Recipe: Easy Spiced Vegan Pear Cake

This sweet fruit cake recipe is bursting with fall flavors and uses all the warm and comforting spices that you crave this time of year. The gooey pear caramel topping takes the cake to the next level. You can get the best flavor by using fresh, in-season pears. This recipe is perfect for serving at holiday gatherings. –Rachel Steenland

Easy Spiced Vegan Pear Cake (Serves 12)

Toppings

• 2 red pears
• 6 tablespoons dairy-free butter
• 1/2 cup brown sugar

1. Prepare pears by cutting them in half and removing seeds and stem, then thinly slicing them lengthways.
2. Mix together dairy-free butter and brown sugar, then spread mixture over the bottom of a nine-inch round baking pan. Top with sliced pears, overlapping to create a circular pattern.

Batter

• 1 stick (4 oz.) dairy-free butter
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup oat milk
• 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 cup cane sugar
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• Pinch of salt

Cooking Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Farenheit. In a medium mixing bowl, add dairy-free butter and brown sugar and mix to combine. Then, add vanilla extract and oat milk and stir to combine.
2. Into a second medium mixing bowl, sift all-purpose flour, baking powder, and baking soda, then add cane sugar, ground spices, and salt. Stir to combine.
3. Pour wet ingredients into the bowl of dry ingredients, then stir until combined.
4. Pour batter into the baking pan on top of the butter, brown sugar, and pear topping.
5. Place pear cake into the oven and bake for 45 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the cake comes out clean. Set aside to cool.
6. Once cooled, flip your pear cake. Place a serving plate over the top of the baking pan. Then, holding the plate and the pan together tightly, turn the pan upside down, placing the plate on your kitchen counter. Carefully remove the baking pan to reveal the spiced pear cake.
7. Serve warm or at room-temperature with a scoop of dairy-free vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.