Hazelnut, Asian Pear & Espresso Cake ~ #TheCakeSliceBakers

"One of the great things about being a grown up is eating cake

for breakfast and not having to ask for permission" author unknown

The Cake Slice Bakers are down to our last two bakes from The New Way To Cake by Benjamina Ebuehi. This has proven to be an excellent cookbook to bake through, with so many cakes that have become family favorites.  I am sad that officially I am almost done baking through the book with the group, but the good news is that there are still a lot of recipes in the book that I want to try.

Our choices for November 2020 were Hazelnut, Pear, & Espresso Cake, Hot Chocolate and Halva Pudding, and Double Ginger and Grapefruit Cakes. I am a sucker for a cake that contains any type of coffee so it was an easy choice this month.

This is definitely a cake that packs a lot of punch in a small slice. Just the jolt you need to get you going in the morning or as an afternoon pick-me-up. And to tell you how easy this cake is to prepare - my daughter went to Starbucks to get us each a latte, which is about a 15 minute round trip, and by the time she had returned the cake was already in the oven.  This cake does not require a stand mixer or hand beaters, all you need is a bowl, a whisk and a spatula. The flavor is fantastic, and it is the sort of cake that you really could mix and match with depending on your favorite fruit and nut. I used Asian Pears, and whilst I love the flavor and crispness of them, the size of the slices were not ideal for the presentation of the cake. They were just too large to press into the cake, so I put them in on an angle and as you can see they sank.  Next time I would use a smaller pear. I do love a strong coffee flavor but you could definitely reduce the amount of espresso powder that you add and still have a lovely subtle coffee essence. Another keeper!

Hazelnut, Asian Pear & Espresso Cake

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Ingredients

• 80g (⅔ cup) blanched hazelnuts, plus extra to decorate
• 3 eggs
• 175g (¾ cup + 2 tablespoons) sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 175g (1⅓ cups) all-purpose flour
• 8g (1½ teaspoons) baking powder
• 20g (2 teaspoons) espresso powder
• 175g (¾ cup) butter, melted
• 4 Bosc or Conference pears, divided

Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 190℃ (375℉).
2. Spray the bottom and sides of a 23cm (9-inch) cake pan and line the bottom with parchment paper.
3. Toast the hazelnuts on a baking tray in the oven for 10 minutes, remove them, and then leave them to cool.
4. Turn the oven down to 180℃ (350℉).
5. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, sugar, and vanilla until combined.
6. Stir in the flour, baking powder, and espresso powder and mix well before pouring in the butter and combining until smooth.
7. Peel, core, and finely dice 2 pears and roughly chop three-quarters of the hazelnuts.
8. Gently fold them into the batter and pour into the prepared pan.
9. Cut the remaining 2 pears in half, with the skin left on, and use a teaspoon or a melong ballerto spoon out the cores.
10. Slice them thinly and then place them on top of the cake, overlapping a few at a time.
11. Sprinkle on the remaining hazelnuts.
12. Bake for 40 - 45 minutes, or until the cake is well risen and firm to touch.
13. Leave to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before turning it out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Each month The Cake Slice Bakers are offered a selection of cakes from the current book we are baking through. This year it is The New Way To Cake by Benjamina Ebuehi. We each choose one cake to bake, and then on the 20th - never before - we all post about our cake on our blogs. There are a few rules that we follow, but the most important ones are to have fun and enjoy baking & eating cakes!

Follow our Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest pages where you can find all of our cakes, as well as inspiration for many other cakes. You can also click on the thumbnail pictures below to take you to each of our cakes. If you have a blog and are interested in joining The Cake Slice Bakers and baking along with us, please send an email to thecakeslicebakers at gmail dot com for more details.

The Cake Slice Bakers also have a new Facebook group called The Cake Slice Bakers and Friends. This group is perfect for those who do not have a blog but want to join in the fun and bake through this book.

It is a new year and a new book - The New Way To Cake - and our choices for November 2020 were ~ 

Hazelnut, Pear & Espresso Cake

• All That's Left Are The Crumbs
• Making Miracles
• My Recipe Reviews

Hot Chocolate and Halva Pudding

• A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• A Little Bit of All Right
• Amandie Bakes
• Sweet Sensations

Double Ginger and Grapefruit Cakes

• Camille Cooks
• Karen's Kitchen Stories