Cranberry Pear Upside Down Cake
Ingredients:
- 1 1/3 cup flour
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon cloves
- 1/4 cup shortening
- 1 egg, slightly beaten
- 1 cup milk
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons butter, softened
- 1 red pear, thinly sliced with skin on
- 1/4 cup fresh cranberries
- Whipped cream and a dash of cinnamon, for serving
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease or butter and lightly flour an 8 inch round cake pan.
- Whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and cloves until well blended.
- Cut ignite he shortening and mix with a fork until the mixture resembles coarse meal or sand.
- Make a hollow in the center and add the egg and milk. Stir together with the dry ingredients just until flour is moistened. The mixture should be thick but still pourable. Add a little more milk if it seems too thick to pour into the cake pan.
- Sprinkle the brown sugar evenly around the bottom of the prepared cake pan and dot with the softened butter.
- Arrange the pear slices in a circle around the bottom of the pan on top of the brown sugar and butter. Place cranberries in between the pear slices.
- Pour the cake batter over the fruit and spread evenly with a spatula.
- Bake at 350 degrees F. for 45-50 minutes or until the cake is golden brown and springs back when pressed with your finger. You don't want a toothpick to come out completely clean as that will result in a dried out cake. It should have just a teeny bit of cake still stuck to it if you try the toothpick method.
- Let cool for 10-15 minutes before running a knife around the sides and turning it out onto a plate. This cake is delicious when served warm with whipped cream!