Chocolate Upside Down Cake Recipe - The Boat Galley (2024)

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Published on November 1, 2010; last updated on January 19, 2023 by Carolyn Shearlock

My great-grandmother began serving this chocolate cake nearly 100 years ago, and it’s been a family favorite ever since. It’s great on a boat, as it uses cocoa instead of baking chocolate, was intended to be mixed by hand and baked in a “moderate oven” fueled by wood – perfect for a somewhat tempermental galley oven. Plus, the frosting won’t run in tropical heat!

4 from 12 votes

Grandma Phila’s Chocolate Upside Down Cake

This Chocolate Upside Down Cake is designed to be made without an electric mixer and tastes great — perfect if you live on a boat, RV or off the grid.

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Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time35 minutes mins

Total Time45 minutes mins

Servings: 8

Calories: 328kcal

Carbs (g): 62

Ingredients

US Customary – Metric

Cake

▢ 1 cup flour
▢ 2 teaspoons baking powder see note below
▢ ¼ teaspoon salt
▢ 1½ tablespoons cocoa
▢ ¾ cup sugar
▢ ½ cup milk
▢ 2 tablespoons melted butter or margarine or vegetable oil
▢ ½ teaspoon vanilla
▢ ½ cup nuts

Topping:

▢ ½ cup brown sugar if not available, use white and a smidge of honey or molasses
▢ ½ cup sugar
▢ 5 tablespoons cocoa
▢ 1 cup boiling water

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Place all cake ingredients in a bowl and stir to mix. Pour into an ungreased 8″x 8″ pan (or anything that is reasonably close). Let sit while you prepare the topping which can be made in the same bowl (scrape the batter into the pan and you don’t need to wash the bowl).
Mix together topping ingredients and spoon over the mix in the baking pan. You’ll notice that the cake mix will start to float to the surface–that’s normal.
Bake in a 350° F. oven for 35 minutes. Time it! Cake is done when the top is uniformly dry, although the frosting mixture may bubble around the sides. Don’t overbake! Allow to cool before serving.
To serve, cut cake into pieces and slip a spatula under one slice. Carefully take it out of the pan and flip it upside down onto a plate–the gooey frosting will now be on top. Generally not all of the frosting will have come out of the pan. If this happens, scrape the extra out and smooth it over the top of the slice.

Notes

If you use a smaller pan, the mix will be thicker and you”ll probably have to bake it longer. An 8″ or 9″ round pan works well, as does a 9″ x 6″ pan or even a bread pan. This recipe doubles well to fill a 9″ x 13″ pan–baking time is approximately the same.

Be sure to store your baking powder inside a Ziploc bag, taking it out just long enough to measure the amount you need. Humidity is the enemy of baking powder since it reacts with moisture to raise the batter. If it has already reacted with moisture in the air, it won’t do anything for your batter. I learned this the hard way, with a very flat cake!

If I make this while underway or in a rolly anchorage, I measure the cup of water for the topping when I put it into the teakettle to heat, then just pour it into the mixing bowl. Much safer than trying to measure boiling water in a moving boat.

Nutrition Facts

Grandma Phila's Chocolate Upside Down Cake

Amount Per Serving

Calories 328Calories from Fat 72

% Daily Value*

Fat 8g12%

Saturated Fat 3g15%

Cholesterol 9mg3%

Reader Interactions

Comments

Candy Ann Williams says
December 25, 2010 at 9:27 pm

Sounds great….can’t wait to try it….Thanks for sharing…can’t believe I missed it in cruising world….
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on Facebook says
December 1, 2011 at 10:51 am

Gotta try this … thanks!
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The Boat Galley on Facebook says
April 18, 2012 at 7:18 pm

I need a BIG slice of chocolate cake after the last two days — the server has had a LOT of problems!
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Debra Perfitt on Facebook says
April 18, 2012 at 7:22 pm

Great!
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Debra Perfitt on Facebook says
April 18, 2012 at 7:23 pm

Me too, the cake I mean
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Patty D Tate on Facebook says
October 10, 2012 at 5:03 pm

Didn’t have coco. Used hot choc mix. Worked well.
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The Boat Galley on Facebook says
October 10, 2012 at 5:23 pm

I’ll bet it would — great substitution idea!
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Nona Urbitnez on Facebook says
July 3, 2013 at 8:07 pm

Wow! I think I might have all the ingredients on board for that 😉
Looks delish!
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Tammy Swart says
December 25, 2014 at 12:39 pm

Yams! Traditional! Can’t wait to see what delectable dishes appear here in Vero Beach! Merry Christmas Carolyn, hope to meet you IRL someday soon!
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Audrey says
February 8, 2015 at 4:33 pm

I have been searching for this recipe for so long. My mama used to make this and I was wondering if she had just made it up. I loved this growing up even though I really was not a cake eater. Thanks so much for the recipe. I have been googing it but could come up with nothing till I finally called it the upside down chocolate cake.
Thanks so much!
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cyndy says
June 28, 2017 at 12:04 am

Hi, C
Will this fir in the Omnia stove top oven? I’m thinking the silicon liner would work well.
Thanks,
cyndy
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- Carolyn Shearlock says
  June 28, 2017 at 6:48 am
  
  Yes, one batch is the perfect size for the Omnia. Enjoy!
  Reply
Anonymous says
March 23, 2018 at 10:52 am

One of our family’s favorites! My grandma called it pudding cake. I’ve even doubled the topping portion to make extra “pudding” or topping.
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- The Boat Galley says
  March 23, 2018 at 11:47 am
  
  You’re the first person I’ve known who has had a similar recipe in their family. <3
  Reply
- Anonymous says
  March 23, 2018 at 12:53 pm
  
  6 degrees of separation? 😊
  Reply
Anonymous says
March 23, 2018 at 11:58 am

Once upon a time all cakes were made without a mixer! My childhood kitchen contained NO electric appliances but westill ate well.
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Anonymous says
March 23, 2018 at 6:20 pm

This is always a huge hit! And so easy to make on the boat in the omnia. Yum 🙂
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Anonymous says
March 24, 2018 at 10:11 am

Yum!
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Kirsty Berryman says
July 14, 2019 at 4:27 am

In the unlikely event that there actually are leftovers, how long does this keep without refrigeration? Assuming that it is in an air-tight container and well hidden from my husband, that is.
I need to adapt to Gluten Free flour and baking powder, but I’ve been doing this for years with Coeliac Disease.
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- Carolyn Shearlock says
  July 14, 2019 at 7:13 am
  
  I’ve never refrigerated the leftovers and it’s still been good at least 4 days later. Don’t think I’ve tried to keep it longer than that, but I’ve never had it turn moldy.
  Reply
Lynn Hensley says
January 18, 2020 at 10:38 am

How long & at what kind of temps for doing this in the Omnia?
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- Carolyn Shearlock says
  January 18, 2020 at 6:34 pm
  
  30 to 35 minutes with burner set at medium high. It works really well in the Omnia!
  Reply
Lynn Hensley says
January 19, 2020 at 4:43 pm

Thanks! I can’t wait to try it.
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Lynn Hensley says
January 19, 2020 at 5:02 pm

Thanks, I can’t wait to try it!
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CClark says
April 16, 2020 at 9:42 am

Made this for Easter, it was amazing. Super easy too. We scraped every bit from the pan with our fingers. Definitely on my favorites list now.
Reply