This Viral Upside-Down Recipe Is My New Favorite Way To Use Fresh Peaches

Over the last five years, I’ve learned a lot of wild things on TikTok, like how to clean my dishwasher filter and how to put a garbage bag in the bin correctly.

I’ve never been much for viral recipes, though. They felt too kitschy for my taste—until one recipe stopped me mid-scroll.

Taavi Moore created this easy, gorgeous-looking recipe for Peach Upside Down Cookies. It went ridiculously viral and kept appearing in my feed, so I had to make them. As a recipe developer, this is the type of cookie you see and instantly wonder, Why didn’t I think of that?

Why I Love Peach Upside-Down Cookies 

This recipe captures the essence of late summer in cookie form. Taavi takes ripe peaches and carefully shingles them on top of a sprinkle of brown sugar.

Then, she makes a simple sugar cookie dough, which she flattens on top of the peaches. While the cookies bake, the peaches and brown sugar mingle and caramelize on the bottom.

When flipped over and topped with ice cream, the cookie eats like the most perfect slice of upside-down cake you’ve ever had—without any of the stress.

How I Made This Recipe

The recipe is simple and only uses a handful of ingredients, most of which I had in my pantry. Taavi's original recipe is vegan, but I used regular butter and milk because that's what I had on hand.

The dough uses melted butter, so you don’t need even a mixer to pull these together—just a whisk, a wooden spoon, and a little elbow grease.

I was skeptical at first, thinking the cookies would spread wildly, but the cornstarch in the dough kept them fairly compact. The cookies didn’t spread much beyond the peaches they covered.

When they emerge from the oven, as with any cookie with caramel, they look a little wonky and misshapen. (Sugar can certainly take on a life of its own.) To get them into a more appealing shape, use a bowl or mug larger than the cookie to encourage them into an even round. Place the overturned bowl or mug around the cookie on the sheet pan, then quickly spin the cookie into a circle. 

Tips for Making Peach Upside-Down Cookies

While I rarely bake cookies without parchment paper, it’s a must for this recipe. It ensures the cookies can be easily coaxed into place once cooked and that the sugar and peaches won’t burn and stick to the pan. To help even more, I very lightly buttered my parchment, too.

Even though the cookies do not spread much, I’d recommend cooking them in small batches (four or five to a sheet pan) so you have plenty of room to adjust the shape once baked.

To add even more flavor, add a sprinkle of cinnamon to the peaches before adding the dough on top. The cookies look adorable once baked, and they taste amazing served warm with a scoop of good vanilla ice cream.

Be sure to bake the peach upside-down cookies right before serving. They won't hold up well in your cookie jar. That's okay, though—people won't be able to resist eating these right off the sheet pan.