A Christmas cake of a different kind.

This Gingerbread and Pear Cake is so so divine.

As all good recipes go, it has adapted somewhat from the original.

This luscious, moist cake was from the newspaper, a cut out that made it's way into my disorgansied folder. It caught my eye beacuse it was a "Gingerbread and Apple Cake" and Luke loves any kind of apple cake. But when I went to make it, alas I had no apples, only a tin of pears. And so the "Gingerbread and Pear Cake" was born. Strangely when I tried then to make it with apples, Luke says, no you can't, it's a gingerbread and pear cake!

It's great as a cake, eaten warm. But even better as a pudding, drown it caramel toffee sauce. Don't forget to serve with cream or ice-cream. 

125g butter

1/2 cup brown sugar

3/4 cup golden syrup

2 cups self raising flour

1/2 teaspoon bi-card soda

1 tablespoon ground ginger

[I also add a shake of cinnamon]

1 egg lightly beaten

1/4 cup milk

1 tin of pears [or apples] chopped 

Keep some fruit aside for decorating.

Preheat oven to 160 degrees. Melt butter, sugar & golden syrup in saucepan or microwave. Set aside to cool. Sift flour, bi-carb, ginger, cinnamon into a bowl and stir to combine. Add butter mixture, egg and milk. Stir til mixed thoroughly. Add pears or apple, chopped into bite size peices. Mix well and add to tin. Slice pear or apple and arrange on top for decoration. Bake for 50 mins. ENJOY!