PEAR FLOGNARDE
You will need:
- 4 tablespoons/60 g unsalted butter, plus more for the cake pan
- 6 medium pears, such as Bartlett
- â…” cup/130 g granulated sugar
- 1½ tablespoons dark rum
- 4 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise, seeds scraped out and reserved
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 cup/120 g all-purpose flour, sifted
- 1 â…” cups/400 ml whole milk
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
Instructions:
First preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C and then grease a 9-inch/22-cm round cake pan with butter.
- Peel the pears, cut into quarters, and remove the cores. In a large sauté pan, heat 2 tablespoons/30 g of the butter. Add the pears, sprinkle with 1½ tablespoon/25 g of the granulated sugar, and cook, turning them once, until golden, about 8 minutes. Pour in the rum and simmer to reduce for 2 to 3 minutes. Set aside to cool.
- In a large bowl, combine the eggs, the remaining sugar, the honey, vanilla seeds, and salt and whisk until frothy. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons/30 g butter and whisk into the batter, along with the flour and milk, whisking until smooth.
- Scrape the pears and all of their juices into the prepared pan. Pour the batter on top and sprinkle with the brown sugar. Bake until puffed and golden, 35 to 40 minutes. Let cool for at least 15 minutes on a wire rack before unmolding. The cake will deflate gradually as it cools.
- Serve warm or at room temperature.