by fiveandspice
View
my 113 other recipes »
Annie "Smalls"'s Testing Notes:
Expand Collapsefiveandspice's Notes:
Expand
1 1/2 cup
all purpose flour
Ask the
hotline about
this ingredient!
2 teaspoons
baking powder
Ask the
hotline about
this ingredient!
1/4 teaspoon
salt
Ask the
hotline about
this ingredient!
1 cup
plain, whole milk yogurt
Ask the
hotline about
this ingredient!
1 cup
sugar
Ask the
hotline about
this ingredient!
3
large eggs
Ask the
hotline about
this ingredient!
1/2 teaspoon
vanilla extract
Ask the
hotline about
this ingredient!
1/2 cup
canola oil
Ask the
hotline about
this ingredient!
1
large pear, ripe but still firm, cored and cut into small pieces (leave the skin on)
Ask the
hotline about
this ingredient!
1/2 cup
bittersweet (dark) chocolate chunks (good quality, please)
Ask the
hotline about
this ingredient!
Preheat your oven to 350F and grease an 8 inch loaf pan with butter. In a small bowl combine all the dry ingredients (flour through salt). In medium bowl, whisk together the sugar, eggs and vanilla until smooth. Whisk in the yogurt. Then, stir in the dry ingredients, a bit at a time, until well blended. Finally, use a rubber scraper to fold the oil into the batter until it is fully incorporated.
Ask the hotline about this step!Pour about one-third of the batter into the greased loaf pan. Sprinkle 2/3s of the pear pieces and the chocolate chunks all over the batter. Then, scrape the rest of the batter on top of this and gently spread it smooth. Sprinkle the rest of the pear and chocolate over the top of the loaf and gently press all the pieces down into the batter to partially submerge them.
Ask the hotline about this step!Bake in the middle of the oven until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean – 55-60 minutes or so. Then, take the cake out of the oven and let it sit for about 5 minutes. Run a knife around the edge of the pan to loosen the cake. Carefully turn the cake out of the pan, and then put it upright on a cooling rack to cool the rest of the way. Serve slightly warm or at room temperature. The cake will keep for several days (refrigerate if it’s more than 2 days), and slices are delicious lightly toasted before eating. Serve with sweetened whipped cream.
Ask the hotline about this step!Thank you CS! I'm absolutely thrilled you liked it. And quite impressed with your ability to bake at high altitudes! I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving!
I really love this cake - have made it a couple of times now (it's perfect for using up plain yogurt and over-ripe pears, both of which I always seem to have too much of!) and it is SO delicious - thanks for sharing a great recipe!
Thank you! I'm glad you like it so much. And especially glad that it makes a good home for your extra pears and yogurt!
This cake is so handsome! I made it last night with fat-free yogurt, because that's what was in the house, and I baked it in a round cake pan instead of a loaf pan. The rise was less impressive in the cake pan, but still, a beautiful and delicious cake! (Also, so very glad that I followed the recommendation to not feel guilty about eating this cake for breakfast - it has been the highlight of my day so far!) Thanks for sharing!
I'm so psyched to hear that! And, very, very happy that you threw aside any feelings of guilt and had it for breakfast. We're having company this weekend, and I think I'm putting this cake on the brunch menu!
I made this very late last night and enjoyed some warm out of the oven and then again this morning with coffee. You are right, it was not at all difficult to convince myself that it can and should be enjoyed at any time of day. The contrast of the soft, sweet pears and dark chocolate is so good and to add the moist cake - yum. Thank you for another wonderful recipe!
I'm so happy to hear you enjoyed it gingerroot! Hmmm, I wouldn't say no to a little piece right now (even though I just downed another gelato, oops!). :)
Only the oil needs to be folded in by hand, or very slowly with a paddle attachment, in my experience.
Just made this with freshly picked VT Bosc pears, YUM! Reading over the recipe, I realized I forgot to add the oil, however the cake still turned out beautifully moist, so if you're out of oil, watching calories, whatever the situation may be, it can still work without it.
Interesting to know! I add the oil because it adds that extra crackle and sheen to the top crust, and for a bit of extra moistness, but it can be great to have a dessert where you can also cut back a bit!
Question: does the yogurt get added with the sugar, eggs and vanilla? I didn't see a specific step for the addition of yogurt...
Thanks! Looks awesome.
Oh my! Yes, it does! I can't believe none of us have noticed up until now that it didn't specifically say that. Thanks for noticing!
A question: How firm do the pears stay after baking? My husband is not a pear fan (a character flaw, ya' think?). But he is a huge dark chocolate fan. If the pears are indistiguishable, he might like it. Would sweet apples work, to counteract the bitter chocolate taste? Advice, please. :-)
The pears cook to be pretty soft, but they have a distinct taste. You could try sweet apples, the flavor might not go quite as well as pears. You could also put in some type of berries, maybe?
I have made this three times now and everybody in my family loves it! I like to make it at night time when the kids are asleep, enjoy it then and keep the rest for breakfast!
I'm thrilled to hear it!!!
I am so glad I have a bake sale coming up! This is definitely going to get made, with a little held behind for my husband and me. Or maybe just for me :-)
:) !!
Love this cake, especially the addition of dark chocolate! PS - don't know why I missed this before
Thank you lapadia! And, it's surprisingly easy to miss things, with so many amazing recipes to catch your eye (including your gorgeous tart!), don't you think?
Thanks EmilyC! I'm glad you think so!
Thank you sdebrango!
Yum! If I didn't have work to do, I'd march into the kitchen right now and bake this.
Yeah, we all need to quit these darn day jobs, eh? Hehe.
Seriously, you had me at pear and dark chocolate. Add the yogurt cake and I see how it could be dangerous...I am saving and look forward to eating this for breakfast (twist my arm) soon.
Just let me know if you need someone to give your arm just that little extra twist ;).
Gorgeous! You know, I could so dunk this into some hot chocolate. ;)
Oh holy cow! That would be amazing!
Mollie is the best-selling author of many (mostly) vegetarian cookbooks, including the original Moosewood Cookbook, The Enchanted Broccoli Forest, and a trilogy of cookbooks for kids. Her most recent title is Get Cooking : 150 Simple Recipes to Get You Started in the Kitchen.
This was amazing, 5%S. I served this with dinner tonight and it was a solid hit!! I made some changes because I was cooking it at 7000 feet above sea level, and it was just perfect. So many people wanted the recipe at the end of the night. It's my new favorite cake. Happy Thanksgiving!