Upside-Down Pear Gingerbread
Let your pears ripen on the counter until slightly soft to the touch, about 3-5 days.
-For the syrup, in a small saucepan combine the following…
¼ cup brown sugar, 2 TBS white sugar, 1 TBS butter and 1 TBS water.
-Stir together over low heat until butter melts, then pour the syrup into a 8 x 8 glass baking dish.
-Peel, core and slice enough pears so that you have about 1 heaping cup.
-Arrange on top of the syrup.
-Stir together then set aside the following:
1 cup flour
½ cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground ginger
½ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp ground nutmeg
¼ tsp ground allspice
A big pinch of sea salt
-In a mixing bowl beat together until light and fluffy:
1/3 cup softened butter
-Add in 2 eggs and beat another minute.
-Measure ½ cup molasses or honey and ½ cup buttermilk.
-Take turns adding the molasses/honey and buttermilk into the batter until all is incorporated.
-Spoon the batter over the pears in the baking dish.
-Bake 30-35 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the cake comes out clean.
-Let cool about 5 minutes then turn onto a platter.
-Serve warm or cold with whipped cream.