Make this! Pear Spice Cake with Gorgonzola Frosting

At our last Carport Cookbook Sale to raise money for the Invisible Food Pantry, I picked up a cookbook called “Breakfast in Bed,” and flipped to this recipe, and it sounded too amazing. I made it, and it stuck to the bundt pan but tasted phenomenal. Then I made it again, and the cake popped out perfectly!

I contacted the cookbook author, Jesse Ziff Cool, and she said it made her day to know someone made and enjoyed a recipe she published in the 1990s. She authorized me to share it here. (I made a few tweaks.)

Cake:

1/4 c. sugar

1 c. light brown sugar

3/4 c. vegetable oil

4 eggs

2 t. vanilla extract

2 c. all-purpose flour

1/2 c. rolled oats

2 t. baking powder

1 t. baking soda

1 T. cinnamon

1 t. nutmeg

1/2 t. ground cloves

3 c. grated peeled, ripe pears (3-4 medium pears)

1 c. chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)

Beat together the sugars, oil, eggs, and vanilla until well-blended. In another bowl, stir together the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, and spices. Add half the flour mixture to the wet ingredients, and stir until just blended. Mix in the remaining flour mixture. Fold in the pears and nuts, taking care not to overmix.

Pour the batter into a THOROUGHLY GREASED bundt pan or 10-inch springform. (I used Baker’s Joy.) Bake for 45 minutes to one hour, until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool on a rack for 30 minutes, and then carefully remove from the pan.

Frosting:

10 oz. cream cheese, softened

3 oz. gorgonzola or blue cheese

Milk

(Note: The recipe calls for 1 1/2 c. grated, peeled, ripe pears. I wanted my frosting super savory, so I did not include the pears.)

While the cake is cooling, beat the cream cheese and gorgonzola until smooth. Add milk, 1 t. at a time until you get the consistency you want, smooth and spreadable. You can spread the frosting on the cooled cake, or serve the frosting on the side, which is what I did.

Store at room temperature overnight. This cake is best on the second day! Store leftovers beyond the second day in the fridge.

A glorious, beautiful Pear Spice Cake (minus the frosting)