Easygoing Apple & Pear Bundt Cake is just nice to have around the house

Not too sweet and loaded with fresh fruit, Easygoing Apple & Pear Bundt Cake is a nice, simple treat to have around the house. Recipe below.

THE HOLIDAYS ARE ABOUT THE BIG, FABULOUS, FAMILIAR THINGS, in vast quantities, and that is just as true for food. Entire birds! Gravy by the vat! Carb-forward sides—five different ones! Pie! More pie! And there’s so much of all of it, and it is just so heavy, and it just keeps coming.

In the middle of all of that, for yourself, it’s nice to have a treat around the house that is just pleasant. Something not very challenging and just, well, easy.

This cake fits the bill. It’s easy to make. It’s not too sweet. It’s loaded with fresh fruit. It stays moist for days. It’s even nice lightly browned in the toaster oven. It’s a simple touch that is just the thing for yourself.

I’ve made this a couple of times with half pear and half apple—it would also be lovely made entirely with apple. For pears, we used Bosc, and Anjou are nice too (to figure out if your pear is ripe enough, “check the neck”—press into the neck with your fingertip; it should slightly give). For apples, choose flavorful cooking varieties. If you can’t find any of the old-fashioned kind, like russets, then look for McIntosh, Granny Smith (which are nice and tart), Ida Red, or Jonagolds, or a mix of those.

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Easygoing Apple & Pear Bundt Cake

Not too sweet and loaded with fresh fruit, Easygoing Apple & Pear Bundt Cake is a nice, simple treat to have around the house.

Course Dessert, Snack

Servings 12 or so slices

Equipment

• A 10-cup bundt pan

Ingredients

• About 2-1/2 cups apples and pears, peeled, cored, and diced
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup white granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 3 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 4 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
• 8 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for the bundt pan
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup half and half or milk or buttermilk
• 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, finely chopped
• zest of 1 lemon

Instructions

• Peel, core and dice your pears and apples. You want about 2-1/2 cups of diced fruit—we used 2 pears and 2 apples, and had some pieces left over for snacking on. Toss fruit in a bowl with 2 tablespoons of lemon juice and set aside.
• Preheat oven to 350ºF. In a large bowl, mix the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, spice and white sugar. Add the brown sugar—break up any lumps with your fingers—and then stir everything together lightly with a fork.
• In a small bowl, beat the eggs for a minute or so until they begin to turn pale, then add the sour cream, vanilla, the half & half, milk or buttermilk, and the fresh rosemary and lemon zest, and stir together, then add the butter and olive oil and stir all together well.
• Pour the egg mixture into the dry ingredients and mix together, using a big spoon. Finally, fold in the apples and pears, just until everything is even and uniform.
• Prepare your bundt pan now—brush it thoroughly with oil. Then immediately spoon in the batter. Level the top and put the pan in the hot oven.
• Set a timer for 55 minutes, but keep an eye on it in the last couple of minutes. The cake is ready when a tester inserted in the center comes out clean and the cake is just pulling away from the sides.
• Cool in the pan on a rack for 15 or 20 minutes, then loosen the edges with a table knife, turn it out onto a platter, and cool completely.