Rustic Caramelized Pear Upside Down Cake is a wonderful dessert for autumn. Light, nutty cake topped with saucy pears in a buttery brown sugar sauce makes any fall meal an occaision. Gluten-free or with gluten options.
Pear season has arrived and with it unlimited options of how to enjoy them in addition to eating them whole. Caramelized Pear Upside Down Cake is an easy dessert that will ‘wow’ for the beautiful pattern on the top of the cake once turned out onto a serving platter. It is a homey recipe with familiar spices of ginger, cinnamon and nutmeg with some almond flour giving a slightly nutty flavor.
I originally made this recipe and shared it in 2011 after making a Plum Upside Down Cake my family and friends loved. There is something so fun about a cake top lined with beautiful seasonal fruit. Caramelized Pear Upside Down Cake layers the sliced pears in a buttery brown sugar mixture giving them a soft, wonderful texture in addition to the caramel flavors. The simple cake is a perfect compliment to the pears and very easy to make. It can be made gluten-free or with gluten based on the all purpose flour used.
The natural sweetness of pears and their appealing shape make them a perfect choice for fall fruit tarts. I personally love tiny Seckel pears which can be eaten in just a few bites. Seckel Pear Soft Shelled Creme Tart is another delicious (and easy) way to celebrate autumn’s bounty, without needing to be a pastry chef.
Pears are wonderful in everything from salads to cocktails, with homemade Spiced Pear Vodka being a wonderful gift too. For more ideas on how to use pears you can check out Pear Perfection: 12 Gluten-Free Recipes!
How to make Caramelized Pear Upside Down Cake:
Caramelized Pear Upside Down Cake
This seasonal upside down cake is rustic and delicious. The beautiful pear pattern when the cake is turned out of the pan is always an eye catching delight!
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons Unsalted Butter
- 1/2 cup Light Brown Sugar
- 2 tablespoons Water
- 2-3 medium-large Pears (like Red Bartlett) peeled, cored and sliced vertically into 1/8-1/4 inch thick slices
- 1 1/4 cups Gluten-Free Flour I used King Arthur flour without xanthan gum
- 1/4 cup Almond meal or Almond Flour
- 2 teaspoons Baking Powder
- 1/4 teaspoon Kosher Salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground Ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon Cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon Nutmeg
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) Unsalted Butter softened
- 2/3 cup Granulated Sugar
- 2/3 cup Whole Milk
- 2 Eggs
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Add 3 tablespoons butter into a 9 inch by 2 inch round layer cake pan and place in the oven to melt, approximately 3 minutes. Do not let butter brown.
Remove pan from oven. Add brown sugar and water; whisk until sugar is dissolved and butter is incorporated.
Layer pear slices overlapped each other, with the larger end of the pear toward the outside of the pan (refer to photos). Form a circular pattern allowing the pears to cover the entire bottom of the pan. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl of a free standing mixer, whisk together the flour, almond meal/flour, baking powder, salt and spices
In the bowl of a standing mixer (or using a handheld mixer) cream the butter. Add the sugar and cream together. Add milk, eggs and vanilla and mix together (do not over mix).
Spoon in dry ingredients and beat until fully combined. Spoon batter evenly on top of pears in the cake pan. Place in oven and bake for 30 minutes when toothpick should come out clean and the cake should begin to brown.
Allow cake to cool in pan on a rack for 5 minutes. Run a knife around the inside edge of the cake pan to free up cake. Place the serving plate upside down on the top of the cake pan, carefully turn the plate and cake over so the cake comes out onto the serving tray revealing the pear top. Be careful as the cake pan will still be hot. NOTE: if allowed to over cool in the pan the cake will not release fully. Allow to cool for 30-45 additional minutes; serve warm.
This delicious recipe was originally published in November 2011 and has been updated in 2017.
robin rue says
OMG yes please! This is totally right up my alley! Looking forward to making one of these for my family.
Jeanette says
You have no idea how much I love you! This would be absolute treat to eat. I have never tried it, lies anything but I think I’m going to because I’m craving this just looking at the pictures.
Toni Dash says
I’m so glad!! I was feeling the photographs don’t do the flavor justice! It’s so good.
Stacie @ Divine Lifestyle says
That looks so good! I love upside down cake. I’ve only ever had it with apple or pineapple. I’d love to give this variation a try.
Liz Mays says
Same here! It sounds really good and I could do with a Fall dessert. I have so many Fall recipes I want to try!
Jeni Hawkins says
YESSSS! I love pears, so this is perfect for me! It’s rare to find a good pear dessert, but this nailed it! I’m going to make it this week!
Vera says
I am SO making this over the weekend! It looks so good. Caramelized pear is such a great flavor. Thanks for another AH-mazing recipe.
Claudia Krusch says
This is going to be perfect for dessert this weekend. We have friends coming over for dinner. I am sure it will be a big hit.
Connie says
This looks delicious. I love pears. Can’t wait to give it a try.
Pam Wattenbarger says
Wow, this is beautiful! My son would really go for this dessert as he is a big fan of pears.
Liz Mays says
This is so pretty! I could go for a pear dessert like this. I feel like I don’t end up using pears in that many dishes!
travel blogger says
This looks scrumptious! I love pears, and I don’t bake with them nearly enough. I will have to give this a try. I can’t imagine how great it must smell while it is cooking too! Yum!
Kathy says
This looks really good. I’m sure my family would enjoy these. We all do love pears!
Kelly Hutchinson says
My mom would make pineapple upside cake all the time. I have never had a Caramelized Pear Upside Down Cake. It sounds and looks amazing!
AnnMarie John says
This looks heavenly! I love upside down cakes but I’ve never made one with pear before. It’s definitely good use of pears for this season.
Dawn Lopez says
I know that I love pineapple upside down cake so I bet pear would be really yummy too! I love that the pear is caramelized. I totally love that flavor in fruits!
Randi says
That sounds delicious and it’s so lovely looking too!
Dwan says
OMGosh I am gluten-free and I am so excited to find this recipe. I love caramel and pears so this would be perfect. Thanks for sharing!
Cathi Crismon says
Oh my goodness! This looks absolutely delicious! I have simply got to make it for the holidays!
TColeman says
I have never heard of a pear cake at all but this one looks like it would taste amazing. I need to give this a try!
Amy says
I have never tried an upside down pear cake. I have a pear tree in my yard and wasn’t sure how I could use them up.
Sarah says
I’ve never tried a pear upside cake, only pineapple. This sure looks and sounds yummy. Everyone in my family loves pear.
Hali says
I’ve heard of the pineapple upside down but this absolutely looks beautiful and sounds delicious as well.
Shannon Gurnee says
I love pears! This looks and sounds delicious! I wold love to try this sometime.
Carol Cassara says
This sounds like a lovely dessert especially this season! I’m sure it’s awesome alone or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top!
susan5minutesformom says
That cake looks beautiful! What a perfect dessert for fall gatherings.
krystal says
I don’t cook with pears enough – such amazing flavor! Love how you made this upside down cake!
Tonya says
I love a great upside down cake but never thought to try it with pears. Now I’m asking myself “Why not?” This looks and sounds so amazing. I can’t wait to try it.