This tropical Mango Upside Down Cake with Coconut Cream is a mouth-watering dessert option! It includes fresh mangoes, mango puree and is served with homemade coconut whipped cream. This delicious dessert is a crowd-pleaser with everyone lining up for seconds.
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My love for baking and West African fruits inspires this Upside-Down Mango Cake with Coconut Cream recipe. Mangoes and coconuts grow freely in Nigeria and other African countries.
Desserts are relatively new in Nigeria as wheat flour was introduced to the country by the British in the early 20th century. Popular West African flour-based recipes include Nigerian puff puff, Easy African chin chin and Nigerian meat pie. Although cakes are served on special occasions by the African diaspora and in West Africa, the flavor and recipes tend to be simple as the idea of desserts is still relatively new.
I chose to serve this dessert with coconut cream to match my tropical West African theme, but feel free to serve it with ice cream, whipped cream, or plain instead. This recipe ties into Afrofuturism as it shows how West African fruits can be used to make cakes.
I’m proud to collaborate with more than 30 Black recipe developers as we celebrate Black History Month 2022. This Virtual Potluck explores Black food through the lens of Afrofuturism. Our collaboration of recipes explores the intersection of the Black diaspora via culture, future, geopolitics, imagination, liberation, culture, and technology.
Cook and share the inspiring recipes by checking out the list of participants below. Follow each participant and continue the discussion with us on social media using the hashtag #BHMVP2022!
Why You Should Try This Recipe
- This mango upside down cake with coconut cream is a vibrant and flavorful dessert.
- This dessert is great for mango lovers and anyone who enjoys tropical flavors.
- It is an impressive dessert centerpiece that can be served with fresh cream, ice cream, and custard.
- The mango upside down cake recipe can be doubled to feed a larger crowd.
Mango Upside Down Cake with Coconut Cream Ingredients
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Upside Down Mango Cake Base:
- Unsalted butter: Use good quality unsalted butter.
- Brown Sugar: Any brown sugar will work.
- Mango slices: Fresh, ripe mango slices work best for the base. Peel the skin and remove the seed from the mango before slicing.
Mango Upside Down Cake:
- Unsalted butter: Make sure the butter used to mix the cake is at room temperature.
- Granulated sugar: Will be combined with unsalted butter for the cake batter.
- Mango pulp or puree: You can buy canned mango puree or make your own from scratch. I suggest buying mango puree or pulp, as the mango flavor and color are more concentrated and give the cake more flavor.
- Eggs: This will help to make the mango cake fluffy. Ensure the eggs are at room temperature to achieve the desired consistency when mixing the cake batter.
- Vanilla essence: For extra sweetness.
- All-purpose flour: Sift the flour before mixing to remove excess dirt and lumps.
- Baking powder and Baking Soda: Both are leavening agents used to help the cake rise. Make sure they have not expired.
- Pinch of salt: Add a pinch of salt to balance the flavors in the cake.
Coconut Cream:
- Canned coconut milk: Refrigerate canned coconut milk for 1-2 days before whipping.
- Sugar/honey: Add sugar or honey for sweetness.
Tips and Substitutions
- Room-temperature ingredients: Prepare the cake batter using room-temperature ingredients. Using cold milk, eggs, or butter can affect the rise of the cake.
- Alternatives: If you are not a fan of caramelized fruit, you can make a plain mango sponge cake instead. Skip the base, make the mango cake batter, and bake for the same amount of time.
- Mango pulp or puree: You can make mango puree or pulp from scratch; however, if the mangoes are not ripe enough, you may not get a concentrated mango flavor or a bright yellow color. My go-to mango pulp of choice is Kesar Mango pulp.
How to Make Mango Upside-Down Cake
- Start by cutting the flesh of a fresh mango.
- Slice evenly and horizontally. These slices are used to make the base of the upside-down mango cake.
- Then, line an 8″ baking tin and grease it lightly with oil or butter. Next, heat ¼ cup of unsalted butter and ½ cup of brown sugar in a small pot. Then, pour the mixture into the cake tin.
- Place the mango slices on top of the butter and sugar mixture in a nice pattern. Tip: Make sure the sugar and butter mixture covers the entire base of the tin evenly.
- Then, whisk unsalted butter and granulated sugar in a separate bowl for 5 minutes. Tip: The mixture should be pale yellow.
- Preheat the oven to 160C/320F. Add all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt to a bowl and mix. Set aside for later.
- Add one egg and whisk until well incorporated.
- Repeat this step for the remaining eggs and add the vanilla essence.
- Pour mango pulp or puree into the egg and butter mixture. Mix well.
- Then add half of the dry ingredients and until just combined.
- Repeat the previous step with the remaining dry ingredients.
- Do not overmix the batter. There should still be some lumps.
13. Pour the mango cake batter into the tin.
14. Smooth the batter. Finally, bake the mango upside-down cake for 30 minutes or until done. Sticking a wooden skewer inside lets you check if the cake is ready. Once it comes out clean, the cake is ready. Ensure you leave the cake to sit for at least 5 minutes before turning it upside down and removing it from the tin.
15. Serve this moist, flavorful upside-down mango cake plain or with extra toppings.
Whipped Coconut Cream
9. Make the coconut cream as the cake cools. Open one can of refrigerated coconut milk. Then, remove the hardened cream and add it to a bowl. Set any remaining liquid to the side, as you won’t need it for this recipe.
10. Then, add sugar or honey to the bowl and whisk until it thickens and becomes creamy.
11. Finally, serve each slice of mango cake with coconut cream.
Recipe FAQs
It is believed that people started cooking cakes upside down centuries ago in cast iron skillets. This method was used as it is an easy way to bake fruits with cakes.
Mango cakes are made from flour, eggs, milk, leavening agents, sugar, mango pulp/mango puree and butter or oil.
Follow the recipe accurately to ensure that you add the right amount of liquid to the cake. In some cases, the cake becomes soggy when the ingredient measurements are incorrect.
The cake can be wrapped tightly in plastic wrap or foil and refrigerated for up to 4 days. Let the cake come to room temperature before serving. You can also heat it for 15-30 seconds in the microwave.
More Delicious Dessert Recipes
Mango Upside Down Cake
Equipment
- 1 mixing bowl
- Stand or hand mixer
- 8" or 7" Deep baking tin
Ingredients
Base
- 2 ripe mangoes
- ¼ cup butter softened
- ½ cup brown sugar
Mango Cake
- 1 cup (226g) unsalted butter
- 1.25 cups (220g) granulated sugar
- 1 cup (200g) mango puree or pulp
- 4 eggs
- 2 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 cup (240g) all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoon Baking powder
- ½ teaspoon Baking Soda
- pinch of salt
Whipped Coconut Cream
- 1 can Coconut milk
- 2-3 teaspoon Sugar/honey
Instructions
- Line an 8" baking tin and grease it lightly with oil or butter. Then heat ¼ cup of unsalted butter and ½ a cup of brown sugar in a small pot. Pour the mixture into the cake tin and place the mango slices on top of the butter and sugar mixture in a nice pattern.
- Preheat the oven to 170C/340F. Next, beat unsalted butter and granulated sugar in a medium-sized bowl for 5 minutes.
- Then add one egg and whisk until the egg is well incorporated. Repeat this step for the remaining eggs and add the vanilla essence.
- Next, pour mango pulp into the egg and butter mixture. Mix well.
- Then add the dry ingredients and mix well. Do not over mix the batter, there should still be some lumps in it.
- Bake mango upside-down cake for 35-40 minutes or until done. You can check if the cake is done by sticking a wooden skewer into it. Once it comes out clean, the cake is ready. Leave the cake to sit for at least 5 minutes before removing it from the tin.
Whipped Coconut Cream
- Open the can of refrigerated coconut milk. Remove the hardened cream and add it to a bowl. Set any remaining liquid to the side as you won't need it for this recipe.
- Add sugar or honey to the bowl and whisk until it thickens and becomes creamy.
- Serve each slice of mango cake with coconut cream.
Notes
- Alternatives: If you are not a fan of caramelized fruit then you can make a plain mango sponge cake instead. Skip the base, make the mango cake batter and bake for the same amount of time.
- Mango pulp or puree: You can make mango puree or pulp from scratch however if the mangoes are not ripe enough you may not get a concentrated mango flavor or the bright yellow color. My go-to mango pulp of choice is Kesar Mango pulp.
Nutrition
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Dee Moore
This mango upside down recipe was not as intimidating as I thought it would be to make, the sweet mango flavors were not like any upside flavor I have every had. I almost didn't want to share so with my guests.
Marta
I was so intrigued by the name of this recipe that we made it this weekend for our baking project. I loved the flavor of the mango paired with the nuttiness from the coconut cream.
Crystal
Made this for my Galentine's gathering. The ladies and I loved it! I'm not big on coconut but still gave the whipped cream a try, and was thoroughly surprised with how good it was!
Marcus Avery
This recipe is a winner for sure! Mango is one of my favorite fruits, so adding this to cake was a no-brainer. The cake was also simple to make. Thank you for sharing!
Megan
The recipe is absolutely delicious, but I had trouble with the pan size and the bake time. I didn't have a deep 8" so I used a 10 inch pan instead and 12 mini muffin cups. The batter could have filled up 2 x 10 inch cake pans!
Because I used a wider, shallower pan I figured bake time would be less, but it took closer to 60 minutes to bake.
Robin
I've always been a fan of anything mango flavored. But the coconut cream really took the cake to another level - incredible!
Carita
This recipe was to-die-for! I'm amazed at how easy/approachable it was. The whipped coconut cream was my favorite part as it really paired well with the upside down mango cake. I shared this with friends and they raved and asked for the recipe. Will be making this again!
Kate
Oh my goodness, I can’t tell you how grateful I am to have come across your recipe! Mango upside down cake is my new favourite recipe as this tasted amazing!
Britney Brown-Chamberlain
I never knew mango and coconut went together so well! The mango cake was so good, it made me feel like I was on an island somewhere under the sun! Topped with the coconut cream, you really can't go wrong with this one!! So delicious!
Chenée
This cake was heavenly! So moist and fluffy, and the mango flavor was amazing!
Kaluhi
Mangoes are my favorite fruit and this was such a delight to have! The flavor of the mango and the coconut went so well together too and i really enjoyed this!
Jazz
The mango flavor in this cake is perfect and I love the coconut whipped cream paired with it. I've already made it twice and my family is asking for another!
Immaculate
Wow! I have never had a mango upside-down cake until now. It was decadent, tangy and nutty. Love how it caramelises at the side of the cake. So delicious.
Lilly
OH MY WOW! This cake is amazing! I love the mango flavor, especially with the coconut cream on top! I literally cannot get enough of this cake!
Amanda
I am making this for a friends birthday. Does it need to be stored in the refrigerator? If I make it a day in advance, and I have to put it in the fridge, will it still be amazing the next day? Would it need to be heated? It looks so delicious??
Jen Sim
Hi Amanda, You can store this cake in the refrigerator if you make it a day in advance. Refrigerating won't affect the taste. You can reheat it in the oven for 5 minutes or leave it out and allow it to come to room temperature once you are ready to serve it. I hope you and your friend enjoy the cake!
Julie
Wow, absolutely delicious. Thank you sooooo much. Would peaches be ok to substitute mango?
Julie
mandy
Great cake but it took almost an hour to cook not 30 minutes like the recipe says. I used frozen mangos and t worked out great
Julia
I don’t have a deep baking tin except my springform or a Bundt cake pan. Do you think the butter/brown sugar mix will seep through the bottom edge of a springform pan?
Jen Sim
Hi Julia, If the pan is good quality then it will not seep through however it might cause the caramelized mangoes to crack when you are removing it from the pan. You could still give it a try but be very gentle when removing the cake. Let me know how it goes.
Celeste Ferreira
Absolutely delicious, so moist and fluffy. This recipe is definitely a keeper