Delicate Bosc pears stud this beautiful pound cake while crème fraîche enriches its batter and punctuates its tangy glaze. Flecked with vanilla bean paste and perfumed with the gentle flavor of almond extract, each bite of this Bundt cake promises complex texture and taste.
Pear-Crème Fraîche Pound Cake
Makes 1 (15-cup) Bundt cake
Ingredients
- 1½ cups (340 grams) unsalted butter, softened
- 2¾ cups (550 grams) granulated sugar
- 6 large eggs (300 grams), room temperature
- 2 teaspoons (12 grams) vanilla bean paste
- 1½ teaspoons (6 grams) almond extract
- 3 cups (375 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1½ teaspoons (4.5 grams) kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon (2.5 grams) baking soda
- 1¼ cups (300 grams) crème fraîche, room temperature
- 2½ cups (400 grams) ½-inch-diced Bosc pears * (about 3 large pears)
- Vanilla-Crème Fraîche Glaze (recipe follows)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325°F (170°C).
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar at low speed just until combined. Increase mixer speed to medium, and beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes, stopping to scrape sides of bowl. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition and stopping to scrape sides of bowl. Beat in vanilla bean paste and almond extract. (Mixture may look slightly curdled at this point, but batter will come together.)
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, salt, and baking soda. With mixer on low speed, gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture alternately with crème fraîche, beginning and ending with flour mixture, beating just until combined after each addition and stopping to scrape sides of bowl. Fold in pears.
- Generously spray a 15-cup Nordic Ware Anniversary Bundt Pan with baking spray with flour. Spoon batter into prepared pan. Tap pan on counter several times to evenly spread batter and release any air bubbles. (Pan will be quite full, but batter will not overflow during baking.)
- Bake until a wooden pick inserted near center comes out clean and an instant-read thermometer registers 205°F (96°C) to 210°F (98°C), 1 hour and 10 minutes to 1 hour and 15 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking and loosely covering with foil to prevent excess browning, if necessary. Let cool in pan for 20 minutes. Using a small offset spatula, gently loosen cake from center and edges of pan. Invert cake onto a wire rack, and let cool completely.
- Spoon and spread Vanilla-Crème Fraîche Glaze onto cooled cake as desired. Serve immediately, or let stand until glaze is set, about 15 minutes.
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Vanilla-Crème Fraîche Glaze
Ingredients
- 1½ cups (180 grams) confectioners’ sugar
- 3 tablespoons (45 grams) crème fraîche
- 4 teaspoons (20 grams) heavy whipping cream
- 1 teaspoon (6 grams) vanilla bean paste
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, stir together all ingredients until smooth and well combined. Use immediately.
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