Pear Cardamom Upside Down Cake Recipes

PEAR UPSIDE-DOWN CAKE

Steps:

• Make the topping: Melt butter in the bottom of a 10 1/2-inch cast-iron skillet over low heat. Add brown sugar, stirring until dissolved. Swirl to coat the bottom; remove from heat, and cool. Cut pears into 1/4-inch-thick wedges, and arrange them in a circular pattern over the brown-sugar mixture to cover completely; set aside.
• Make the batter: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add vanilla extract; beat to combine. Add egg yolks, one at a time, beating to combine.
• Alternating with the milk, gradually add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, and mix, on low speed, just until the flour is incorporated.
• In a large bowl, beat reserved egg whites and the cream of tartar with a hand mixer until stiff but not dry. Using a rubber spatula, fold egg whites into the batter. Transfer to skillet. Using an offset spatula, spread the batter evenly, being careful not to disturb the pears.
• Bake until well browned on top and a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, about 45 minutes. Run a knife around inside of pan, and immediately invert the cake onto a serving dish. Serve warm or at room temperature.

CLASSIC PEAR UPSIDE-DOWN CAKE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F. In medium bowl, combine powdered sugar and 3/4 cup butter; beat at low speed until crumbly. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well at medium speed after each addition. Add vanilla; beat well. Add flour, cornmeal and baking powder; mix well.
• Place 1/4 cup butter in 9-inch round cake pan. Heat in oven for about 4 minutes or until butter is melted. Sprinkle brown sugar evenly over butter. Arrange pear slices over mixture in pan, slightly overlapping. Spoon and carefully spread cake batter over pears.
• Bake at 350°F. for 55 to 65 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on wire rack for 5 minutes. Invert onto serving plate. Serve warm or cool with whipped cream.

CARAMELIZED PEAR UPSIDE-DOWN CAKE

Steps:

• Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 350°F. Butter the bottom and sides of a 9×2-inch round cake pan (don't use a springform pan, as the caramel might leak out during baking). Line the bottom of the pan with a round of parchment and butter the top of the paper.
• Peel, core, and cut the pears lengthwise into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Arrange the pear slices on the bottom of the pan in a circle around the edge, overlapping them slightly, with the pointed ends towards the center. If necessary, cut a little off the pointed ends to make the slices fit better. Or if the pear slices don't reach all the way to the middle, arrange a few of the shorter slices in the center to cover the bottom of the pan. Make the Basic Caramel according to the directions. Immediately remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the 4 Tbs. of butter one piece at a time, until they are completely melted. Carefully pour the hot caramel evenly over the pears (it should spread over the pears and onto the bottom of the pan).
• Sift the flour, baking powder, ginger, cinnamon, and salt into a medium bowl. Stir to combine. In a small bowl, stir together the milk and vanilla. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 1 minute.Turn the mixer to medium and slowly add the brown sugar. Increase the speed to high and continue to mix until lightened in texture and color, 2 to 3 minutes total. Reduce the speed to medium and add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Reduce the speed to low and alternate adding the flour mixture and milk mixture in five additions, beginning and ending with the flour. Mix each addition just enough to incorporate, as overmixing will lead to a tougher cake. Scrape down the sides of the bowl one last time and mix briefly to blend well.
• Spoon the batter in large dollops over the pears and smooth it into an even layer with an offset spatula. Bake the cake until the top is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 35 to 45 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes. Run a knife around the edge of the pan. Turn a cake plate upside down on top of the cake pan and, using pot holders, carefully invert the cake pan onto the plate.

GINGER-PEAR UPSIDE-DOWN CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Place 1/3 cup butter in a 9-inch square pan and set in the preheating oven to melt, about 5 minutes.
• Stir molasses, brown sugar, and ginger into the melted butter. Arrange pears cut-side down over mixture.
• Sift flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt into a bowl. Add milk, 1/3 cup butter, and vanilla extract. Beat with an electric mixer until smooth, about 2 minutes. Beat in egg until combined, about 2 minutes. Pour batter over pears.
• Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 40 to 50 minutes. Cool in the pan for 5 minutes.
• Run a knife around the edge of the pan; place a plate on top of the cake and flip carefully.

PEAR CARDAMOM UPSIDE DOWN CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray a 9-inch round cake pan.
• In a small skillet, melt 2 tablespoons butter over medium heat. Add the brown sugar and 1/4 teaspoon cardamom, stirring constantly. When the sugar dissolves, pour it into the pan. Arrange the sliced pears on top of the syrup in an overlapping circle.
• Sift together flour, baking powder, cardamom, and salt, stir to combine. In a separate bowl, blend butter and granulated sugar, then blend in eggs. Alternate dry ingredients with milk, blending to combine. Add vanilla.
• Spoon batter into pan, starting in center and gently spreading on top of the fruit.
• Bake for 50 minutes, or until done.
• Cool in pan 10 minutes, then cover with a plate and invert it onto the plate. Leave the pan on for two minutes, then gently remove the pan.

PEAR AND CARDAMOM UPSIDE-DOWN CAKE

Steps:

• 1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Generously butter a 9-by-1 1/2 -inch round cake pan. 2. Sift the flour, salt and baking powder together. Stir in the cardamom and set aside. 3. Melt one-fourth cup butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the brown sugar and stir for 2 to 3 minutes, until the sugar has melted and combined with the butter. Pour the mixture into the prepared cake pan, spreading it to reach the sides. 4. Peel the pears, cut in half and remove the core and stem. Cut each half crosswise into one-fourth-inch-thick slices. Arrange the pear slices in a slightly overlapping circle around the cake pan, starting at the outer rim. Finish with several slices in the center. Sprinkle the pears with the lemon juice. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside. 5. Beat the remaining one-half cup butter in the bowl of an electric mixer until soft and fluffy. Add the sugar and beat until smooth. Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. Beat in the vanilla, scraping down the sides of the bowl when needed. Alternately add the flour mixture and the milk, beating after each addition just until combined. 6. Gently spoon the cake batter on top of the pears, smoothing out to the edge of the pan and making sure the cake batter fills in around the pears. 7. Bake until the top is a deep golden brown and a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean, about 40 minutes. Place the cake on a rack to cool for 5 minutes in the pan. 8. Run a small spatula or knife around the edge of the pan and invert onto a cake plate, leaving the pan on the cake for 10 minutes. Carefully remove the pan. Serve warm or at room temperature. Each serving: 447 calories; 5 grams protein; 66 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams fiber; 19 grams fat; 12 grams saturated fat; 100 mg. cholesterol; 230 mg. sodium.

UPSIDE-DOWN PEAR CARDAMOM CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°F.
• Make caramelized pears:
• Peel pears, then halve lengthwise and core. Spread sugar on a plate, then press cut sides of pear halves into sugar to coat, reserving remaining sugar.
• Melt butter in a well-seasoned 10-inch cast-iron skillet over moderate heat until foam subsides. Reduce heat to low and arrange pears, cut sides down, decoratively in skillet. Sprinkle reserved sugar all around pears. Cook pears over moderately low heat until sugar begins to caramelize, about 15 minutes, and remove skillet from heat.
• Make cake batter:
• Whisk together flour, baking powder, cardamom, and salt. Beat together butter and sugar in a bowl with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and egg and beat well. Add flour mixture and milk alternately in 3 batches, mixing at low speed after each addition until just combined.
• Spoon batter over pears in skillet, gently spreading evenly and being careful not to disturb pears (batter will not cover tops of all pears). Bake in middle of oven until golden brown and a tester comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes.
• Cool cake in skillet on a rack 5 minutes. Run a thin knife around edge and invert a plate over skillet. Invert cake onto plate (wearing oven mitts), keeping plate and skillet firmly pressed together. Replace any fruit stuck to bottom of skillet if necessary.
• Serve cake warm or at room temperature.