A delicious bundt cake

I bought a Bundt pan a few weeks ago and hadn't used it yet. I found a recipe in Baking: From My Home To Yours by Dorie Greenspan for this Brown Sugar Bundt Cake and decided to make it because it contains my favourite dried fruit: prunes.

I mostly followed the recipe but didn't have buttermilk so used half yogurt and half milk. And I hate almond essence so left it out. I wasn't sure if the oven at my new place would be up to baking such a dense cake but it was fine – the heavy cast aluminium Bundt pan helped evenly distribute heat.

I was a little worried the cake might not come out of the pan easily so greased and floured the pan but I think I over-did it. Next time I will just spray it with cooking spray as it has a good non-stick surface.

It is a delicious cake, quite moist with the fruit and ground almonds but I think it could do with more fruit, especially prunes. I added extra but think you could add at least a cup, if not two. But maybe that's just because I love them!

It would also be lovely made with apples and sultanas or rhubarb and ginger instead of pears and prunes.

Brown Sugar Bundt Cake

2 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 c. ground almonds (or 1/4 c. more all-purpose flour)
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
225 g unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 c. (packed) light brown sugar
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. pure almond extract (optional)
1 c. buttermilk, at room temperature (I used half milk/half yogurt)
2 medium pears, peeled, cored and cut into 1/4-inch dice
1/2 c. moist, plump prunes, snipped into 1/4-inch pieces
Icing sugar, for dusting

Getting Ready:
Centre a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 180°C. Butter a 12 cup Bundt pan, dust the inside with flour and tap out the excess.

Whisk together the flour, nuts, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

Working with a stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar together at medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating for 1 minute after each addition. Beat in the vanilla and the almond extract, if you're using it. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour mixture and the buttermilk alternately - add the flour in 3 additions and the buttermilk in 2 (begin and end with the dry ingredients). Mix only until the ingredients are incorporated and scrape down the bowl as needed. With a rubber spatula, stir in the pears and prunes. Scrape the batter into the pan and smooth the top with the spatula.

Bake for 60 to 65 minutes, or until a skewer inserted deep into the centre of the cake comes out clean. (If the cake looks as if it's browning too fast, cover the top loosely with a foil tent.) Cool for 10 minutes before turning onto a rack.

When you are ready to serve, dust with icing sugar.