Cranberry Upside-Down Cake (updated below)

This is not my picture or my recipe. I am thinking about attempting to adapt the recipe to the crock pot and baking it the day before Thanksgiving. The recipe came from EatingWell. If you try it before me, please let me know how it turns out.

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened, divided
• 2 tablespoons plus 1/4 cup fresh orange juice, divided
• 1 12-ounce bag fresh or frozen (thawed) cranberries (about 3 cups)
• 3/4 cup whole-wheat pastry flour (see Note)
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature (see Tip)
• 1/3 cup canola oil
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup low-fat milk, at room temperature
• Whipped cream for garnish

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Heat brown sugar, 2 tablespoons butter and 2 tablespoons orange juice in a large (12-inch) cast-iron or regular skillet over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the butter melts and the mixture starts to bubble. Let cool. Coat the sides of the skillet with cooking spray.
3. Bring the remaining 1/4 cup orange juice and cranberries to a simmer in a medium saucepan, stirring often, until about half the cranberries have popped. Pour evenly over the cooled brown sugar mixture in the skillet.
4. Whisk whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl.
5. Separate egg whites and yolks. Place the yolks in a large bowl and add the remaining 2 tablespoons butter, oil, granulated sugar and vanilla. Beat with an electric mixer or stand mixer on medium-high speed until light and fluffy. Stir in the flour mixture alternately with milk, using a rubber spatula, starting and ending with the flour. Stir just until the flour is incorporated. Beat the egg whites in a clean dry mixing bowl with clean dry beaters on medium-high speed until they hold soft peaks. Fold one-third of the egg whites into the batter, then gently fold in the rest until almost no white streaks remain. Spread the batter over the cranberries.
6. Bake until the top is golden brown and the cake pulls away from the sides of the pan, 30 to 40 minutes. Let cool in the pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Run a knife around the edge of the pan and carefully invert the cake onto a serving plate. Let cool for at least 30 minutes more before serving. Serve warm or room temperature. Garnish with whipped cream, if desired.

Tips & Notes

• Ingredient Note: Whole-wheat pastry flour has less gluten-forming potential than regular whole-wheat flour and helps ensure tender baked goods. Find it in the baking section of the supermarket or online at bobsredmill.com and kingarthurflour.com.
• Kitchen Tip: To bring an egg to room temperature, set it on the counter for 15 minutes or submerge it (in the shell) in a bowl of lukewarm (not hot) water for 5 minutes.

UPDATE: 11/26/10

Okay. I made this for Thanksgiving. I'm not particularly fond of cranberries but it was okay. Not great, but okay. The only thing is whether you bake it in a cast iron skillet or in the crockpot, it does the same thing. You have to leave it in whatever you bake it in to cool completely. Brown sugar dries like glue. The cake will not come out. I sprayed both the pan and the crockpot and neither would release. I had to heat them for a minute to get the cake out.  After a while,  they both fell (in the middle). It didn't change the taste but it didn't look as good. You definitely need the whipped cream. Also, the crockpot one was more moist than the oven baked one. And, from the oven, the cranberries turned out pretty tart. You might want to add some sugar to them while you are cooking them til they pop on the stovetop. They were sweeter in the crockpot.

My cake

I doubt that I would make this again, but you never know because I think if you used strawberries, this would really be good.