Pear Upside Down Cake with Maple Mascarpone Cream

This dessert is a combination of recipes I put together from Fine Cooking and From Laptop to Tabletop 
and as festive treats go, it was a total winner!

 Smothered with a generous dollop of maple infused mascarpone cream, it will put a smile on everyone's face - whether they were on your naughty or nice list this year!

Visit the printable recipe here: Pear Upside Down Cake with Maple Mascarpone Cheese or enjoy my easy to follow step by step video!




Prep Time: 40 minutes
Bake Time: 45 minutes
Serves: 8

Pear Topping Ingredients

• 2-3 medium firm-ripe pears (about 1 lb.), peeled and cored
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 tsp. fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 cup water
• 2 oz. (4 Tbs.) unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces

Pear Topping Directions

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 350°F. Butter the bottom and sides of a 9x2-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.
2. 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.
3. In a heavy-duty 2-quart saucepan, stir the sugar, lemon juice, and 1/4 cup cold water. Brush down the sides of the pan with water to wash away any sugar crystals. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and cook, occasionally brushing down the sides of the pan, until the mixture starts to color around the edges, 12-15 minutes. Gently swirl the pan once to even out the color and prevent the sugar from burning in isolated spots.  Continue to cook until the sugar turns medium amber, about 30 seconds more. (Once the mixture begins to color, it will darken very quickly, so keep an eye on it.)
4. Reduce heat to low and stir in the 4 tbsp butter until smooth and pour evenly over the pears in the pan.

 Cake Ingredients 

•  1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1-3/4 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. table salt
• 1/2 cup whole milk
• 1-1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
• 4 oz. (8 Tbs.) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 2 large eggs

Cake Directions

1. Sift the flour, baking powder, ginger, cinnamon, and salt into a medium bowl. Stir to combine. 
2. In a small bowl, stir together the milk and vanilla.
3. 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.
4. 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.
5. Spoon the batter in large dollops over the pears and smooth it into an even layer with an offset spatula. 
6. 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. 
7. Turn a cake plate upside down on top of the cake pan and, using pot holders, carefully invert the cake pan onto the plate.

Maple Mascarpone Cheese Ingredients

•  ¼ c maple syrup
• 8 oz container mascarpone cheese
• 2 c whipping cream

In a large mixing bowl beat whipping cream, mascarpone and maple syrup on high speed until soft peaks form. Serve in dollops over slices of the cake.

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Author:

Lyndsay Wells is a professional trainer, writer, and program developer with a passion for food and cooking. She is an award winning recipe developer, and a website ambassador for Kraft Foods Canada. Lyndsay believes cooking should be approachable and easy and has great tips and ideas for putting together sophisticated looking dishes that cooks of all levels can accomplish.

Visit her daily on her blog, The Kitchen Witch or on her YouTube Channel, CHARMED With The Kitchen Witch.