If you have never made an upside-down cake before, let us explain the principle, and explain why you should run, not walk, to your kitchen to try one out. The cake typically begins with filling a pan with sugar and fruit, or it might start with cooking the two in a skillet on the stove to start it out. At this point, you can take a break and bake the rest later (love that make-ahead!) or move right on to mixing your batter and baking. Once it’s done, you flip the cake onto a platter, and you’ll want to choose one with a lip, as the caramelized juices from the bottom of the cake will run into the cake once it becomes the top. You’re left with a moist, complex dessert with a beautiful top, no frosting or other steps necessary, although whipped cream is never really a bad idea, is it?

You’ll swear you’re sitting on a screen porch in Georgia with one bite of this cake, which brings the best of the state’s ingredients together (besides the obvious, there’s also ground pecan in the batter). No need to remove the peaches’ skins; the color and texture they impart are, can we say, part of their appeal? And yes, though it was developed with peaches in mind, nectarines work just fine, too.

This gorgeous bundt cake has the perfect crown of caramelized pineapple and cherries of a classic pineapple upside-down cake but has even more pineapple slices in every bite. The rich buttery cake is infused with pineapple juice and vanilla bean paste for beautiful, sweet-tart notes. Just be sure to invert the cake while it’s still warm to ensure an easy release of the golden fruit topping.

This upside-down cake really pumps up the caramel (as in, more than usual) because it, salted, is an important flavor here. The ooey gooeyness and parts that go sticky-chewy in the oven really work well with the floral sweetness of the nectarines. A little sprinkling of sea salt before serving underlines the theme.

We’d love to say that blood oranges are the diva of the fruit world, bringing heightened drama wherever they go (I mean, just look at them). But their gentle orange, tasting almost infused with a bit of raspberry, is an absolute delight for summery desserts, transporting you directly to the Mediterranean with every bite. Here, they go sweet and sticky on top of the moistest olive oil cake.

This is a serious “yes, please” cake—we’ll bet it’s finished in one sitting. Studded with cherries but also the surprise of chocolate chips, it promises a fresh adventure in every bite. If you don’t have a cherry pitter, just open up a (clean) paper clip and use one end to hook out the pits. It’s just that kind of meditative kitchen job that sounds tedious but goes by in a flash.

Sweet or savory? Kardea Brown takes cornbread over to the cake side with this heavenly ode to peaches (and, hooray, frozen can be used, too, to turn this into a real express cake). You’ll love the mixture of fluffy cornbread cake and peach.

If you have access to a supermarket with various kinds of citrus, get ready to absolutely wow. Both Meyer and regular lemons, tangerines, oranges and blood oranges, and even some grapefruit get in on the act. Don’t worry, the caramel mellows and softens any bitter or sour edges, leaving you with cake almost too pretty to eat but delicious when you do.

Though rhubarb is often referred to as a “pie plant,” going in the cake direction should also not be overlooked. Pairing with its springtime partner, strawberries, rhubarb lends its puckery quality to a vanilla cake that really acts as a blank canvas for all the sweet juices. Though it’s dealer’s choice to sweeten or not sweeten any fresh whipped cream on the side, we love an unsweetened cream to act as a rich and delicious foil to the flavors of the cake.

Look no further for your next Rosh Hashana dessert (or truly for any occasion), as this couples the traditional honey and apple of the holiday together in a way that calls to mind an unctuous tarte tatin. It will perfume the whole house with cinnamon and fruit while baking, and gets more moist as it ages. Don’t sleep on this one.

Upside-down cake for a crowd? It can be done! All you need is a sheet pan (13 by 18 inches), a cutting board larger than the sheet pan, and an array of fruits to have lots of options on hand (but don’t be surprised if everyone wants to try them all).

Michael Symon once again shows us how it’s done, and how you can bake a cake without heating up your kitchen: Turn your grill into an oven! Using whole lemon slices, with zest, pith and flesh intact, creates such an interesting blend of bitter, sour and sweet flavors here, teaming up with the brown butter. A little lemon juice in the cake batter, too, ensures that this lemon cake will be full of zip.

We love this cake for its unexpected texture. Where classic Bananas Foster, the iconic flambeed dessert from New Orleans, is boozy and almost custardly-soft, here, you get a little crunch from the caramelization on the bottom of the cake, which, or course, becomes the top. But it also is a boon to the host who wants the flavors of Foster without the last minute white-knuckling of flambeeing portions to order. Just bake ahead and it’s ready when you are.

Have you ever baked inside of a slow cooker? While it might be a wacky idea for some cakes, it is the ideal method for this one, cooking the pears absolutely perfectly and rendering a cake whose crumb is so toothsome (thanks to the cornmeal) and delicious with the mellow fruit. Turn it onto a cake plate and no one will be the wiser.

Here is our Pacific Northwest moment, evoking the woodsy bounty of the west coast. Fresh figs deserve to be celebrated when you can find them, and they pair amazingly with hazelnut (what doesn’t pair well with hazelnut?). The cake has that inherent quality of richness, moistness and deep nutty flavor that comes with a batter that has ground nuts in it, that underlines the jamminess of the cooked figs.

If you happen to find star fruit at the grocery store, you could hardly resist doing something with them that takes advantage of their natural adorableness. This cake does that in spades. If you’ve only eaten raw star fruit, you might be pleasantly surprised at how apple-y it tastes here—the better to go with the warming fall spices and ground pecans.

If you’re not among the holiday fiends who buy extra bags of cranberries when they’re in season to stash in the freezer, this cake might make you a convert. It’s so pretty on a Thanksgiving or winter holiday buffet, and has a sweet-tart brightness that means you’ll always have room for it, too. The batter has exactly that cinnamon-clove combo that tastes of the holidays.

A store-bought box of spice cake mix has never turned out anything this sophisticated. Sunny Anderson brings often-overlooked plums to the party, but pears and peaches can work well here, too. Note the trick of using hot water for the cake mixes, as it really blooms the spices.

A fun change of pace for a carrot cake devotee, this version gets its sweet carrot crunch from ribbons of caramelized carrot on bottom/top, but retains the spice combo that you want in a carrot cake. This ultra-modern presentation would work nicely for any kind of dinner party, with those flavors we love from childhood packed into a low-profile cake with a sophisticated look. A wedge makes the best afternoon snack with a cup of coffee or glass of milk.

If you haven’t baked with dates, you’ll be shocked at how they turn puddingy, almost chocolatey. We love them here with pears in a polenta cake that would be the perfect ending for any meal that hearkens to the Mediterranean, the west coast or truly anywhere that good food is served.

Blueberry, lemon and sour cream make a heady combination, and we’re here for it. These juicy partners taste of summer sunshine, but also can be had any time of year, as the three combine for the freshest possible profile, even with supermarket blueberries. A little cold whipped cream cut with another spoonful of sour cream would dollop on this one gorgeously.