Spiced Pear Cake

Lately, I have been on a German baking kick. Well, I’ve made two things, but that is still a lot when it’s only two of you eating them! You know what I have learnt about German baked goods? Their cakes are kinda dry and taste better the next day. Honestly, I think that German cakes are mainly invented to be a vessel for a whole lot of whip cream, vanilla sauce or pudding!

One of my favourite Germany baking experiments has been transforming my mother-in-law’s Apfelkuchen into a spiced pear cake. Her base recipe is straightforward, requires very little equipment and takes no time to prepare. Since it is initially an apple cake recipe, and if pears aren’t your thing, you can easily swap back in the apples and make a few tweaks to the spices (mainly leave them all out except the cinnamon and even that you can leave out!).

You could probably also use peaches or plums since the cake itself is very neutral, and a juicier fruit may be just what you need to combat the pseudo dryness. Just be sure to add more fruit because stone fruits tend to shrink quite a bit when baking (trust me – you can see what I mean here lol ).

Four things to know about this spiced pear cake:

1. Like many German baked goods, it is not overly sweet.
2. It is a dry cake, so you may want to serve it with whip cream, ice cream, or a delicious sauce like vanilla or caramel with it.
3. This cake is way better the next day when all the pear juices have seeped into the bottom layer.
4. It tastes best cold, so I would emphasise waiting for it to cool before serving. (But don’t refrigerate it!)

See Also

Fall Inspired Gluten-Free Side Dishes

The first time I posted about spiced pear cake was for my two year blogarvery, and I am happy to deliver it to you, albeit two months late!

Spiced Pear Cake

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• Author: Kortney
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 50 minutes
• Total Time: 1 hour
• Diet: Vegetarian

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Description

Spiced Pear Cake is inspired by the spices of Lebkuchen. It is best served with whip cream and a cup of coffee.  Nut-free.

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Scale 1x2x3x

Ingredients

Dough

• 2/3 cup Butter (room temperature)
• 3 Eggs
• 1/2 cup Sugar
• 3 1/2 cups Flour (All purpose)
• 1 tsp Baking Powder
• 1 tsp Ground Ginger

Filling

• 4 Pears – peeled and cut into small pieces
• 1 tsp Cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp Ground Ginger
• 1/4 tsp Cloves
• 1/4 tsp Nutmeg
• 2 tbsp Maple Syrup

Special Equipment

• Springform pan – 10 x 2 inch Round Cake Pan

Toppings

• Powdered sugar
• Whipped Cream or Ice Cream

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Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350°C
2. Combine butter, eggs and sugar until foamy.
3. Add flour, baking powder, and ground ginger. Mix until all combined.
4. Spread two-thirds of the dough in a greased and floured springform pan. Reserve the remainder of the dough.
5. Mix pears, cinnamon, ground ginger, cloves, nutmeg, and maple syrup.
6. Spread pear mixture evenly over dough.
7. Drip the remainder of the dough in small pieces over the pears and press, so it sticks to the pears. Having gaps between pieces of dough is ok.
8. Bake for 40-45 minutes until golden brown.
9. Let cake cool and sprinkle with powdered sugar.
10. Best served with fresh whipped cream.

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• Category: Dessert
• Method: Bake
• Cuisine: Dessert

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1

Keywords: Spiced pear cake, pear cake, nut-free cake, fruit cake