Pear Spice Cake with Pecan Praline Topping

I made this on the weekend when we had friends over. Super yummy.

The original recipe called for walnuts instead of pecans - but I like pecans better, so I made the small change and it was great.

This is a perfect cold day dessert.

Pear Spice Cake with Pecan Praline Topping

Cake:

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 1/2 tsp ground allspice

1 1/2 tsp nutmeg

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup butter, softened

1 cup sugar

3 large eggs, separated

1 tsp vanilla

1 cup buttermilk

3 pears, peeled, cored and diced roughly

1 cup pecan pieces, toasted

Preheat oven to 350 F. Butter and flour bundt pan.

Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into a bowl.

Beat together butter, sugar, cinnamon, allspice and nutmeg in another bowl with an electric mixer until fluffy, about 3 minutes.

Add egg yolks 1 at a time, beating well after each addition, then beat in vanilla.

Reduce speed to low, then add flour mixture and buttermilk alternately in batches, mixing well after each addition.

Fold in pear and pecan pieces.

Beat egg whites together in another bowl with cleaned beaters until they just hold stiff peaks, then fold whiles into batter but thoroughly.

Spoon batter into pan, smoothing top, and bake until a wooden pick or skewer comes out clean, 40 to 50 minutes.

Cool cake in pan on rack 10 minutes, then invert onto rack and cool completly.

(Mine took 60 mintues to cook - not sure if that is the altitude or not?)

Pecan Praline Topping

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup butter

1/4 cup whipping cream

1 cup pecan pieces, toasted

Stir brown sugar, whipping cream and butter in heavy saucepan over medium-high heat until smooth.

Boil 3 minutes, sturring often. Stir in pecan pieces.

Spoon warm topping over cake.

I added a nice dollop of whipped cream - I had to buy the whipping cream for the recipe - I could not let it go to waste.

Source: adapted from Joy the Baker - her source - adapted from Gourment December 1992