Recipe: Upside-Down Pear Cake
During the holiday season, you may feel the pressure to make elaborate sweets and desserts that require rolling pins, cookie cutters, or too much fuss over frosting and decorating. But there are plenty of elegant and delicious desserts that are easy to pull off, and this upside-down pear cake is one of them.
Tender, gingery cake is topped off with juicy slices of pear that sit in a gooey caramel glaze that drips down the sides. It’s an easy skillet cake that can be assembled in the 20 minutes it takes for the oven to heat up.
Doing Double Duty
One of the reasons this cake is so easy is that it uses Country Crock Baking Sticks, which don’t require any softening and can be used straight out of the refrigerator. These handy sticks are made with sunflower oil and do double duty in this cake: they’re melted into the topping for a sweet glaze and also creamed into the cake batter. Skipping the softening step means that you don’t have to wait and can go straight to mixing.
Easy Yet Elegant
The best part of upside-down cakes is how they look so impressive without any elaborate decorating. Simply arrange ripe pear slices in a pretty pattern on top of the glaze, then top with the cake batter before baking. Once the cake is flipped out of the skillet (which is a fun ta-da! moment — you might want to do this move tableside), there’s nothing more to do but slice and serve.
Pear skillet cake is easy enough to pull off on a weeknight, yet fancy enough to grace a holiday dessert table or to stand out in a sea of pies. It’s just the ticket any time you’re tasked to make dessert.
Upside-Down Pear Skillet Cake
Prep time 20 minutes
Cook time 45 minutes
Serves 8 to 10
Nutritional Info
Ingredients
For the topping:
- 1 stick
(4 ounces) Country Crock® Unsalted Baking Sticks
- 1/2 cup
packed light brown sugar
- 1 pound
ripe pears (about 2), peeled, cored, and sliced 1/4-inch thick
For the cake:
- 1 cup
all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup
finely ground cornmeal
- 1 teaspoon
baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon
ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon
salt
- 1 stick
(4 ounces) Country Crock® Unsalted Baking Sticks
- 1 cup
granulated sugar
- 2
large eggs
- 1 teaspoon
vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup
whole or 2% milk
Instructions
Make the topping:
Arrange a rack in the middle of the oven and heat to 350ºF.
Place the Country Crock Unsalted Baking Stick and brown sugar in an 8-inch cast iron skillet over medium heat, stirring frequently, until the butter and sugar melts, bubbles, and turns golden brown, 5 to 6 minutes. Remove from the heat and cool slightly.
Arrange the pear slices on top of the filling in a circle, overlapping the slices slightly with the pointed ends towards the center; set aside.
Make the cake:
Place the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, ginger, and salt in a medium bowl and whisk to combine; set aside.
Place the Country Crock Unsalted Baking Stick and sugar in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. (Alternatively, use an electric hand mixer and large bowl.) Beat on medium speed until lightened in color, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating until completely incorporated before adding the next. Beat in the vanilla extract.
Reduce the speed to low and beat in 1/3 of the flour mixture. Beat in 1/2 of the milk. Beat in 1/2 of the remaining flour mixture, then the remaining milk, and finally the remaining flour mixture. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Beat on medium-low speed for 30 seconds more to fully combine.
Drop heaping spoonfuls of the batter on top of the pears, being careful not to disturb the pear slices. Spread the batter into an even layer.
Place the skillet on an aluminum foil or parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Bake until a skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean and the top springs back when pressed slightly, 38 to 40 minutes.
Place the skillet on a wire rack and let cool until the pears stop bubbling, about 2 minutes. Run a thin knife around the edge of the pan to loosen the cake. Invert a cake plate or serving platter over the cake. Using oven mitts to protect your hands, pick up the plate and skillet and carefully flip both over. Slowly and carefully remove the skillet. Rearrange any pears that may have moved out of place. Cool for at least 10 minutes before serving.
Recipe Notes
Storage: Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
This post was created by the Kitchn Creative Studio and is sponsored by Country Crock.
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