Pear upside down cake with sorghum, spice and everything nice

Perfect for breakfast

This a dense cake more along the lines of a coffee cake, perfect for breakfast or brunch. Those who aren’t familiar with sorghum are missing out. It’s a syrup made from a crop mainly grown in the South, at least in the states. It’s heaven on biscuits, and in cooking can be used as a fun, lighter (in flavor and color) alternative to molasses. Also, we did a test last winter, it’s slightly faster than molasses going uphill in January. For a lighter cake, reduce the flour by 1/4 cup.

Pear upside down cake

• 8 ounces butter
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 4 eggs, plus one egg yolk
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 3/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp allspice
• 1/4 tsp cloves
• 1 tbsp sorghum
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 pears, peeled, cored and sliced thin
• 1/4 cup sorghum
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• pinch of cinnamon sugar

In a small bowl, toss pears with 1/4 cup sorghum, 1 tbsp lemon juice and cinnamon sugar. Set aside. Preheat oven to 325. In the bowl of a stand mixer beat butter on medium high until light and creamy about a minute. Add in salt and brown sugar. Beat on medium high to incorporate. Beat in eggs one at a time, ending with the yolk and then the lemon juice. (Another minute or so.) Reduce the mixer speed and beat in flour and spices until incorporated. Line the bottom of a springform pan with parchment. Butter the sides of the pan and the parchment. Using a slotted spoon to drain off most of the excess juice, arrange pears on the bottom of the pan overlapping slightly in a circular pattern. Drop batter on top and smooth with a rubber spatula. It will be thick. Cook for about an hour or until a knife or toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.