This pear and apple cake is one of my mother’s favourite cakes. To celebrate Mother’s Day, I thought I’d share the recipe with you. For me, Motherhood is so much ‘bigger’ than I had imagined. It’s consuming and selfless. Your heart suddenly beats louder.
Unique in my world, is my Mum. There are no sorrowful regrets or disappointments. Joyfully we’ve squandered ourselves on each opportunity, accumulating moments of wonderful ridiculousness that’s coloured our journey together. Your quiet stealth and tenacity in the face of hardship is relentless, as too your spirited optimism. The riches of your life are stored in many rooms. I visit there often, with much gratitude and humility.
About the cake. The crumb is moist and delicately spiced with cinnamon, mixed spice and nutmeg. The combination of fresh sweet pears, apples and almonds keeps the cake deliciously moist for days. Layered with maple mascarpone cream and covered with a light cream cheese frosting, I assure you, this pear and apple cake is going to be the cake to bake!
Pear and apple cake with maple mascarpone cream
Serves 10
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- 60g butter, room temperature
- 60ml coconut or vegetable oil
- 80g castor sugar
- 90g soft brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 60ml buttermilk, at room temperature
- 210g all purpose cake flour
- 50g almond meal
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- generous pinch of salt
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon mixed spice
- pinch of nutmeg
- 2 small, ripe pears, peeled and finely cubed
- 1 eating apple, peeled and finely diced
Maple mascarpone cream
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- 250g mascarpone cream, at room temperature
- 125ml single, whipping cream
- 4 tablespoons Canadian maple syrup
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
Cream cheese frosting
- 230g cream cheese, room temperature
- 50 g butter, softened
- 50g icing sugar, sifted
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Preheat the oven to 180º C. Grease and line 2 x 15 cm round baking tins with parchment paper. Cream together the butter, coconut oil, castor sugar and brown sugar. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well between each addition. Slowly whisk in the vanilla extract and buttermilk. The mixture might look curdled, but will come together once the dry ingredients are added.
- Sift in the flour, almond meal, baking powder, salt and spices. Mix on a low speed until the batter is just combined. Gently fold through the pears and apple. Divide the batter between the baking tins, tap firmly on the base and bake for 50 minutes. Test with a skewer to ensure that the cake is cooked through. Set aside to rest for 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- For the mascarpone cream, lightly whisk together all the ingredients until light and fluffy. Do not over-beat as the mascarpone can turn buttery very quickly. Slice the two cake layers in half horizontally. Place the first layer on a cake stand and spread with 2 heaped tablespoon of mascarpone cream. Repeat with the remaining cake layers.
- To make the cream cheese frosting, place the cream cheese in a bowl and beat until smooth. Add the butter and whisk again until well incorporated. Add the icing sugar, maple syrup and vanilla. Beat until light and fluffy. Cover the sides and top of the cake with the remaining frosting. Decorate with caramel coated baby apples or fresh blooms.
A few more of my best small cake recipes:
Vanilla and orange cake with grapefruit curd
13 Comments. Leave new
Happy Mother’s day to all the moms reading Di’s blog!! This cake tastes wonderful as well as looking like ‘more’!
I am trying this cake out now Di. Some decorating tips please…
What a lovely tribute to your wonderful Mom, Di. Her heart will be very full as she reads this, and I know she feels exactly the same way about you!
Room temperature frosting is best as it’ll work to a smoother finish. Using a turn table and an off-set small palette knife also helps! If all else fails, pile high with fresh flowers! Good luck Habi.
And to you Tippy. Your children are testimony to your superb parenting skills! Glad you liked the tasting sample.
This is an amazing cake!! I am sending the link to all the cake bakers that I know! I think it is beautiful!
Thank you so much. It is one of my favourite flavour combinations. Who can resist pears, apple and especially caramel. Have a great week.
Thanks Gill. As you know, there are few words ‘big enough’ to express what we truly feel?
Yummy! And it looks stunning! The family loved it. How do you get your icing so smooth? Mine was a bit lumpy.
The best way to achieve lump-free frosting is to ensure that all the ingredients are at room temperature, especially the butter and mascarpone cream. Both need to be soft to blend and incorporate thoroughly.
Hello Di
This looks amazing! Definitely going to try this. However, just a quick question – what size eggs do you use in your baking?
Hi Marie. I like to use X-large or even jumbo sized eggs as generally, I find the sizing of eggs to be smaller than before. Also, in baking, extra whites will give more volume, making the crumb lighter and the yolks provide more richness, so it’s a win either way.
Thank you.