The perfect fall cake, this pear and sweet potato up-side down cake is the ideal cake for getting together in your home or to take with you to a gathering.
The sweet potato cake is one of the most tender and moist cakes you will ever eat. You can use the cake recipe and bake it in two round cake pans for a layer cake with cream cheese or vanilla frosting.
But I decided to turn it into an upside-down cake and top it with caramelized pears and walnuts for a bit of crunch.
I hope you try this cinnamon and cardamom spiced sweet potato cake topped with sweet pears. You are going to love it.
Pear and Sweet Potato Upside-Down Cake
Most and tender sweet potato cake topped with caramelized pears and crunchy walnuts
Ingredients
Sweet potatoes
- 3 medium sweet potatoes
Dry ingredients
- 2½ cups flour all purpose or cake
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp cinnamon
- 1 tbsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp cardamom
Wet ingredients
- 2 sticks unsalted butter
- 2 cups sugar
- 3 eggs
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup buttermilk
Topping
- ⅓ cup butter
- ½ cup packed brown sugar
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 3-4 bosc pears peeled and sliced into ½-inch slices or pear of you choice
- 1 cup chopped walnuts
Instructions
Sweet Potatoes
- Wash sweet potatoes and rub with oil, sprinkle with salt, and roast at 400° for 45 minutes
- When cool, peel and puree in a food processor or mash with a potato masher
- Set aside
dry ingredients
- Add all dry ingredients to a bowl and whisk well
Wet ingredients
- Cream butter and sugar together for at least 3 minutes until light and fluffy
- Add eggs one at a time beating to combine after each egg
- Add vanilla and sweet potatoes and combine
- Set aside
Topping
- In a 9 by 13 inch cast iron or baking dish, or a round 12 inch cast iron
- Heat pan over medium heat and add the butter
- When the butter is melted, add the brown sugar and maple syrup, stirring to combine
- Turn off the heat and arrange your pears evenly and tucked in close together
- Top with the walnuts if using
- Set aside
Wet and dry together
- Combine the dry ingredients with the wet by alternating the dry ingredients with the buttermilk, starting and ending with the dry ingredients
Putting it all together
- Pour the batter over the pears and smooth it out
- Tap the pan on the counter a few times to remove any air pockets
- Bake in a 350° degree oven for 40 to 50 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean
- Remove to a cooling rack and let cool for 15 minutes
- Place a plate or serving platter over the cake and flip
- Remove the pan and let the cake cool before cutting it
- If you lose a few pears in the pan, place them back on the cake
- You can serve this cake on its own or with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!