Ginger Pear Bundt Cake
Welcome to November! This month’s bundt-baking-get-together, hosted by Baker Street and Cake Duchess has the theme of SPICE. When I came across this recipe for a pear-spice bundt cake by Martha Stewart, I knew I was ready to start baking!
The recipe was based on a caramel-pear sauce that was made with fresh pears and sugar then it was incorporated into the cake batter.
I was one step ahead of the game as I had a homemade ginger pear sauce. I changed the spices slightly but basically stuck with the cake recipe and then finished with a cream cheese icing.
The cake was dense but in a good way, filled with bits of pear and hints of ginger then cooled with the cream cheese frosting.
This would be perfect to serve on a Thanksgiving dessert buffet as an alternative to the traditional pies. You’ll find it will be requested for years to come!
Ginger-Pear Bundt Cake
A beautiful, seasonal Bundt cake for the autumn through Thanksgiving and Christmas topped with a cream cheese frosting.
Ingredients
- 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pan
- 3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 1 ¾ cups packed dark-brown sugar
- ¼ cup honey
- 4 large eggs
- ½ cup milk
- 1 cup of pear-ginger sauce (store bought pear sauce/preserves or homemade)
Cream Cheese Icing:
- 8 ounces of cream cheese
- 1 cup confectioners’ sugar
- 4-6 Tablespoons of cream (milk would be fine too)
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare Bundt pan with cooking spray and a dusting of flour (or very fine bread crumbs).
- Combine flour, baking powder, salt, ginger, baking soda, and nutmeg with a whisk in a bowl. Set the bowl aside.
- With an electric mixer, beat the butter, brown sugar and honey for a few minutes then add the eggs one at a time. Now on low speed, alternate adding the flour and the milk to the batter. Once it is mixed well, turn off the mixer and fold in the pear sauce.
- The batter will be thick. Spoon it into your prepared Bundt pan. Cook for 35-40 minutes, covering the top with foil around 25-30 minutes if it appears to brown too much. Let the cake cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes before turning it out onto a plate. Let it cool completely before adding the optional (but really tasty) icing.
- Using an electric mixer, combine the ingredients, starting by whipping the cream cheese on its own for a few minutes. Next add the confectioners’ sugar, vanilla extract and cream (or milk). If the icing is too thick then add more milk one Tablespoon at a time.
Notes
Recipe adapted from this Martha Stewart recipe.
If you don't have or want to make the pear sauce, use apple sauce for a similar result.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
16Serving Size:
1 sliceAmount Per Serving: Calories: 414Total Fat: 20gSaturated Fat: 12gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 98mgSodium: 345mgCarbohydrates: 54gFiber: 1gSugar: 34gProtein: 6g
This data is provided by Nutritionix and is an estimate only.
Kitchen Tools I used in this Recipe:
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Holly Baker started the food blog, A Baker's House, in 2011. She is the writer, recipe creator, and photographer for the site. Holly loves to bake and shares recipes for gluten free food, canning recipes, as well as traditional desserts too. Her recipes and food photography have been highlighted by BuzzFeed, Reader's Digest, and She Knows.
Love your icing technique! So attractive!
Thank you, Dorothy, I appreciate your comment. This might be the easiest icing technique I've come across. It hides imperfections in the icing because it doesn't have to be super-smooth to look great.
Gorgeous cake!! And now I have a recipe for my one too many pears... 🙂
Yes, this is a great time of year for pears! I just bought more yesterday and will enjoy them while I can!
I totally love the aroma of ginger-pear. I actually bought candles with that scent from Pier 1 for years. I can only imagine how yummy this cake must smell and taste. I have to bake it soon.
Thanks for your comment, Renee, and for your tweet too! Yes, this cake smelled as good as it tasted. I think "Spice" was a great theme for November.
Such a pretty cake. I know if it is Martha's recipe and has your endorsement, it must be good.
Thanks, Karen, yes this recipe was great and I was so happy to be able to use some pear jam that I had preserved. I'm making a new batch next week with plans to share it with you!
Thanks for stopping by, Pamela! Join us some month soon in baking Bundt cakes!
Your cake sounds fabulous Holly and on top of that looks so pretty; love how you decorated this cake!
Thanks, Barb! I know most Bundts stand on their own without icing but I just couldn't resist with this cream cheese frosting. It was tasty.
What an absolutely beautiful bundt cake! I LOVE the way you frosted it! IT's just beautiful!!! 🙂 Pinned this and am going to try this recipe! 🙂
Thanks, Alice, it might not compare to the gorgeous bundt you made this month but I was happy with the results. : ) Thanks for pinning!
Thanks, Paula! I was happy with how this bundt turned out. The ginger especially made it perfect for the season. Thanks for stopping by!
Your frosting is so pretty and I'm loving the ginger with pear idea. Your photos area always so tempting and lovely. Thanks for baking with us again this month, Holly:)
Thanks again for hosting this month. I really enjoyed baking this bundt and am already thinking of ideas for next month. Thanks for bringing so many of us together; I've enjoyed reading all of the bundt posts today!
Oh Holly! I wish we were neighbors. Your bundt looks exquisite! LOVE the frosting the flavors and how you plated it - just beautiful!
WOW! I was immediately awestruck by the beauty of your cake. That icing is simply gorgeous. I love pear and ginger together already so this will be a must make for me. Lovely!
thanks, Kate! I'd love to hear how your cake turns out if you get around to making this one. I know I'll make it once or twice more this fall season.
This bundt cake sounds absolutely delicious! I love the icing technique you used; it's gorgeous.
Thanks, Jennie, I played around with the icing a bit after I wasn't happy with the texture I originally had, it wasn't smooth enough. I decided to go with it and tried to make a design just by dragging the spatula in small spaces around the cake. I had seen it on Pinterest before and wanted to give it a try.
I love the way you smoothed on the cream cheese frosting! It looks like a ginger pear igloo. 🙂 Chilly on the outside but warm and delicious on the inside. Yum!
What a gorgeous bundt! Your icing looks phenomenal and it sounds delicious!
What a gorgeous cake! I absolutely love how it's frosting, and those flavors sound amazing. Can't go wrong with ginger and pears!
This looks like a fantastic cake! Love that frosting, too!
This is gorgeous. I love ginger with pear. Your frosting just takes my breath away. So beautiful.
My gosh Holly...what a beautiful cake. I'm very impressed. Not to mention it sounds delicious. You know, if I started driving around I might eventually find your house, and this cake. 🙂
thanks, Lea Ann, I would love to share the next time I make a big cake like this. I shared half of this cake with a friend who had family coming to dinner and easily ate the other half myself!!
This is seriously such an amazing cake idea! I add this to my Thanksgiving dessert round up
I really appreciate that you included my cake-- your site is beautiful. Glad I've found it now!
That is seriously gorgeous icing on that cake! Delicious!
Thanks, Laura, the icing was a lot easier than it looks-- just pull a bit of icing with a small spatula all the way around the cake in small strokes. thanks for stopping by!