A few weeks ago, I came home to find two big baskets of pears in my sun room.  My neighbor had invited a family member over to pick these green jewels from his overburdened trees.

Two whole baskets full.  "What am I going to do with all these pears?" I asked.  I expect this sort of problem with zucchini, but not pears.

Luckily, I had this recipe for fresh pear cake.

This cake is as easy to make as if it were from a mix.  It's not iced and not too sweet, so you can feel justified having it with your morning coffee, if you like.  It's sturdy, so you can take it to a friend who needs cheering up.  You can freeze it for later.  And with sweetened whipped cream and caramel sauce, it dresses up for company.

Pears are considered a summer fruit, but to me, this cake tastes like the first crisp days of autumn.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1-1/2 cups vegetable oil
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 Tbsp (= 3 tsp) cinnamon
• 3 cups baking pears, coarsely cubed
• optional: 1/2 to 1 cup nuts, coarsely chopped

Preheat the oven to 350 F.  Grease and flour a Bundt or tube pan.

Bartlett pears (also called Wiliiams pears) are good baking pears.  If you need to ripen pears quickly, put them in a brown paper bag with the top closed.

Wash, core, peel, and cube the pears.  The cubes don't need to be pretty.  They should be a little larger than the dice you would use in a game of Monopoly or Yahtzee.  If you have a melon baller, cut the pear in half with a knife, and then use the melon baller to core the pear and remove the stem and blossom ends before peeling and cubing.

If you're going to add nuts, chop them now.  I recommend adding toasted pecans.  If you've never toasted pecans, here's how: spread them on a pie pan or jelly roll pan (that is, a cookie sheet with raised edges), so that there is only one layer of nuts.  Put them in 350 F oven for 3 to 5 minutes, but watch them like a hawk!  Take them out, stir them around, and if they don't look and smell done, put them back in for another 1 to 3 minutes.  This also works for coconut, which has a stronger, better flavor when toasted, but be careful that you don't let anything burn.

Combine all of the ingredients except the pears and nuts in a mixing bowl.  Mix on medium speed for about 2 minutes.

Fold in the pears and, if you're using them, nuts.  Pour batter into your greased pan.

Bake for an hour.

This cake is fine to serve with coffee, without further garnish.  Caramel sauce makes a nice accompaniment, either homemade or storebought.  (I recommend Mrs. Richardson's butterscotch caramel sauce, if it's available where you are).  Vanilla ice cream, caramel ice cream, or sweetened whipped cream would also pair with it.  (You didn't think I would write a whole post without making that apparent joke, did you?)