Upside Down Pear Walnut Cake Recipes

PEAR-WALNUT UPSIDE-DOWN CAKE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F. In medium bowl, toss pears with lemon juice and vanilla.
• In 13x9-inch pan, melt 2/3 cup butter in oven. Sprinkle brown sugar, walnuts and cinnamon over melted butter. Arrange pears in pan.
• Make cake mix as directed on box, using water, butter and eggs. Pour batter over pears.
• Bake 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Immediately run knife around side of pan to loosen cake. Place heatproof serving plate upside down over pan; turn plate and pan over. Let stand 5 minutes so topping drizzles over cake; remove pan. Cool 30 minutes. Serve warm or cool.

PEAR AND WALNUT UPSIDE-DOWN CAKE WITH WHIPPED CRèME FRAîCHE

Steps:

• For the cake:
• Preheat the oven to 350°F.
• Cut a half-stick of butter into slices and place it and the brown sugar in the cake pan. Set the pan over a medium-high burner. Stir as the butter and sugar melt together and continue until the mixture gets pale and bubbly, swirly when stirred, and toasty brown, about 2 minutes. Set aside to cool. (Note: If you'd rather not make the caramel in the cake pan, you can use a large skillet instead and simply pour the caramel into the cake pan when done.)
• Arrange the pear wedges in the cake pan in an even patter. Sprinkle the walnuts evenly over the pears.
• In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt and set aside.
• Place the remaining 1 1/2 sticks of butter in the bowl of a stand mixer or large bowl. Beat the heck out of the butter using the paddle attachment of a stand mixer or a hand mixer until it gets lighter in both color and consistency. Add the sugar and beat until well blended and fluffy.
• Separate the egg yolks from the whites and set the whites aside in a medium bowl. Stir the yolks into the butter mixture until completely blended (no need to beat, and then stir the vanilla. Add half the dry ingredients and stir until mixed in. Stir in the milk until completely smooth, then the rest of the dry ingredients just until fully incorporated; set aside.
• Using a stand mixer or hand mixer, beat the egg whites until very fluffy. The whites should look shiny with soft peaks-stop whisking before they get dry looking. Gently but thoroughly fold the whipped whites into the batter-all the air that you just whipped in will go out of the whites if you over-mix at this point. Pour the batter over the fruit and gently smooth the top.
• Put the cake in the oven and start checking for doneness in 35 minutes: peek in, give the pan a tiny nudge, and look for jigglyness in the center. If it wobbles and looks soft and crinkled on top, gently close the door and set the timer for 5 more minutes. If it's looking set, slide the rack out and touch the top of the cake with your fingers, testing for bounce-back. If your touch leaves a dent that stays, return the cake to the oven. If it does spring back, the final test is sticking a toothpick into center of the cake. When it comes out moist, but crumb-free, it's done!
• Let the cake cool in the pan for 30 minutes. Run a knife around the edge, invert a plate on top of the pan, and carefully but quickly flip it over. Tap the bottom of the pan if the cake doesn't fall onto the plate on its own. Lift the pan away and replace any pear slices that may have stuck there.
• When ready to serve, combine all the ingredients for the whipped crème fraîche in a large bowl; whip until thick and fluffy, but still soft.
• Slice the cake and serve each wedge with a dollop of whipped crème fraîche.

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.

UPSIDE-DOWN PEAR WALNUT CAKE

Steps:

• Set oven to 375 degrees.
• Prepare a 9-inch cast-iron skillet.
• In a bowl, combine together the flour and the next 7 ingredients (flour through cloves).
• In another bowl, combine the buttermilk, eggs, 1/4 cup butter and molasses; add to the flour mixture, stirring until smooth.
• In a cast-iron skillet, melt 2 tbsp butter.
• Stir in 1/3 cup brown sugar; cook over medium heat 1 minute.
• Remove from heat; sprinkle with walnuts.
• Place the pear slices in the bottom of the skillet.
• Pour the batter over the pears; bake for 30 minutes, or until the cake tests done.
• Cool in the pan for 10 minutes on a wire rack; invert the cake onto a serving plate.
• Serve warm, or at room temperature.