Pear Cake with Cinnamon Sugar

Ingredients

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup cold, unsalted butter, cut into thick slices
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 3 large or 4 medium Anjou, Bosc or Bartlett pears
• Whipped cream, for serving

Directions

1. Preheat the oven: Set a shelf in the middle of the oven. Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Butter a 9-inch cake pan or a 9-inch fluted tart tin with a removable rim. Dust with flour and tap out the excess.
2. Make the batter: In the bowl of a food processor, pulse the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt until blended. Add the butter pieces and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal.
3. In a measuring cup, lightly beat the milk, egg, and vanilla with a fork until blended. Add to the bowl of the food processor and process until the dough is smooth.
4. With the back of a spoon or a small offset spatula, spread the batter evenly in the cake pan (the batter will be thick).
5. Slice the pears: Halve the pears. Use a melon baller to cut out the cores and remove the stem ends. Slice the halves into 1/4-inch-thick slices.
6. Make the cinnamon sugar: in a small bowl, mix the sugar and cinnamon until combined.
7. Top the cake: Starting at the outside edge, arrange the pears over the batter in a circular pattern, overlapping them slightly to cover the batter. Sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar.
8. Bake the cake: Set the pan on a baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean, and the cake looks golden at the edges.
9. Cool and serve the cake: Let the cake rest in the pan for 10 minutes. If you used a pan with a removable rim, go around the edge the cake with the tip of a knife to release the edges. Set the pan on top of a small bowl and let the rim drop away.
10. Cut into slices from the pan and serve warm or at room temperature. A dollop of whipped cream is always a nice touch.