I recently purchased an Instant Pot and I have been playing around with it, discovering the many uses of this versatile appliance. Did you know that you can bake a cake in your Instant Pot?
I found a recipe for an upside-down apple cake in an old French pressure cooker cookbook that I found a couple years ago at a flea market in the South of France! The original recipe called for wheat flour (containing gluten) and eggs. Since I follow an allergen-free diet (called AIP or the Paleo Autoimmune Protocol), I don’t consume these. But I really wanted to try this cake recipe in my Instant Pot (imagine me pouting with my arms crossed)!
The food blogger in me rose to the challenge and I developed a recipe 100% compliant with the autoimmune protocol. No wheat or gluten, no dairy, no eggs, no nuts. Yep, and believe me it turned out sooo delicious that everyone thought it was the best thing they had eaten in a while (especially if you add a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top!).
Now in order to bake a cake in your Instant Pot, you will need a cake pan that will fit inside. This is the one I ordered from Amazon. You will line the bottom of the pan with apples.
Next step, prepare the dough and flatten out on a piece of parchment paper using your fingers. My first time, I tried without parchment paper and the dough was sticking miserably to the wooden board I was using! So don’t skip the parchment paper!
Once you have flattened out the dough into a small circle (no bigger than the cake pan), flip the parchment paper over and cover the apples. Discard the parchment paper.
Then cover the cake pan with a piece of aluminum foil, tucking it in all around the rim to create a tight seal. This step is to prevent the steam and water from reaching the cake, making it all soggy!
Serve this upside-down apple cake hot or cold, with or without a scoop of vanilla ice cream! Will keep in the refrigerator up to 2-3 days.
For more delicious AIP instant pot recipes, check out The Paleo AIP Instant Pot Cookbook!
- Special equipment needed: Instant Pot, 7 x 2 inch round aluminum cake pan, parchment paper, aluminum foil.
- 2 cups water
- 4 small Gala apples (about 1⅓ pounds), peeled and cut into ¼-inch slices
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon dried lavender flowers
- ½ cup tigernut flour
- ⅓ cup cassava flour
- 2 tablespoons coconut flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder (or ⅛ teaspoon baking soda + ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar)
- Pinch fine sea salt
- ⅓ cup palm shortening, melted
- 3 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon gelatin powder
- Add water to the Instant Pot and insert the steaming basket in the pot . Line the bottom of the cake pan with parchment paper.
- In a dish, mix apples, lemon juice, and lavender together. Spread apples evenly in the bottom of the cake pan.
- In a large bowl, combine tigernut flour, cassava flour, coconut flour, baking powder, salt.
- In a separate bowl, mix together palm shortening, maple syrup, and vanilla extract. Stir well.
- Sprinkle gelatin powder over palm shortening mixture and whisk vigorously until well blended.
- Pour liquid mixture over dry ingredients and mix well with a spatula to form a ball of dough.
- Transfer dough to a piece of parchment paper and flatten with your finger to form a circle no bigger than the cake pan.
- Cover apples with dough and discard the parchment paper.
- Cover the cake pan with a piece of aluminum foil, tucking it in all around the rim to create a tight seal.
- Place the cake pan in the steaming basket. Close and lock the lid. Press “manual” and cook on high pressure for 25 minutes.
- When time is up, press cancel and let the pressure release naturally before opening the lid.
- You can serve this apple tea cake hot or cold.
- To serve, turn the cake pan upside down and unmold on a serving platter. Eat as is or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
This recipe has been shared on Paleo AIP Recipe Roundtable over at Phoenix Helix.
Je n’ai pas mangé du tarte tarin depuis… 20 ans? Quand j’habitais en France! Je vais faire ce tarte demain!
Bonjour Cassandra!
20 ans, cela fait longtemps! Tu verras, cette recette est drôlement bonne! Bon appétit 🙂
Well done! I was doubtful at first, but made this in my instant pot last night and it turned out really well. Even my non-paleo fiancé asked if he could have the leftovers for breakfast 🙂
Thanks Bailey for your positive feedback! I am so glad you and your fiancé like this recipe 🙂 Now, you are a believer! LOL
Baking suggestions for those of who don’t have an Instant Pot yet? Looks delicious!
Hello Sarah,
Good question! I haven’t tried this in the oven, yet, but it is totally feasible. Follow the instructions to prepare the cake, skip the aluminum foil, and bake in the oven at 350F for 15 to 20 minutes. That should be about right.
Sounds great. Can’t wait to try it! “Tarte tartin ” is on every menu here!
Hi Sophie, How brilliant to replicate an old French recipe, and how I miss tarte tatin! I also grew up on Zwetschgenkuchen (a traditional German plum cake) that is kind of similar, but right side up. Can you suggest an authentic organic lavender flower source? I’ll have to grow lavender in my terra cotta pots next year. Anyway, it took me a while to find a non-metallic pan that fits inside the Instant Pot. I don’t like the idea of acidic apples anywhere near an aluminum pan. Here is a ceramic dish with a glass lid that is 3-1/8″ tall, 7.5″ at the outer rim, 6.75″ at the inside top of the dish, and 6-1/8″ on the inside bottom: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00005B8JM/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s02?ie=UTF8&psc=1. I’m sure this dish will come in handy for more recipes made in the Instant Pot! We’re all eagerly waiting! 🙂
Hi Elisabeth,
Thank you for including the link for the non aluminum pan. I don’t like using aluminum either, & especially with a fruit. If I find a source for organic lavender, I will share, as I try to only eat organic..
i don’t like cooking with aluminum anymore, so i use glass, can i use glass instead
Hi Sophie! This looks delicious. Is there a way I can replace the coconut flour. I recently discovered i have a food sensitivity to it. Maybe adding more cassava or tigernut flour?
I know this is chiming in a bit late, but I came across this scrumptious recipe this morning & can’t wait to try it!
I noticed someone was wondering where to find organic lavender for culinary purposes – Mountain Rose Herbs is a treasure trove, and I love to order from them. Here’s their lavender page:
https://www.mountainroseherbs.com/products/lavender-flowers/profile
Really delicious! Made it for a French dinner party last night and it was spectacular. My instant pot never quite came to natural release…took 2 hours and I had to nudge it just a tiny bit but thankfully I had the time and made it early enough. Than it needs to cool down most if not all of the way before unmolding and presenting, but this went seamlessly after being cooled enough. I tried the process right after pulling it out and there was just too much moisture so I let it be for awhile and then came back to it! It’s very beautiful with the lavender on top and the lavender taste is subtle but makes an impact. I splurged and paired with a little French Fourme d’Ambert blue and thought I was in heaven. Thank you for such a fun, festive, and fabulously tasty recipe