Olive oil & honey cake with pears
This is an easy, delicious dessert for a dinner party. If there are any leftovers, this cake makes a great breakfast – it tastes even better after a few days.
This cake is very tender and nutty from the whole wheat flour, with a rich flavour from the olive oil and honey. The top has a slightly crisp and shimmering layer of sugar and cinnamon, while the pears melt into the cake and become sticky-sweet at the edges of the pan. It’s my favourite way to enjoy pears.
Ingredients
Cake Batter
150g honey (3/4c)
2 eggs (100g / 2 US Large)
115g good olive oil (1/2 cup)
120g whole wheat flour (1 cup)
7g baking powder (1-1/2 tsp)
1g of salt (1/4 tsp Diamond, or 2 pinches)
100g pear, grated (1 medium pear)
Topping
3 pears, sliced in 1/4” thick pieces
1 lemon, juiced
3g cinnamon (1 tsp)
30g sugar (2 tbsp)
Swaps
If you aren’t fond of pears, you can easily swap in other tender fruits like plums or nectarines. Firmer fruits, like apples, may require pre-cooking.
You can use the same amount of all purpose flour instead of whole wheat, but the flavour and texture will be very different. You need to be careful not to overmix.
You can replace the same weight of honey with sugar.
Method
Prepare your pan
Pre-heat the oven to 300°F.
Brush a 9” round cake pan with olive oil and line the bottom with parchment paper.
Prepare your pears
In a medium bowl, juice one lemon
Cut the stem and base off of your pears
Slice pears down the middle and remove the core with a spoon.
Slice each half into 6-8 pieces, about 1/4” thick, the number depends on how large your pears are.
Toss pears in the lemon juice and set aside while you prepare the cake; if your pears aren’t quite ripe yet you can add 1-2 tsp sugar here as well.
Make the batter
In a small bowl, add the flour, baking powder, and salt. Stir to combine and remove any clumps.
Using a stand mixer with the whisk attachment or by hand with a whisk, beat the eggs and honey together until the mixture becomes pale, fluffy, and form a ribbon when the whisk is lifted, about 4 minutes.
Stream in the olive oil, a little bit at a time, to create an emulsion.
Add in the flour mixture and mix until no dry spots remain
Add in the grated pear
Assemble and bake
Transfer the batter into your prepared pan
Sprinkle the cinnamon in an even layer across the top of the cake, try to avoid clumps – if you end up with clumps break them up with a fork. I like using a dusting wand.
Arrange your pears as beautifully or chaotically as you desire, some of them will sink so it’s not worth being fussy. Ensure to get some pears near the edges of the cake, as they will get a crispy, caramelized outside.
Sprinkle 30g sugar on top of the cake, it’s okay to have clumps of sugar here and there, it will form into pretty airy layers of sugar
Bake for 50 minute to 1 hour, or until a paring knife comes out clean.
Cool and Serve
Remove from the oven and run an offset spatula around the outside border of the cake to ensure it will release cleanly later.
Allow the cake cool completely in the cake pan; because whole wheat inhibits gluten development, the cake will be very tender when it’s still warm – cooling it completely will ensure you get a nice looking cake.
Place a plate on top of your cake pan, flip the cake out. Place your cake serving platter on the bottom of the cake, flip once more, and the top of the cake will be right-side up top.
Serve at room temperature, optionally with whipped cream.
This will keep at room temperature for a few days, and the flavour will develop further as it sits
Making this in advance
If you plan to make this for a dinner party, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and keep in the fridge for 1-2 days in advance.
This cake freezes very well; freeze in a vacuum sealed bag (ideal to prevent the cake absorbing freezer flavours) or wrap it in aluminum foil then place inside of a freezer bag. Unwrap and defrost at room temperature, then warm it for 5 minutes in a 300°F oven.