Pear and Gingerbread Loaf Cake

Ingredients - serves 8

Poached Pears 

3 to 4 pears, depending on size, to fit snug in a 1lb loaf tin 

1 large orange, the zest and juice 

1 lemon, the zest and juice 

Few strips root ginger skin 

1 tsp cloves 

200g white sugar 

2 sticks cinnamon snapped into four 

Loaf Cake 

1 large free range egg 

95g unsalted butter 

95g dark muscovado sugar 

95g golden syrup 

3 stem ginger balls, chopped finely then crushed  

1 tbsp ground ginger 

½ tsp mixed spice 

1 tsp baking powder 

100ml whole milk 

125g plain flour 

Method 

To make this delicious cake, first poach your pears. Peel the pears leaving the stalks on and cutting off the bottom so they sit flat, then place in a large saucepan with enough water to cover them. Remove the pears and squeeze the lemon juice over to stop them going brown and set aside. Place the orange and lemon zest and orange juice in the saucepan of water along with the sugar, cloves and cinnamon sticks.  

 Bring to a gentle simmer making sure the sugar has dissolved before adding the pears and cooking for ten minutes or until the pears are cooked. Remove the pears from the heat and leave to cool on some kitchen roll. 

 Now make the loaf. Preheat your oven to gas mark 4/160c. In another saucepan place your brown sugar, butter, golden syrup and stem ginger paste. Gently stir over a low heat until the butter has melted and the ingredients have mixed together before leaving to cool for five minutes. Now carefully whisk in your milk and the egg.  

 In a large mixing bowl place your flour, ground ginger, mixed spice and baking powder. Make a well in the middle and gently pour in your wet mixture, then mix well.  

 Now dust the cooled pears with a little plain flour and line a 1lb loaf tin with greaseproof paper allowing it to overhang so you can easily get the cake out. Sit the pears in the tin and pour the cake mixture around the pears. Bake for 40 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tin for five minutes before removing the cake and placing on a cooling rack to cool completely. Serve with a lovely cup of tea or warmed with custard for pudding.