Pink Lemonade Mini Bundt Cakes

Needed:

• 1 cup flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• pinch of salt
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 2 egg whites
• 1/3 cup thawed frozen pink lemonade concentrate
• 1/4 cup buttermilk

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease and flour mini bundt pan. In a small bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, oil, egg whites, and lemonade concentrate.Alternately whisk in flour mixture and buttermilk, beating until just smooth. Scoop batter into prepared bundt pan. Fill about 3/4 full.Bake in preheated oven for 15-20 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean. Let cake cool before removing from pan. If cake sticks to the pan, carefully run a knife around cake’s edges to release.

This recipe makes 12 mini bundt cakes or 9 cupcakes (for cupcakes increase baking time to 20-25 minutes).

Lemonade Glaze

• 1 cup confectioner’s sugar
• 2 tbsp pink lemonade concentrate

Mix sugar and lemonade together. Immediately drizzle over bundt cakes. Enjoy this refreshing treat!

Just in case you want to know, here are a few things we’ve eaten lately that were especially delicious…

• Baked Doughnuts with this glaze.  We made these on a snowy Tuesday morning when D’s work schedule was wacky, and we had time to make a ‘special breakfast’ (anything beyond cereal is usually reserved for the weekend).  I love these doughnuts for many reasons, mostly because they are incredibly delicious, but also because the only flour they use is whole wheat pastry flour.  The recipe only makes six doughnuts, and we can easily eat all of them in one sitting.  Love how they melt in my mouth…mmm.

Some with glaze, some without. Definitely recommend the glaze, though.

• Peanut Butter Banana Chocolate Chip Brownies.  These are easy and quite tasty.  They use a bit of whole wheat pastry flour (always a plus) and are much different from classic brownies.  We made these for a meeting we had planned with our Mormon missionary friends, but they got sick and had to cancel, which meant D and I ate them (the brownies, not the missionaries) all by ourselves…oops.
• Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bundt Cake.  This was my first bundt cake, which I was pretty excited about, and the taste was good.  My execution of getting it out of the pan, however, was not stellar, because I put it straight onto a cooling rack…a.k.a. most of it crumbled through the slats.  However, it was yummy, and the missionaries approved, as did our Indian friends Lalit and Anvesh, who do not eat eggs (thus our vegan food is right up their alley).
• Banana and Oatmeal Pancakes.  These ended up being our most perfect looking pancakes to date, and tasty too!  I love that they’re composed primarily of bananas, oats, and non-dairy milk, and only a half cup of flour.  Made entirely in our food processor too!
• Baked Cinnamon Sugar Donuts.  While not quite as healthy as our first donut attempt, these were still a delight, and made nine more, so that was a major bonus.  They’re also a bit more time intensive, from the making of the batter to a longer baking time (plus three batches to go in the oven instead of) to brushing melted ‘butter’ on them and dipping them in cinnamon sugar.  They are quite filling though, and really, really delicious, so we heartily recommend these!
• No-Bake Peanut Butter Pie with an Oreo Crust.  It would seem that the primary purpose for my desserts these days is to feed our Mormon missionary friends when they come over…and I suppose it’s true.  At least I’m not making this much dessert for just the two of us, right?!  Anyways, I made this yesterday, and it is real treat.  Only 3-4 tablespoons of sugar, with lots of banana and peanut butter goodness, this will surely become a favorite.  And the missionaries loved it.  Side note: my Oreo crust (okay, we actually used WhoNu?s instead of Oreos because we adore them) didn’t turn out that great.  In fact, although there’s only one piece of pie left, the whole bottom on the pie plate is covered with crumbs from the crust.  D can probably help me out with that thought…

I haven’t listened any ‘real’ food because all of our dinners come from The Vegan Menu, and our lunches are almost always leftovers of our dinners.  Breakfast is typically cereal during the week, and ‘special breakfasts’ (pancakes, waffles, doughnuts, etc.) on the weekends.  However, some of our favorite dinners in the past couple weeks were pasta with rapini, mushroom soup with arugula, black bean enchiladas, curried lentil stew, and baked ziti with peppers.

***All recipes mentioned are vegan, just so you know

This is my Niece, Nadja’s Perfect Yoghurt Cake recipe. The only thing I really adapted was that I used more gelatine to make sure the filling was firm enough to hold the weight of a second layer and changed the name so my picky eaters wouldn’t be dissuaded from trying it. This cake was delicious and incredibly light!

To start preheat the oven to 350°F and grease or spray your Bundt pan.

To make the cake: Separate 4 large egg whites from the yolks. Beat the egg whites until stiff in a medium bowl, set aside. In a large bowl whisk together 250g all-purpose flour, 1tsp baking powder, the zest of 1 lemon and a pinch of salt. Then make a small well in the middle of the flour and add 200g sugar, the egg yolks, 1tbl vanilla extract and 1/2cup of each, vegetable oil and water. Whisk gently to combine. Then very gently fold in the egg whites, in thirds. Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake until golden brown, 30-35 minutes. Cool 10-15 minutes then invert onto a cooling rack. You want to cool the cake completely before assembling it. I actually refrigerated it overnight to make sure it was firm, which made it very easy to cut in half. Then made the filling the next day when I was ready to assemble it.

To make the filling and fruit topping: Mix 3tbl sugar with 4cups fruit* and set aside for about 20 minutes to macerate. Whisk together 16oz Greek yoghurt**, 1tbl vanilla extract and 2/3cup powdered sugar until the sugar is dissolved. Dissolve 2 envelopes of gelatine in 1/4cup warm water, about 10 minutes. Then heat it over a double boiler with the juice of 2 lemons until melted. Let it cool for 5-10 minutes then add it to the yoghurt mixture. Set that aside and whip 1cup heavy whipping cream until it’s stiff. Then very gently fold in the whipped cream, in thirds into the yoghurt mixture.

To assemble: Trim the very top off the cake then cut it in half and place the bottom half on your serving dish. Brush both of the cake tops with the juice from the macerated fruit. Spoon a little over half the filling on the bottom of the cake and spread it to the edges. Put the top of the cake on then the remaining filling. Garnish with the fruit.

This cake is best served room temperature and I think it was actually better on the 2nd and 3rd day.  Thanks again Cause Baking Makes Happy for the recipe!

Cook’s Note:

* I used 2cups each thawed, frozen strawberries and blueberries. The blueberries were our favorite.

** I used Greek yoghurt because I like it better but feel free to use the regular stuff.

Ingredients

Cake

1/2cup vegetable oil

1/2cup water

4 large eggs, separated

200g sugar

1tbl vanilla extract

zest of 1 lemon

250g all-purpose flour

1tsp baking powder

pinch of salt

Filling and fruit topping

16oz plain Greek yoghurt

2/3cup powdered sugar

1tbl vanilla extract

1cup heavy whipping cream

2 envelopes gelatine

1/4cup warm water

juice of 2 lemons

4cups fresh or (thawed) frozen fruit of your choice

3tbl sugar

What a beautiful California weekend! I am very thankful for sunny skies and warm, yet crisp, weather. We spent all day Saturday on a hike, starting at one of my favorite SF spots – the Lyon Steps in Pacific Heights. Just going up those stairs once is an amazing workout and a stunning view at the top to make it all worth it. From there, we weave into the Presidio, past the new Presidio Inn, onto the Ecology trail. You all of a sudden are in the woods yet hundreds of feet from the city.  The trail then takes you through the Presidio Golf Course and down Park Trail to Crissy Field. Nearly 8 miles later, ending up at the Palace of Fine Arts.

Today, we ventured across the bridge to Oakland, starting with brunch at Pican Restaurant. We indulged in fried chicken eggs Benedict, a philly waffle and biscuits.  Everything was delicious and we didn’t feel too bad since we spent the day before hiking and the morning riding nearly 5 miles on the bike at the Y. Oh – we also had the Bourbon Bloody Mary with bacon and shrimp I wore my bright red pants from Jeremy’s Department Store in South Park, paired with an eagle t-shirt from Lucky Brand and my Banana Republic Blazer. And last but not least, sandals from Zara. We then drove 10 miles down the road to Montclaire – a very cute neighborhood of Oakland. Tree-lined streets and up the hill, houses amongst the redwood trees! Definitely a great spot for some fashion photos.

For the Sunday Bundt Cake, I went with the Maple Walnut.  I love how maple syrup reminds me of mornings growing up and the weekends. A lazy day around the house enjoying homemade pancakes or waffles with maple syrup. The walnuts are toasted and then added to the bundt cake and it’s finished off with a maple glaze.

XO.

I was browsing Pinterest for ideas, it’s an addiction, and I found a recipe for a strawberry bundt cake that uses Greek yogurt, on this page. There were some things that I didn’t have, so I made some adjustments, but it came out so good that I had to share!

I forgot to take pictures while I was making it, oops! Toddlers can be so distracting when they are trying to climb stairs!

I think this cake would make for a good breakfast because it has everything you need: berries, citrus, yogurt, and of course a little sugar! The yogurt and berries make it healthy though, right? It also makes a great dessert!

Ingredients:
2 1/4 cups flour, plus 1/4 cup and more for dusting the pan
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 cups sugar
1 cup butter, plus some to grease pan
1 cup Greek yogurt (plain or vanilla)
3 eggs
Zest of one orange
4 tablespoons orange juice (I used fresh squeezed from the orange I zested)
12 oz fresh strawberries, diced
2 cups powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 375. Grease a bundt pan with butter and then coat with flour, tapping out the excess flour.

In a small bowl, whisk together the 2 1/4 cup flour, salt, and baking soda. Then mix in the orange zest and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, blend the sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time and beating well after each addition. Then mix in 1 tablespoon orange juice.

Beat in the yogurt and flour, alternating between the two until well combined.

Gently mix the 1/4 cup of flour with the strawberries.

Fold strawberries into the batter. I used a spatula instead of the electric mixer for this step so that the berries wouldn’t get damaged.

Pour batter into bundt pan. Place in oven and then reduce heat to 325. Bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Let cool in pan for 30 minutes, then turn out onto wire rack to finish cooling.

Optional glaze:
In a small bowl mix 3 tablespoons orange juice with 2 cups powdered sugar. Pour glaze over cake.

A few futile attempts and some torturous powerless days later, we finally managed to have the electricity issue resolved and I could finally turn on the fans. I went down on my knees to fervently thank the gods of electricity. Then very cautiously I decided to try turning on my laptop and it WORKED. I was thrilled and then I pushed my luck and turned on the oven and hallelujah the Oven WORKED. MY OVEN WAS BACK FROM THE DEAD!!! I was beyond ecstatic. Since I was home alone, celebrating with Champagne wasn’t going to be fun (also because there was no Champagne at home). I did the second best thing to popping a champagne bottle, baked a cake!. Of course you can count on me to be soo predictable.

I lieu of the Holi (the Indian Festival of colors) that we hadn’t celebrated the previous day (all thanks to the Power situation), I chose the Triple Berry Bundt Cake recipe from Smitten Kitchen to bring some spring color into my life. The original recipe calls for Blueberries, Rasberries and Blackberries (none of which I had on hand). Last I checked blueberries were either not available or cost a bomb in that one place where they were. I’ve never seen Rasberries or even blackberries in my city. So I tweaked the recipe to suit what I had on hand. Mulberries (that were threatening to die on me), Strawberries some tinned Pineapple. These fruits weren’t the ideal replacement for the original fruit but they worked alrite to make a lovely summer cake that is oh-so-gratifying when you bite into it as soon as you take it out of the fridge (where I recommend you store it). The cake doesn’t look as colorful as Deb’s because the purple color from the Mulberries drowned the pink/red from strawberries and the pineapple. In fact, when I ate it first, I was a tad disappointed but the next day when I ate it right after taking it out of the fridge, it was the most soothing thing I did for my stomach! It’s soft, has a delicate crumb and the intermittent sprinkling of fruit in the cake makes it the ideal Summer cake. I skipped the glaze as I didn’t believe any added sugar was necessary for this beautiful summer cake, but you could choose to add it for the added lemony flavor.

What You Need:

• 2 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons Aluminium-free baking powder
• 1 teaspoon fine salt
• 225 grams unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
• Zest of 1 lemon
• 3 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup (175 ml) buttermilk (add vinegar to whole milk and let stand for 10 minutes)
• 3 cups (400 grams) mixed fruit (I used Mulberries, Strawberries and Pineapple)

How You Make It:

1. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt together
2. With an electronic hand-mixer, in a large bowl, cream the sugar and butter together for 5 minutes. Add the lemon zest and mix again
3. Preheat the oven to 180 degree C
4. Beat the eggs separately and then add a little bit of the flour alternating with a little bit of the beaten eggs till all the eggs are incorporated.
5. Alternate the flour with buttermilk till both of them are used up
6. Add the vanilla
7. Fold in the berries and fruit and mix into the batter
8. Grease a bundt tin. Make sure to grease your tin well as this cake does have a tendency to stick when you try to take it out
9. Bake for 50-60 minutes and till the cake is done
10. Take it out of the oven and let it cool for 30 minutes before you try to invert it onto a rack

This is an extremely pretty cake and the perfect one to break in my new Nordicware Bundt mould. I’d rather eat this than have a glass of champagne.

Happy Baking!

Makes a 9 Inch Tube Cake

1 Pkg. Active Dry Yeast

2 Tbsp. Lukewarm Water

2 Tbsp. Sugar

½ Tsp. Salt

¼ Cup Crisco

½ Cup Hot Milk

2 to 2 ½ Cups Sifted Flour

1 Egg

¼ Cup Crisco, Melted

¾ Cup Brown Sugar

1 Tsp. Cinnamon

½ Cup Finely Chopped Pecans

½ Cup Pecan Halves

½ Cup Seedless Raisins

1. Soften yeast in water for 5 minutes; stir until blended.
2. Measure granulated sugar, salt and ¼ cup Crisco into a mixing bowl.
3. Stir in hot milk; break Crisco into lumps.
4. Cool to lukewarm.
5. Stir in 1 cup flour; beat about 100 strokes, until batter is smooth and elastic.
6. Blend in yeast and egg.
7. Stir in another 1 cup flour, then work in enough more flour to make a dough that doesn’t stick to your fingers.
8. Turn into lightly floured surface and knead about 100 strokes.
9. Place dough on a greased bowl and spread surface with Crisco.
10. Cover and let rise until double in bulk, about 1 ½ hours.

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By Frances

When asking a non Disney addict, “Would you like to share a kitchen sink with me?”, the answer will probably be a strange look. Seriously who in their right mind would eat something called a place that you wash babies in when they are covered in spaghetti! Well, my family absolutely ate the Kitchen Sink that can be found at Beaches & Cream restaurant located at the Disney’s Beach Club Resort. And none of us regret it!

What is the Kitchen Sink?

8 scoops of ice cream — including vanilla, chocolate, strawberry, coffee, and mint chocolate chip

Angel Food Cake

Bundt Cake,

Brownies

Oreos

Milky Way Candy bar pieces

Peanut Butter

Hot Fudge

Strawberry, Butterscotch, and Caramel sauces

Bananas

Cherries

Sprinkles

And a whole can of whipped cream.

When you order it, they turn on the emergency lights and make a huge announcement to the room! It’s awesome!

At close to $25, it’s an expensive dessert. But divide it wit a few friends and the memory is worth every penny.

We gathered this year for Easter at my mom and dad’s. Two of my three sisters were able to make it, along with my cousin and her parents. I was asked to bring dessert, so I decided on an Easter rainbow cake and a chocolate lasagna.

I modified the Easter rainbow cake from the original recipe. I didn’t have the time, patience or tastebuds for the coconut “grass”.  So I used this instruction method, starting with a yellow cake recipe. The second cake mix was white, which was dyed pink and purple using McCormick neon dyes.  I used yellow dye and the same pink and purple neon dyes for the frostings.

Easter rainbow cake

The cake was a hit. My niece Callie really enjoyed it:

Callie and Easter Rainbow Cake

Here’s what the inside looked like. Each time you make this cake, the inside looks unique.

Easter Rainbow Cake Inside

Easter rainbow cake inside 2

I also made a chocolate lasagna. My uncle is allergic to eggs, so he was able to enjoy this instead of the cake.

Chocolate Lasagna

Chocolate Lasagna inside

Everyone enjoyed both dishes!

I’m a huge fan of grapefruit, so I was excited to see it in a baked good which is unusual.  However, if you’re not a fan of grapefruit, I still think you’d like this cake.  It has just the right amount of citrus flavor, but the sweetness of the cake balances it perfectly.  My only complaint was that it was a bit crumbly, it definitely didn’t taste dry, but it didn’t hold together as much as I would have liked.  Next time I’ll try using the full 8oz of cream cheese to see if that will help keep it together.  Definitely don’t wait a year to make this, take advantage of the last of the grapefruit this season and make this!  It’s perfect for a casual get together, or a light dessert (or breakfast).  

Grapefruit Bundt Cake

Serves 10-12

Adapted from Cooking Light January/February 2012 issue

• 9 oz (about 2 cups) all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 6 Tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature
• 6oz reduced fat cream cheese, room temperature
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 1 grapefruit zested (about 2 Tbsp)
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup reduced fat milk (I used fat free with a dash of half & half)

Preheat oven to 325°F.  Grease a bundt pan generously with cooking spray.

In a bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt and mix well.

In a separate bowl, beat together sugar, butter and cream cheese until light and fluffy.  Add eggs one at a time.  Beat in oil, grapefruit zest and vanilla.

Alternate beating in flour mixture and milk, ending with flour.  Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 55-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out with a few moist crumbs clinging to it.  Cool in pan for about 10 minutes, then turn cake out and allow to cool completely.

Chocolate Bundt Cake with Cream Cheese Filling

It’s so embarrassing to admit, but if I were on a desert island and I could only have one meal it would definitely be a cheeseburger and fries, and chocolate cake, of course. I really only said the cheeseburger and fries for health purposes because I would want to eat a protein and vegetable before I indulged in chocolate cake.

This particular Chocolate Bundt Cake with Cream Cheese  Filling is one of my all time favorites. Chocolate cake all by itself is pretty great, add a creamy, cheesy filling and a sweet white and semi-sweet chocolate glaze and there you have it, perfection. Okay, so it’s just my idea perfection. It’s a little early, but I’m giving you a heads up for Mother’s Day and Father’s Day brunches. I always make this cake for those holiday’s and have not had an unhappy customer yet. I store this cake loosely covered in the fridge, and it actually taste better after being refrigerated.

Chocolate Bundt Cake with Cream Cheese Filling

Chocolate Bundt Cake with Cream Cheese Filling

From “Land O Lakes”

Cream Cheese Filling

• 1/4 cup sugar
• 8 ounce package of cream cheese, softened
• 1 large egg, room temp
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Chocolate Cake Batter

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temp
• 1 cup water
• 3 large eggs, room temp
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Glaze

• 2 ounces white chocolate
• 3 teaspoons shortening
• 2 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F, and using a pastry brush and melted butter, generously grease and flour your 12-cup bundt pan. I purchased a silicone bundt pan which I just lightly coat with cooking spray. I love the silicone pans because the cake literally falls out of the pan without leaving those pesky bits of cake behind.
2. To make your filling:  place all the filling ingredients in a small bowl and beat on low speed until very smooth. Scrape down the bowl periodically to incorporate all the ingredients. Set aside.
3. To make the cake batter: place all the cake ingredients in a large bowl, and begin mixing on low speed to incorporate all the ingredients. Increase the speed to medium and beat for 2-3 minutes until batter is smooth.
4. Pour a little over half the batter into your prepared bundt pan. With a large spoon place dollops of the cream cheese filling on top of the batter being careful not to touch the sides of the pan. Then gently pour the remaining batter over.
5. Bake for 50-60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool your cake in the pan for about 30 minutes. Before you glaze the cake, let it cool completely.
6. To make the glaze: take 2 ounces of white chocolate plus 1 1/2 teaspoons of shortening and melt in microwave. Then take 2 ounces of chocolate chips plus 1 1/2 teaspoons of shortening and melt in microwave. Stir melted chocolate until very smooth and drizzling consistency.
7. Store cake refrigerated.

Chocolate Bundt Cake with Cream Cheese Fillin

Mama’s Tips:

You can always melt your chocolate by the double boiler method, but for myself, I prefer to melt it in the microwave. Start with 25 seconds, take it out and stir, putting it back in the microwave and decreasing the amount of seconds each time and stirring after each increment. Remember, chocolate burns very easily, and burnt chocolate makes me very sad.

If you don’t already have one, you might want to invest in a silicone bundt pan. I have metal and teflon coated bundt pans, however no matter how well I greased and floured those pans somehow there was always bits of cake that stuck to the pan. I don’t know about you, but I want a gorgeous cake.

Chocolate Bundt Cake with Cream Cheese Filling

Recipe: Easy

Last week, my grandma requested that I make my Avocado Chocolate Cake for her PEO meeting, and of course (loving baking the way I do) I complied. But I wanted to make it extra pretty for the event (especially since people beyond my family would be eating it), so I decided to use a lovely, old-fashioned bundt pan and a glaze rather than a frosting. And the lovely strawberries, blackberries, and kiwis were just the added pop of color the cake needed to take it to the caliber spring cake requires.

Chocolate Greek Yogurt Glaze (perfect for a really pretty version of my Avocado Chocolate Cake)

INGREDIENTS:

1/3 heaping cup chocolate chips, melted
1/3 cup nutella
2/3 cup Greek yogurt
2/3 cup powdered sugar
2 tsp vanilla
pinch of salt

METHOD:

Melt chocolate chips. Add nutella, yogurt, vanilla, and salt to bowl of melted chocolate, and blend with mixer until well combined. Slowly add in powdered sugar. Enjoy on cake, brownies, or as a fruit dip.

This is a great recipe to use up an overabundance of pears during the fall season. Bring it into your workplace, your school, or just eat it all at home. This recipe fit perfectly in a 10 cup bundt pan, but would also work well in 2 loaf pans.

When I think of this bread the memories of fall just come flying back to me. The crisp fall air, the colors, as well as the occasional snowstorm, if we’re lucky. Fall in Colorado can mean anything, however it typically means 90 degree weather, which is a nice cool down from the 100 degree summers we’ve been having. So that crisp fall air I mentioned? Yeah, that happens maybe for one week until November-ish.

We do typically get at least a snow/slush/rain storm on exactly Halloween, which means wet and cold children in heavy costumes Trick or Treating. I blame a few things for our unpredictable weather. The fact that half of the State’s population lives on the other side of the mountains, so we get the remnants of whatever the mountains spit out. It’s also because we are in an arid environment, just think Arizona with snow.

Unfortunately what most people see are what the Tourism industry markets on TV, and what draws people are our mountains and snow. Anyways, back to the pear bread! It reminds me of fall, regardless of if we get to experience a “true” fall or not.

I love bundt pans, and more specifically, I love Nordic Ware bundt pans. Nordic Ware partnered with Williams Sonoma to createt his lovely pan called the Heritage Bundt Pan, which can be found here. Like with most things you get what you pay for, and I truly believe that with bakeware. I have never had an issue with mixes sticking to my pans.

If you use cake box mixes then you may find sticking issues, the reason is because box mixes are supposed to be light and fluffy. Bundt pans are meant for dense mixes. Well, enough with my rambling, I hope you enjoy the recipe for this pear bread as much as I did.

Pear Bread

• 3 c. all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tbsp. ground cinnamon
• 1 c. chopped walnuts
• 3/4 c. softened butter OR or 3/4 c. vegetable oil
• 3 eggs, lightly beaten
• 2 c. sugar
• 2 c. peeled and finely grated ripe but firm pears
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract

Heat the oven to 350°F and lightly grease and flour a 10-inch tube pan or two 9-by-5-inch loaf pans.

Combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon in a large mixing bowl, and stir with a whisk to mix everything well. Stir the nuts into the dry mixture and set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine the butter or oil, eggs, sugar, grated pear, and vanilla, and stir to mix everything well. Scrape the pear mixture into the flour mixture and stir just until the flour disappears and the batter is evenly moistened.

Pour batter into the prepared pans and bake at 350°F for 60 to 70 minutes, or until the bread is golden brown and firm on top and a wooden skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.

Cool the bread in the pan on a wire rack or folded kitchen towel for about 10 minutes. Then turn it out onto a plate or a wire rack to cool completely, top side up.

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