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Preheat the
oven to 350 degree F. Butter a 10 x 2-inch
round cake pan (do
not use a shallower pan - the cake will
over-flow).
Peel the pears. Cut into quarters lengthwise
and remove the cores. Cut each
quarter in half lengthwise. Place the sugar
in a large sauté pan and place
over medium heat. When the sugar begins to
melt, stir with a wooden spoon.
Continue to stir and cook until all the
lumps of sugar are dissolved and the
sugar syrup is a light amber color - this
will only take a minute or two.
Remove the pan from the heat and add the 3
tablespoons of butter - be
careful, the hot caramel will sputter when
the butter is added. Stir until
the butter is incorporated.
Working quickly, pour the hot caramel into
the prepared cake pan, tilting
the pan to completely cover the bottom.
Being careful not to burn your
fingers on the hot caramel, fan the pears in
a circle around the edge of the
cake pan, fill in the center with the
remaining 6 or 7 pear slices. If the
caramel hardens before the pears are in
place, set the pan over low heat (or
in the oven) to soften the caramel. It is
important that the pears are
“stuck” in the caramel as it sets up as the
batter is quite thin, and the
pears will float if they are not “attached”
to the caramel. Set the pan
aside.
Put the 9 tablespoons of butter and the
honey in a saucepan and place over
medium heat. Gently warm until the butter is
melted - do not let the honey
boil. Whisk to combine, set aside. In a
small bowl, combine the egg, milk
and vanilla. Set aside.
Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl.
Pour the honey/butter mixture
over the dry ingredients and whisk until
smooth. Add the egg mixture and
whisk until well combined. Pour the batter
over the pears. Bake the cake
until a toothpick inserted in the center
comes out clean, about 40 to 50
minutes. Cool the cake for 10 minutes in the
pan. Invert the cake onto a
serving platter.
optional: Serve slices of cake with a dollop
of crème fraîche drizzled with a
little honey. |
