Autumn Roasted Pear Bundt Cake with Browned Butter Glaze

I love the flavors of Autumn!  I bake a lot with pumpkin and apples, but when a good friend mentioned she had a wonderful slice of Roasted Pear Cake in a tavern in Maine, well my taste buds began salivating and I couldn't wait to come up with something my family could enjoy.

Pears, like apples are Fall fruits and although there may not be as many varieties as apples, there is a pretty good variety.  I used Bartlett in this recipe, but next time, I'm trying Bosc or Anjou just to see if the flavors change.

Autumn Roasted Pear Bundt Cake with Browned Butter Glaze

2 1/2 lbs (about 5) pears
3 T water
3 T granulated sugar
juice from 1 lemon

Preheat oven to 375F-degrees.  Peel, core and chop the pears into 1-inch pieces.  Transfer the pears to a baking dish and toss them with the lemon juice, water, and sugar.  Cover the dish with aluminum foil and bake until the pears are soft and cooked through, 30-45 minutes.

 Remove the foil and let the pears cool to room temperature, then mash them, leaving some larger bits of pear in the sauce.  Measure out 2 cups of pear sauce and set aside--you can save the rest to have with breakfast ;-)

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 cups firmly packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1/3 cup creme fraiche
3 cups King Arthur All-Purpose Flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp. cardamon
2 cups Pear Sauce

Turn the oven down to 350F-degrees.  Butter and flour a 12-cup Bundt pan and set aside.

In a stand mixer, using the paddle attachment, cream the butter, oil and brown sugar together until fluffy.  Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.  Add the creme fraiche and mix to combine.

Add the dry ingredients and the pear sauce, mixing just until combined.  Pour the batter into the prepared pan and tap on the counter top to release any air.  Bake the cake until golden and cooked through--55 to 65 minutes.  Let the cake cool about 10 minutes in the pan, then invert it onto a rack to cool completely.

Browned Butter Glaze
6 T unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
2 to 4 T milk
pinch of salt

In a small saucepan, over medium heat, cook the butter until it lightly browns and smells nutty.  Remove from the heat and transfer to a large bowl.  Add a pinch of salt.  Let cool completely.

Whisk in the confectioners' sugar adding milk as needed to create a pourable glaze.  Pour over the cooled cake.

I wish I could say we were actually having Autumn, but alas...it's been in the upper 80s/90s and feels more like July!  However, a bite of this wonderful cake, I can imagine.  Enjoy!

Lemon Bliss Bundt Cake

Lemon is a favorite and this Bundt cake, which is King Arthur Flour's Cake of 2017, is packed with it.  From the lemon zest in the cake, to a lemon glaze and lemon icing, it hit the ball out of the park (a baseball term in honor of my hubby!)

Still "ice in" from Winter Storm Helena...which by the way, when did we start naming winter storms? my baking continued into Sunday making this delicious cake.  Very easy and oh so delicious.

Lemon Bliss Bundt Cake
16 T (2 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature
2 cups granulated sugar
1 tsp. salt
4 large eggs, at room temperature*
2 tsp. baking powder
3 cups King Arthur All-purpose Flour
1 cup milk, preferably whole milk
Zest of 2 medium lemons
1/2 tsp. Lemon Oil (optional)

Glaze:
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
3/4 cup granulated sugar

Icing:
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar (icing sugar), sifted
pinch of salt
2 to 3 T freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tsp. light Karo syrup (this is my addition to give it a shine!)

*If you forget, like I do most times, to set out your eggs...simply place them in very warm water for about 5 minutes.  You'll still get the benefit of room temperature eggs that crack easily!

Preheat oven to 350F-degrees.  Spray a 10 or 12 cup Bundt pan with baking spray and set aside.  I used one of the new designs, Party Bundt Pan.

In a stand mixer, beat the butter and sugar together until fluffy and lightened in color.

Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.  Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula once all the eggs are added, then beat briefly to re-combine any residue.

Add the baking powder to the flour and in three parts, alternately with the milk, starting and ending with the flour.  Mix, until everything is well combined, the batter will a bit rough, but shouldn't have any large lumps.  Stir in the lemon zest and oil (if using).

Spoon the batter into the prepared pan, leveling it and smooth the top with a spatula.

Bake in the preheated oven for 45 to 60 minutes, or until a cake tester or toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

While the cake is baking, make the glaze by stirring together the lemon juice and sugar.  Microwave or heat over a burner briefly, stirring to dissolve the sugar.  You don't want to cook the lemon juice, so just until until very warm, but not uncomfortably hot--less than 1 minute should do it.  Set the glaze aside.

Remove the cake from the oven and carefully run a knife between cake and pan all around the edge.  Place the pan upside down on a cooling rack and gently shake the pan back and forth to loosen and remove it.

Brush the glaze all over the hot cake, both top and sides.  Let it sink in, then brush on more glaze continuing until all the glaze is used up.

Allow cake the cake to cool completely before icing and serving.

The crumb is so tender and the flavor is so lemony.  This is definitely a Cake of the Year--Enjoy!