Pear and Walnut Cake

I made this cake for this month's AlphaBakes which is the letter 'P'. I saw this gorgeous recipe online for a Caramel pear and walnut cake and knew I had to try it. Unfortunately, I burnt my walnuts slightly but the cake still tasted good. You can really taste the pears in this cake as there is mashed pear as well as chunks of pear in the cake.  I've never mashed pears before and it was tricky as my pear was quite firm but it really added to the flavour and texture of the cake. I'm definitely going to try using mashed fruits in baking in the future. The caramel walnut topping was divine and complemented the pear cake very well. 

As mentioned, I am entering this to AlphaBakes hosted this month by Caroline from Caroline Makes and co-hosted by myself on alternate months. The letter is P for pear. 

 adding mashed pears 

 stir in the flour 

 adding chopped peaars 

 ready to bake 

 making the caramel 

 you can still see the chunks of pear in the cake 

Recipe adapted slightly from The Daring Gourmet

For the cake

125g flour

1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

1/2 teaspoon baking power

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger 

120g light brown sugar

2 eggs

70g butter, melted

2 medium sized conference pears, mashed

2 medium sized conference pears, chopped 

For the Caramel Walnut Topping

100g walnuts
50g brown sugar
50g butter
60mls double cream

• Preheat the oven to 180C.
• Prepare the walnuts first by placing on to a baking tray and lightly toasting for 7 -8 minutes - be careful not to burn them!
• Mix the flour, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder and ground spices in a bowl.
• In a separate bowl, mix the sugar, eggs, butter and mashed pear. Mix well. 
• Sift the flour mixture into the wet mixture and mix well.
• Add in the chopped pears.
• Pour the batter into a lined 23cm round springform tin and bake for about 20-25 minutes or until golden brown and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. 
• When the cake has been in the oven for 15 minutes, start making the topping by placing the sugar, butter and cream in a small saucepan.
• Bring to the boil and boil for 2 minutes.
• Stir in the toasted, chopped walnuts and continue to boil for a few more minutes. 
• Once the cake is cooked, remove from the oven and prick the top of the cake with a fork all over. 
• Pour the caramel walnut topping over the cake.
• Eat the cake warm or at room temperature.