Pear and Walnut Upside-Down Cake
This cake is juicy, moist, and wonderfully light, but not too sweet. This cake lasts a good few days, especially if you keep it covered. Just gently warm any leftover slices in a low 140°C fan oven (Gas Mark 1) before eating.
SERVES
8
PEOPLE
PREP TIME
30
MINUTES
COOKING TIME
50
MINUTES
Ingredients
For the topping:
5-6 ripe pears
50g butter
80g soft brown butter
Juice of 1 ½ lemons (100ml approx.)
For the cake:
1 x 23cm round cake tin, lined with parchment paper
200g butter, softened
200g caster sugar
4 eggs
Seeds from 5 cardamom pods
3 cloves
100g walnuts
200g self-raising flour
4 tsp baking powder
5g sea salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
100g sour cream
To serve:
crème fraiche
Method
Start by peeling the pears, then cut them into quarters lengthwise and remove the cores with a sharp knife.
Place a wide frying pan on a medium heat and add the butter.
When it begins to melt, add the pears, cut side down, then sprinkle the soft brown sugar over the top and gently move the pan, using the weight of the pears to mix the sugar into the butter.
Squeeze over the lemon juice and allow to cook down for 8-10 minutes, until the pears have softened but still holding shape and the butter and sugar have become an amber-coloured caramel.
Remove the pears and arrange cut side up, fat side out in the lined cake tin (you may not need all of them).
Leave the caramel bubbling on a low heat to reduce further until it reaches a thick consistency, then pour over the pears (3-4 tbsp of caramel approx.).
Preheat the oven to 180 °C fan (Gas Mark 4).
For the cake, place the softened butter in a large bowl of a food processor using the whisk attachment and add the sugar.
Whisk until the butter is pale and fluffy, scraping down the sides a few times to make sure it’s evenly incorporated.
With the mixer running, add the eggs one at a time, making sure each one is thoroughly mixed before adding the next, or the butter may split.
Grind the cardamom seeds and cloves in a pestle and mortar and pop into a bowl.
Bash the walnuts in a pestle and mortar or crush them in a folded tea towel, using a rolling pin.
You want to keep a chunky texture. Mix the flour with the baking powder to ensure its evenly distributed. Sift, then add to the butter with the salt, cinnamon, ground spices and walnuts.
Mix these dry ingredients into the batter, then stir through the sour cream. Spread the cake batter over the pears and lightly even out the top.
Place the cake in the middle of the oven for up to an hour, until the cake is set. After around 30 minutes, reduce the heat to 160°C fan (Gas Mark 3) to make sure the top doesn’t get too dark.
Keep an eye, but don’t open the door, or you risk the cake deflating. After about 50 minutes, give the cake a gentle shake – if the middle is at all wobbly, it’s not cooked yet.
To test, insert a skewer into the middle, and when it comes out clean, it’s ready.
Remove from the oven and allow to sit for 15 minutes, then place a chopping board gently on the top of the cake.
Flip the cake and board, then remove the tin, and you should have a beautifully risen cake with juicy caramelised pears on top.
Serve warm with crème fraîche.
