Tea Poached Pears, Ginger and Banana Cake

The pears have been calling out at me for the past 2 weeks, they’re too old for munching but are perfect for a cake. There is also an over-ripe banana sitting in the fruit bowl waiting to turn black. Well, frugality aside, the cake is nice and spicy with the addition of ginger and treacle.

Ingredients

2 cups water

2 medium Packham pears, peeled, quartered lengthwise, and cored

2 Earl Grey teabags

4 tbsp raw sugar

1 vanilla pod, halved and scraped

70g butter, melted

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1 ½ cup self raising flour, sifted

½ cup almond meal

2 tbsp treacle

1 tbsp ground ginger

¾ cup brown sugar

1 mashed ripe banana

Method

1.          Boil 2 cups of water. Add the teabags, sugar and vanilla seeds and pod. Reduce heat to a simmer; poach the pears in tea for about 10 minutes, until just soft.

2.          Preheat oven to 170°C.

3.          In a large bowl, add all the dry ingredients together.

4.          Add eggs, treacle, mashed bananas and melted butter to the dry ingredients and mix until combined.

5.          Add a bit of the cooled pear poaching liquid if it is too dry.

6.          Pour into a round pan and insert the drained poached pears in a circle.

7.          Bake for 35minutes in 170°C oven.

Can you spot the cat?