Images by Yasmin
I recently bought a tray of 15 strawberry punnets and decided that in addition to eating them whole, I would bake some. In the fruit bowl was a ripe pear so I decided to combine the two fruits in a crumble cake; the result was delicious. This was definitely a job of procrasta-baking at work, but I couldn't resist! The only downside to this recipe is that the cake takes an hour to cook, but at least it works up an appetite!
Ingredients:
Cake:
- 200g butter, at room temperature
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla essence
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup self raising flour
- 1 cup plain flour
- 3/4 cup milk
- 1 pear, peeled and thinly sliced
- 200g strawberries, washed, hulled, halved
Crumble Topping:
- 1/2 cup plain flour
- 50g chilled butter, chopped
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
Method:
Preheat oven to 180°C. Spray with Canola Oil a spring-form pan and line the base with non-stick baking paper. Place the prepared pan on a baking tray.
Use an electric beater to beat the butter, sugar and vanilla in a bowl until pale and creamy. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Use a large metal spoon to fold in the combined flour and the milk until well combined.
Spoon into the prepared pan. Use the back of the spoon to smooth the surface. Arrange the pear and strawberries on top.
To make the crumble topping, place the flour and butter in a bowl. Use your fingertips to rub the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Stir in the sugar.
Sprinkle the crumble topping over the pear and strawberry. Bake in oven for 1 hour or until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. Set aside in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool slightly. Serve cake warm or at room temperature.