Pear and Cinnamon Upside Down Cake

Pears are at their peak in this season and I had got a whole lot of them for making jam. There were quite a few still left so decided to use them in making this delicious cake. The pears were nice and juicy and not over ripe so they held their shape when baked. This is a simple cake to make and doesn’t take too much time.

Fresh and juicy Pears

Pears team up well with spices. Here I have used cinnamon, just a small amount is sufficient so that it's not overpowering and allows the taste of the pears to come through. It tastes very nice served warm on its own or with a dollop of ice-cream. The cake can also be had later when it's cooled down, tastes fabulous either way.

Pear and Cinnamon Upside Down Cake

For the topping
1/2 cup sugar

2 tablespoon butter

2 firm pears, peeled, cored and sliced

1 tablespoon lemon juice

For the cake
 3/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup butter

11/2 cups flour

2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon powder

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

1/2 cup milk

Heat the oven to 180 degrees C  and butter a round cake tin.

Sift the flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon together and keep aside.

Melt 1/2 cup sugar in a pan and let it caramelize. Then add 2 tablespoons of butter to it and pour it into the prepared cake tin. Swirl it around till the pan is coated with the caramel.  Arrange the pear slices in the pan overlapping each other in a fan shape till the pan gets covered then sprinkle lemon juice on top.

Beat 1/2 cup butter and 3/4 cup sugar in a mixer till it becomes light and creamy. Add the eggs one at a time beating well after each addition. Add the vanilla essence. Then mix in the flour along with the milk. Fold in the flour till everything is just incorporated. Pour the batter on top of the pears ensuring that they are well covered and smoothen the top.

Bake for 40-45 minutes till a skewer inserted inside comes out clean.

Cool in the pan for 5 minutes then invert it onto a plate.

Serve warm or at room temperature with ice cream or whipped cream

Pear and Cinnamon Upside Down Cake