This dessert cake is moist and delicate, the crumb threaded with rum soaked pears and a hint of cardamon spice. A great gluten and nut free bake which tastes gorgeous whether served warm or cold.
Recipe
My own, inspired by one for Anjou Pear Cake at bbcgoodfood.com see the recipe here.
Serves 8-10
for the pears:
500g pears, ideally firm not overripe
freshly squeezed juice of 1 lemon
1 tablespoon rum
for the base:
175g unsalted butter, room temperature
175g light muscovado sugar
3 large or medium eggs
175g gluten free self raising flour (Dove's Farm recommended)
1 teaspoon gluten free baking powder (Barkart recommended)
1 teaspoon ground cardamon seeds, taken from 3 pods
1. Heat oven to 180 (160C Fan) and line and grease a 20cm spring form cake tin.
2. Peel, core and chop the pears into small pieces, then soak them in a bowl with the rum and lemon juice to stop them browning.
3. Cream the butter and sugar together in a large bowl until pale and fluffy.
4. Add the first egg, and a tablespoon of flour, and then beat well.
5. Follow the same process for the other 2 eggs, beating each with a tablespoon of flour into the batter until frothy.
6. To prepare the cardamon, open 3 pods and grind the seeds in a pestle and mortar before stirring into the cake batter.
7. Sift in the rest of the gluten free flour and the baking powder, and stir until well combined.
8. Gently fold in the pear pieces, with a teaspoon or so of the rum and lemon juice.
9. Spoon the batter into the prepared cake tin, and smooth down the top. Bake in the oven for about 45 minutes, until a skewer comes out clean.
10. When the cake is done, take it out of the oven and leave to cool for 15 minutes in the tin, before carefully placing upside down on a wire rack or plate to cool further.
11. When ready to serve, place a paper doily over the top of the cake and sift icing sugar to create a little sugar stencil pattern.
12. You can serve this cake warm or cooled, and decorated with the icing sugar stencil, or simply with sifted icing sugar ontop. Serve with creme fraiche or cream, perhaps even with a drizzle more rum if you're feeling especially naughty as our friends were today!
This cake was idly baked while listening to the Lianne La Havas album Lost & Found
