Westerwald pear cake

Ingredients for 1 servings:

• 70 g butter
• 50 g sugar
• 1 pinch of salt
• 1 egg(s)
• 150 g flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 liter of whipped cream
• 2 packets of pudding powder (chocolate pudding for cooking)
• 8 pear(s), not too ripe – small, pot-bellied varieties are best
• some lemon juice, freshly squeezed
• 2 packs of cake glaze, clear
• ½ liter pear juice or pear nectar

Instructions

Working time approx. 40 minutes; Rest time approx. 12 hours; Cooking/baking time approx. 1 hour 10 minutes; Total time approx. 13 hours 50 minutes

with chocolate cream

Combine the ingredients in the dough and line a greased springform pan with it. Press down evenly, gently pulling the edges up slightly with your fingers. If the dough is a bit unruly, simply add 1 tablespoon of milk to the dough already spread in the pan and smooth it out with the back of a spoon. Pre-bake at 220°C (gas mark 4-5) for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, peel and quarter the pears. Remove the cores with a small knife and sprinkle each pear quarter with a little freshly squeezed lemon juice to prevent them from browning. Otherwise, it won’t look as appetizing when cut later. For the cream, prepare the chocolate pudding according to the instructions, but be sure to use cream instead of milk. If you like, stir in a pinch of cinnamon for flavor. After pre-baking, remove the pan from the oven, reassemble the 8 pears from the quarters, and place them upright in the dough. Now spread the custard cream evenly over the cake and return it to the oven for another hour. Bake at approximately 180°C. The chocolate cream shouldn’t get too dark. Allow the cake to cool completely in the tin – ideally, later place it in the refrigerator and let it chill overnight. Prepare the glaze according to the instructions, using pear juice instead of water, and carefully cover the cake. Make sure the outer edges are also covered. The glaze protects the pears from mold, as experience has shown that the cake is more likely to mold in warm weather or during a thunderstorm where no glaze has been applied. The glaze also pleasantly rounds off the taste and appearance of this cake. After glazing, it’s best to place the cake in the refrigerator and only take it out shortly before serving. Always keep it in the refrigerator. This way it stays fresh the longest.