27. A Recipe for an Upside-Down Cake

for Nick & Jeanette

Let’s get here these – a couple of apples

                       eating or cooking

                       or sufficient other fruit

                       plums, pineapple

                       or even the royal damson

                       to cover the bottom of your tin

                       in a good confused layer

then                   225 g demerara sugar

                       200 g butter

                       3 medium eggs (free range)

                       200 g self-raising flour

                       150 g natural yoghurt

now, this isn’t compulsory, but for all

those who want it      ½ tsp spices, such as cinnamon especially

                       – only these

We can grease the tin (round 20 cm)

& we can’t lie – best if with a loose bottom

or it’ll be a lumpy & gnarly mess to get out

& you must line it close w/ a circle of greased baking paper

then inside the oven (180º enough!)

With whatever you care to use beat

the butter w/ 200 g of the sugar

until it is relaxed & light then

beat in the beaten eggs 1 by 1

work hard if you must at folding in

                                    flour & yoghurt

                                    – spice!

or take it with the fruit which

anyway you’ll core or stone

 & slice &

toss in the sugar then cover

the bottom of the tin

                      – a dirty & hopeful landscape

                        not dangerous but ridiculous

                        which the mixture will cover

                        more like a blizzard than a pie

Any questions? Not needed but

smooth the top across & slightly hollow

then cook it for about an hour

(foil over the top when there’s risk of burning too brown)

until it’s spongy & seems cooked through

we can’t define it more, refined taste

varies, but we let entropy then run

– cool it for 20 minutes in the tin

start up & turn out onto a rack w/ the fruit on top

& let it all cool to serve w/ cream

                              custard

                              crème fraîche or yoghurt

                              (these even blended w/ honey & spice)

                              anything good

                                            for your friends

                                            to make us speak

[I got this recipe from a supermarket & made it for my “Sundays at the Oto” events at Hamish’s Café Oto when he hadn’t yet got his catering going (& still welcomed us!), but widened the fruit range & the accompaniment too; good for either cake or pudding, so enjoy & share however.]