Equipment
Ingredients
Fruit Preparation
- 3 pears, firm-ripe, peeled, cored, and cut into 1 cm slices
- 15 g turbinado sugar, dry
Dry Ingredients
- 150 g all-purpose flour, sifted
- 6 g baking powder
- 2 g fine sea salt
- 1 g ground cinnamon
Wet Ingredients
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 130 g granulated sugar
- 115 g unsalted butter, melted and cooled to lukewarm
- 60 ml whole milk, room temperature
- 5 ml vanilla extract
Nutrition (per serving)
Nutrition is estimated per serving. Nutrients without complete source data are omitted.
Full nutrition
- Calories
- 294 kcal
- Protein
- 4 g
- Carbohydrates
- 41 g
- Fat
- 13 g
- Sugar
- 23 g
- Sodium
- 200 mg
- Potassium
- 109 mg
- Calcium
- 72 mg
- Iron
- 1.3 mg
- Magnesium
- 10 mg
- Phosphorus
- 77 mg
- Zinc
- 0.4 mg
- Water
- 61 g
Sources: USDA FoodData Central
Method
Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 175°C (350°F).
Grease a 9-inch round springform pan with a light coating of butter and line the bottom with a circle of parchment paper.
Peel, core, and slice the pears lengthwise into uniform wedges approximately 1 cm thick on a cutting board using a chef knife.
Whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking powder, fine sea salt, and ground cinnamon in a medium mixing bowl until aerated and homogenous.
Whisk the room-temperature eggs and granulated sugar together vigorously in a large mixing bowl for about 2 minutes until pale, thickened, and ribbony.
Whisk the melted lukewarm butter, whole milk, and vanilla extract into the egg-and-sugar mixture until fully combined.
Add the dry ingredient mixture to the wet mixture and fold gently with a silicone spatula just until no dry streaks of flour remain.
Gently fold two-thirds of the sliced pears directly into the cake batter until evenly suspended.
Pour the batter into the prepared springform pan, smoothing the surface with the spatula, then arrange the remaining one-third of the pear slices decorative-side up on top and sprinkle evenly with turbinado sugar.
Bake in the preheated oven at 175°C (350°F) for 45 to 50 minutes until the top is deep golden brown and an instant-read digital thermometer inserted into the crumb between pear slices registers at least 93°C (200°F), well exceeding the egg safety threshold of 71°C (160°F).
Transfer the pan to a wire cooling rack and rest undisturbed for 15 minutes.
Run a thin knife around the edge of the pan, unlock the springform ring to release, and allow the cake to cool completely to room temperature before slicing.
Chef's Notes
- Choose firm-ripe pears such as Bosc or Anjou that yield only slightly when pressed near the stem; very soft or overripe pears release excessive juice during baking and can compromise the cake crumb.
- Beating the eggs and sugar until pale and slightly thick creates a delicate emulsion that yields a tender crumb and a subtly crackly, golden top crust.
- Allow the melted butter to cool until barely warm before adding to the eggs to avoid prematurely curdling the raw egg proteins.
- For clean slices, let the cake cool fully so the internal starches set; slicing hot cake will cause the fruit-rich crumb to tear.
Storage
Refrigerator: 4 days — Store in an airtight container. Bring to room temperature or warm slightly before serving.
Freezer: 2 months — Wrap cooled individual slices tightly in parchment paper and airtight freezer bags.
Reheating: Warm individual slices in a preheated oven at 150°C (300°F) for 8 to 10 minutes until heated through to an internal temperature of at least 74°C (165°F), or microwave on medium power for 20 to 30 seconds.
Troubleshooting
Cake center is wet, gooey, or sunken after cooling
Cause: Underbaked cake or excessively juicy, overripe pears that released too much moisture into the batter
Fix: If discovered immediately upon removing from the oven, return to the 175°C (350°F) oven tented loosely with foil for an additional 8 to 12 minutes
Prevention: Select firm-ripe pears such as Bosc, and ensure an instant-read thermometer reads at least 93°C (200°F) in the cake crumb before pulling it from the oven
Exterior of cake is dark brown or scorched before the center is cooked through
Cause: Oven temperature running high or pan placed too close to the upper heating element
Fix: Tent the top of the cake loosely with aluminum foil for the final 15 minutes of baking to prevent further browning while the center bakes
Prevention: Bake strictly on the center rack and calibrate the oven temperature using an independent oven thermometer
Cake texture is tough and chewy rather than tender
Cause: Overmixing the batter once the flour was incorporated, overdeveloping the gluten network
Fix: Cannot be fixed once baked; serve warm with lightly sweetened whipped cream or crème anglaise to soften texture
Prevention: Fold the flour mixture only until just combined, using light sweeping strokes with a silicone spatula
Cultural Context
Rustic fruit cakes of this style, known in France as gateau aux fruits, have long been staples of home bakers celebrating autumn and winter orchard harvests. Unlike structured layered patisserie, these cakes favor a high fruit-to-batter ratio, allowing seasonal pears to soften into a custardy, buttery cake crumb.
