Project Description

Serves 6

Recipe Ingredients (Topping):

  • 1 Tablespoon butter

  • 2 Tablespoons honey

  • 1/3 cup packed brown sugar

  • 1 or 2 firm but ripe pears, peeled and sliced thinly

Recipe Ingredients (Gingerbread):

  • 1/4-cup butter

  • 1/2 cup packed brown sugar

  • 1 large egg

  • 1/4-cup buttermilk

  • 1/2 cup dry baby lima beans, cooked

  • 1/4-cup molasses

  • 1-teaspoon ground ginger

  • 3/4 cup all purpose flour

  • 1-teaspoon baking soda

  • 1/2-teaspoon ground cinnamon

  • 1/4-teaspoon salt

  • 1/4-teaspoon ground allspice

    Instructions

    Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray an 8-9 inch round cake pan with non-stick cooking spray.

    To make the topping: Combine the butter, honey and brown sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat and stir until smooth. Spread evenly over the bottom of the cake pan, then lay the pear slices overtop, keeping them tight together or even very slightly overlapping. Set aside.

    To make the gingerbread: Beat the butter and sugar together in a medium bowl until smooth and fluffy. Add the egg and beat well again. Process the buttermilk, beans and molasses in a food processor until smooth and stir into the butter mixture. In a small bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, ground ginger, cinnamon, allspice and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and stir gently until just combined; be careful not to over mix. Smooth the batter over the sliced pears.

    Bake the gingerbread for 35 to 40 minutes, until a tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool for 5 minutes or so, then invert a serving plate over the cake pan. Quickly but carefully flip both upside down, and let the cake pan rest on top of the plate for a moment or two. Remove the cake pan. If you have any pear slices stuck in the pan, just peel them off and place them on the cake where you’ll see where they belong.