Pear and Walnut Bundt Cake

With three pears going soft in the fruit bowl and a new bundt pan to test run, this recipe jumped out at me. The simplicity of preparation and ingredients meant I could whip this up on a quiet Saturday afternoon with no effort at all.

The result is a moist, flavoursome cake that also keeps well to be eaten over a few days. I found the recipe here.

Be aware that this cake overcooks very quickly and will be dry and difficult to eat if it is overdone.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups peeled, diced pears or apples
• 2 tbs sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 3 cups flour
• 1 tbs baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 cup safflower oil
• 1/4 cup apple juice
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 4 eggs
• 1-1/2 cups chopped walnuts

Firstly, preheat your oven to 175°. Then grease and flour a bundt pan. Mine was quite small and so I ended up making 2 cakes. But if you have a 12 cup bundt pan, this will make only 1 cake.

Peel and chop your fruit and combine in a bowl with 2 tablespoons of sugar and 1 heaped teaspoon of cinnamon. Set aside and sift together the flour, baking powder and salt in a separate bowl.

In (yet another) bowl, place the 2 cups of white sugar, oil, apple juice, vanilla, and eggs and beat together well on a high speed until smooth.

Add in the flour mixture and beat briefly, until just combined.

Using a large metal spoon, gently fold in the fruit and walnuts.

Pour the batter into prepared pan (or half the batter if your cake is too small), stopping 1 inch from the top to allow room for the cake to rise. Bake at 175° for 50 to 55 minutes, or until cake is firm, well browned, and begins to pull away from pan edges. (Be sure to adjust the cooking time if you use a larger pan).

Check the cake at the 40 and 45 minute marks; it will be quickly overcooked and dry. Let cool in pan for 5 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely.

When cool, dust with icing sugar and serve with a dollop of whipped cream and a cup of tea.