Cake: Pear and Walnut with Lemon Custard Sauce

By fsilver4

This cake is similar to a Pineapple Upside Down Cake

Ingredients

• Sauce:
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 large egg yolks
• 1 cup half and half
• 2 tablespoons grated lemon peel
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Topping:
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 3 tablespoons water
• 2 large Anjou pears, peeled, cored, cut into thin wedges
• Cake:
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1 tablespoons baking powder
• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 stick plus 1 tablespoon butter, room temperature
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon grated lemon peel
• 6 tablespoons whole milk
• 3 tablespoons brandy
• 6 tablespoons finely chopped toasted walnuts

Details

Servings 8

Preparation

Step 1

Sauce:
Whisk sugar and egg yolks in medium bowl to blend. Bring half and half and lemon peel to simmer in heavy medium saucepan. Gradually whisk hot half and half mixture into yolk mixture. Return to saucepan. Stir over medium heat until custard thickens and leaves path on back of spoon when finger is drawn across, about 5 minutes (DO NOT BOIL) Strain custard into bowl; discard solids. Whisk lemon juice and vanilla into custard. Chill until cold

Topping:
Preheat oven 350* Butter 9" cake pan.
Stir sugar and water in small saucepan over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Increase heat and without stirring boil until deep amber color appears and then gently swirl the pan. With a wet pastry brush, brush down the sides and do this for about 10 minutes. Pour caramel over bottom of prepared pan. Carefully overlap pears atop caramel. DON'T TOUCH THE CARAMEL

Cake:
Mix flour and baking powder in medium bowl.
Beat butter and sugar in large mixing bowl. Add eggs, lemon peel and beat until fluffy. Combine milk and brandy in small bowl. Mix dry ingredients into batter alternately with milk mixture in 3 additions each. Stir in nuts.

Pour batter atop pears in pan. Bake cake until golden on top and tester is clean, about 1 hour. Cool in pan 5 minutes. Run knife around edges of pan to loosen cake. Place platter over cake and invert. Let stand 1 minute. Serve with sauce.