Pear Spice Cake

Directions

Poached Pears

1. Peel the pears, leaving the stems in place and the pears whole. Working from the bottom, core the pears using a melon baller. Place the pears in a bowl and sprinkle with lemon juice. Set aside. Place the water, sugar and cinnamon in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Add the pears and the remaining lemon juice. With the syrup barely simmering, poach the pears until tender, 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer to a plate and let cool to room temperature. Set aside 60 ml (1/4 cup) poaching liquid.

Spice cake

1. With the rack in the middle position, preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Line a 10 x 20-cm (4 x 8-inch) loaf pan with parchment paper, allowing the paper to overhang the long sides. Butter the other sides. In a bowl, combine the flour, ground almonds, baking powder, spices and salt. Set aside. In another bowl, cream the butter with the brown sugar using an electric mixer. Add the egg and beat until the mixture is smooth. With the mixer on low, add the dry ingredients, alternating with the reserved poaching liquid. Pour the batter into the loaf pan. Stand the pears in the batter, touching the bottom of the pan Bake 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the cake between 2 pears comes out clean. Let cool on a rack and unmould.
2. Variation: If you prefer, you can replace the ground almonds with another kind of finely chopped nut (hazelnuts, walnuts, etc.).