Thanks to a vanilla cake mix, these mini upside down blueberry cakes are very simple to make. Jump to the Mini Upside Down Blueberry Cakes Recipe or read on to see our tips for making them.
The secret to these mini cakes is a grapefruit. We use the zest and juice. It adds a little citrus and makes the cake quite delicious.
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: A lovely pineapple upside-down cake recipe that’s extremely simple to make. Jump to the Fresh Pineapple Upside Down Cake Recipe.
How to Make Mini Blueberry Cakes
To make this extra easy, you will need a vanilla cake mix. We use Betty Crocker’s French Vanilla mix. If you prefer to make this from scratch, use the batter called for in our pineapple upside down cake instead (it will make fewer cupcakes — about 12).
As I mentioned above, we add the juice and zest of one grapefruit to these mini cakes. The juice replaces the water called for on the back of the cake mix box.
For the blueberry topping, melt some butter in muffin cups then add brown sugar and blueberries on top. Spoon the batter into the cups, covering the blueberries. Bake the mini cakes. When they have cooled slightly invert them onto a serving plate and top with whipped cream.
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: Store-bought puff pastry is the secret to these blueberry filled hand pies. Jump to the Blueberry Hand Pies Recipe.
Back in the day we were contributors for Betty Crocker. We shared this recipe with them. We loved it so much were are happy to share it with you.
Recipe updated, originally posted January 2012. Since posting this in 2012, we have tweaked the recipe to be more clear. – Adam and Joanne
Mini Upside Down Blueberry Cakes
- PREP
- COOK
- TOTAL
We use a Betty Crocker cake mix for this recipe. You can use another brand and just replace the amount of water called for on the back of the box with grapefruit juice. In this case the amount of water called for on the back of the Betty Crocker cake mix box was 1 cup.
You Will Need
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 24 small pieces
3/4 cup lightly packed brown sugar
2 cups fresh blueberries or frozen blueberries that have been thawed and drained
Juice and grated peel of 1 medium grapefruit
1 box Betty Crocker® French vanilla cake mix
Vegetable oil and eggs called for on back of cake mix box
1 cup whipped cream
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
Directions
1Heat oven to 350 degrees F (or 325 degrees F for a dark or nonstick pan).
2Place 1 piece of butter in each of 24 muffin cups then place the pan into the oven until the butter has melted. Divide the brown sugar and blueberries between muffin cups.
3Add grapefruit juice to a measuring jug that holds at least 1 cup. Fill the jug to the 1-cup line with water. (One grapefruit should create about 1 cup of juice. If you have too much, only use 1 cup. If you do not have enough, add water until you reach 1 cup).
4Add the cake mix, oil, eggs, grapefruit juice and grapefruit zest to a large bowl. Mix with a mixer on medium speed or beat vigorously by hand for 2 minutes. Pour the batter over blueberries, filling each cup three-fourths full.
5Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 17 to 22 minutes (20 to 25 minutes for dark or nonstick pan). Immediately run small knife around the sides of each cake to loosen.
6Cool in the pan, on a cooling rack for 15 minutes. Run a knife around the sides of cakes for a second time. Place a heatproof serving plate upside down over the pan. Turn the plate and pan over and set down for 5 minutes. Remove pan and cool 30 minutes.
7Serve the mini cakes with a dollop of whipped cream and sprinkle of cinnamon on top. Store covered in refrigerator.
Adam and Joanne's Tips
- If you prefer to make this from scratch, use the batter called for in our pineapple upside down cake instead (it will make fewer cupcakes — about 12).
If you make this recipe, snap a photo and hashtag it #inspiredtaste — We love to see your creations on Instagram and Facebook! Find us: @inspiredtaste
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Just saw this recipe. What a lovely and easy dessert! And who doesn’t love blueberries? I need to try this one soon! Thank you!
Can I use a nonstick spray instead of melting the butter?
Yep!
I never write comments but this time feel an urge to tell that I am addicted to your site 😉 Brilliant everything. One little wish is more muffin receipies that have less butter ;))
Best wishes!
I just discovered your site and am going to make some of your recipes. I look forward to tasting them and will definitely add my comments. Have a nice day.
Jo- Can you make this as a cake instead? Can you help with directions?
Yes, just use a tall cake pan. The baking time will be a little longer (follow the box directions for a cake and not cupcakes).
I wonder if you could make these using other berries (e.g. strawberries, raspberries)? Has anyone tried?
Hi heather, strawberries, blackberries or raspberries would be delish!
I’m making these for our super bowl party tomorrow… should be perfect for a crowd! I’ll let you know how they turn out.
These are so dang adorable!
aren’t they! even Adam was a googly-eyed 🙂
-joanne