Fall baking season is upon us, and I’m so excited to share my first Fall creation of the year! This Spiced Pear Upside Down Cake is a fun play on the classic pineapple version and will bring this cherished dessert straight from Summer and right into Fall! Not only does this cake taste and look amazing, but it’s made using simple shortcuts to save you time and effort in the kitchen!
I am SO excited that Fall is almost here, and I love all the yummy Fall desserts I’ve seen around blogland lately! Pumpkin is definitely my first love when it comes to Fall flavors, but apple and pear are very close behind! This weekend we had company over for dinner, and I wanted to come up with a dessert using some beautiful pears I picked up from the store. I decided to make a Spiced Pear Upside Down Cake, swapping the classic pineapple rings for delicious fresh pears!
I absolutely LOVE the way this recipe turned out! Not only does it look super impressive with all the caramelized pear slices lining the top of the cake, but it tastes incredible as well! The cake itself is moist and fluffy and the perfect foundation for those delicious sliced pears. Melted butter and brown sugar coat the pears while baking and turn them perfectly tender and sweet. And the spice added to the fruit makes them absolutely divine! I could almost just eat the pears off the top and leave the cake on my plate… Well, ALMOST : )
This cake may look all elegant and fancy pants, but don’t let it fool you! It really couldn’t be easier to make! Instead of baking a cake from scratch, I use a box of yellow cake mix, and my family honestly can never tell the difference. I love to make things from scratch, but when you’re short on time and don’t have the patience for it, there are so many great kitchen solutions to use! Another great baking shortcut: pumpkin pie spice. I wanted my pears to have the warm, spiced flavors of Fall, and rather than mixing a handful of different spices I just used my handy jar of pumpkin pie spice. It has all the delicious flavors you’ll need and saves you a few steps!
For my dessert, I used a Betty Crocker Super Moist Butter Recipe Yellow cake mix. I love the rich, buttery flavor of this cake, but any yellow cake mix you can find will do! This cake mix in particular called for 1 cup water, 1/3 cup softened butter, and 3 eggs, but just follow the instructions on your cake mix package.
After baking for 45 minutes, your cake should be just about perfect. You’ll want to cool it on a wire rack for 5 minutes, and then invert the cake onto your desired serving plate. Now let everyone oooh and aaaah over your gorgeous creation before diving in! It really is something to be marveled at : )
So if you’re looking for an easy Fall dessert that will really impress your friends and family, this recipe is definitely worth trying! After eating this pear cake, my boys told me it needs to be passed down in our family for generations and generations! I wonder where they come up with this stuff…
Spiced Pear Upside Down Cake
1/4 cup butter
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 pears, peeled
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 package (15.25 ounces) yellow cake mix
1 cup water
1/3 cup softened butter
3 eggs
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Place butter in a 9″ round cake pan and heat in oven until butter is melted. Sprinkle brown sugar evenly over butter. Cut peeled pears in half lengthwise and remove cores. Cut pears again lengthwise in 1/4″ thick slices and place in a large bowl. Sprinkle pears with pumpkin pie spice and gently toss to coat. Arrange pear slices over the butter mixture in pan, slightly overlapping. Prepare cake batter as directed on package using water, butter, and eggs. Carefully spoon cake batter over the pears. Bake cake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool the cake for 5 minutes on a wire rack, then carefully invert cake onto a serving plate.
Notes:
– I used a Betty Crocker Super Moist Butter Recipe Yellow cake mix, but any yellow cake mix will do. This mix called for 1 cup water, 1/3 cup softened butter, and 3 eggs, but use the cake recipe as instructed on your package.
– Inspired by a Kraft recipe.
More dessert ideas:
Apple Turnovers with Vanilla Glaze
Banana Cream Pudding Parfait
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