Individual Upside Down Pear Gingerbread Recipe

These are Kevin's absolute favorite dessert. I've been making them for him since the late 1990s. I think I first found the recipe in a Best of Gourmet Cookbook - now long out of print. I've made them for so long that I do it mainly from memory. I thought I'd better write it down somewhere in case my memory fades in the coming years.


Individual Pear Gingerbread Recipe

For the topping

• 1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter
• 3/4 cup packed light brown sugar

For the cakes

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3-4 Tablespoons crystallized ginger, minced
• 1 cup molasses (preferably mild)
• 1 cup boiling water
• 1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 2-3 firm pears, diced

Melt 1/2 stick of butter and 3/4 cup of packed brown sugar together in a small saucepan. Pour into 6 individual ramekins. Decorate with bits of diced pear.

 Preheat oven to 350°F.

Sift together flour, baking soda, ground ginger and salt in a bowl.

Whisk molasses and boiling water in another small bowl.

Next, using a mixer beat remaining stick of softened butter, 1/2 cup of packed brown sugar and egg until creamy. Combine with flour mixture and molasses imxture. Stir in remaining diced pears and candied ginger.

Pour batter over butter/sugar mixture in ramekins. Bake 20-30 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool slightly. Invert ramekin onto a plate to serve. Garnish with whipped cream and more crystallized ginger.

 

Two Egg Birthday Cake Recipe

Baking my own Birthday Cake

Danielle was sad that I didn't have a birthday cake so I wanted to make one with what I had on hand. We had regular flour, sugar, 2 eggs, half a pound of butter.... nothing really stellar. I figured I'd make a basic yellow cake with a butter cream frosting. If I could make it out of only 2 eggs and 2 sticks of butter.

I did find some odd ingredients in the pantry - orange extract and a tube of marzipan. Probably left over from a Christmas baking project that I never completed. My favorite cake of my entire life was my wedding cake. We had a light white cake with Grand Marnier cream filling, coated in marzipan. Heaven! I decided to improvise a kid-friendly version of that cake with the available ingredients.

I made an orange cake with an almond buttercream filling. Needing to save 1 stick of butter for the frosting I cut the butter in the original cake recipe in half.The marzipan filling was very sweet and dense so I frosted with it DreamWhip since it was in the cupboard. Here's how it came out!

  

Old Fashioned Orange Cake

1 1/2 cup sugar

1 stick butter or margarine

 2 eggs

2 1/2 cups flour

3 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla flavoring

1 teaspoon orange flavoring

Cream sugar and butter together. Add eggs. Sift together dry ingredients. Add dry ingredients alternately with milk (add flavorings to milk). Then mix until smooth and creamy.

Cook in two 9" greased and floured pans or spray pans with Pam. Bake in 350

degrees F. oven for 20 to 25 minutes. Cool slightly before removing from pans.

Marzipan Buttercream Frosting

1/2 - 1 package almond paste (marzipan), grated

1 stick (8 tablespoons) soft butter

(1 tsp almond extract if using less marzipan)

3 cups confectioners sugar

2 tablespoons hot water

Add grated Marzipan and butter into a medium bowl. Beat on low until combined. Turn speed to high and beat into a smooth paste.

Add sugar and hot water. Beat on low until combined. Turn mixer to high and beat until smooth. If frosting is too stiff, add one teaspoon of hot water at a time until desired spreading consistency is reached.

DreamWhip Quick Cake Frosting

1 package Dream Whipackage Dream Whi

1 1/3 cups cold milk1 1/2 cups cold milk

 1 package vanilla instant pudding and pie filling mix1 package sugar free chocolate fudge pudding and pie filling mix

Added To Shopping List!

1. Beat all ingredients until moistened.
2. Beat frosting on high 4-5 minutes until soft peaks form.
3. Frost cooled dream whip cake.
4. Refrigerate leftovers.