant chocolate cake is baked like an upside down cake with a layer of sugared black currants that become soft and jammy.

Prep Time25

Cook Time45

Total Time1 10

Course: Afternoon Kaffee, Dessert

Cuisine: American, German

Keyword: black currant, Chocolate Cake, upside down cake, vanilla sweet cream

Servings:

Calories: 321kcal

Equipment

9" round metal cake pan
Electric Mixer

Ingredients

Black Currants

360 grams black currants fresh
80 grams granulated sugar *divided

Chocolate Cake

150 grams all purpose flour
175 grams granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspon fine sea salt
40 grams cocoa powder natural or dutch processed
2 eggs standard large, room temperature
125 grams unsalted butter very soft, plus 1 tablespoon for the pan
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
120 grams whole milk buttermilk reduced fat will work too
2 shots espresso *see notes for alternatives

Vanilla Sweet cream

150 milliliters heavy cream
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 F and place a rack in the middle of the oven.

Prep the Black Currants

Remove any stems from the currants and rinse them under cold water.
Pour the currants into a medium bowl along with 60 grams of the granulated sugar.
Toss the currants until fully coated with the sugar and set aside, ideally somewhere warm.

Chocolate Cake batter

In the bowl of a stand mixer, add in the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Then sift in the cocoa powder and whisk to combine.
Add in the sugar, eggs, butter, buttermilk, vanilla, and espresso. Use the paddle attachment (or hand mixer) to mix the batter first on low speed for 10 seconds. Then, medium high for another 10 seconds until just fully mixed.
Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl.

Prepare the Cake Pan

Grease a 9" metal cake pan or 9" metal leakproof springform pan with soft butter.
Cut a round of parchment that fits perfectly (or as well as you can) into the bottom of the pan. Place it in the pan and smooth the parchment across the bottom of the pan.
Add another 2 teaspoons of soft, almost melted butter, on top of the parchment and set aside.

Assemble & Bake

Pour the coated black currants into the base of the butter lined pan and gently spread them out. Sprinkle the top with another 20 grams of sugar.
Pour the chocolate cake batter over the currants and smooth out the top if needed.
Bake the cake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes. After 25 minutes, rotate the cake 180 degrees and bake for another 15-20 minutes.
When the cake is finished baking, check it by sticking a toothpick into the center of the cake. If the toothpick comes out clean, the cake is fully baked.
Remove the cake from the oven and leave it to cool for 10 minutes before flipping it out of the pan.
After 10 minutes, lay a piece of parchment paper over the top of the cake, followed by a large plate or cake stand upside down.
Holding on to the pan, parchment, and plate, flip the cake over and tap on the bottom a few times until the cake releases
Allow the cake to cool for at least 5 minutes before serving. While it cools make the sweet cream.

Vanilla Sweet Cream

In a small mixing bowl, add in the cold heavy cream, sugar, vanilla bean paste (or just vanilla extract), and salt.
Use a whisk to beat together for just a minute or so until just barely frothy. Place it in the fridge until you are ready to serve.
Top the cake slices with a few spoonfuls of the sweet cream upon serving. Store any sweet cream leftovers in a jar or glass with a lid.

Notes

Tips for making a black currant chocolate cake

Be sure to use a leakproof springform pan such as this one or use a regular metal cake pan with no seems to prevent any juices from leaking out.
When I made this cake I did it with an 8" pan but I would make it again with a 9" pan so that there is a higher fruit to cake ratio. If you want to make it in an 8" pan simply decrease the currants to 300 grams and the sugar total for the currants to 60 grams. You will also need to bake it a bit longer (5-10 minutes) for a toothpick to come out clean so just keep checking.
You can use two shots of espresso or 3 ounces of strongly brewed coffee or mix 3 ounces of hot water with 2 teaspoon of espresso powder instead of the shots of espresso.
As mentioned above, blackberries (& blueberries mixed together) are a great substitution of black currants in this cake. I recommend cutting the blackberries in half lengthwise just so they aren't as thick in the cake.
I want to make a red currant version too which you could do simply by swapping the black currants with red and leaving the cocoa powder out of the cake.
Make sure all the ingredients for the cake are at room temperature - this will help get a smooth and fluffy cake batter.
I'm not usually one to worry about sifting, but sifting the cocoa powder will ensure it all dissolves evenly into the batter without over mixing the cake.
To make sure the cake comes out easily, grease the pan with soft butter, then lay a round of parchment into the pan and grease it with two more teaspoons of soft butter.
Wait 10-15 minutes before flipping the cake, flip it too early and the cake will fall apart. Flip it too late and the cake won't come out of the pan.
This cake can be served warm or at room temperature!

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