Pear Cornmeal Cake with Caramel

I made this gluten-free cake for Thanksgiving this year, and I'm still debating if eating it for breakfast the next morning was better than having it for its intended dessert purpose.  Either way, it's great paired with coffee in the morning or bubbly at night.


Upside-Down Pear Cornmeal Cake with Caramel (Gluten Free) 
Based on recipe from Whole Foods

2-3 just ripe pears (I used Bartlett) 

1 cup liquid caramel (bought or homemade) + extra for drizzling

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

3/4 cup sugar 

2 large eggs  

1/2 cup strained cottage cheese or ricotta

1 cup almond flour 

2 teaspoons gluten-free vanilla extract 

1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice  

1 cup yellow cornmeal 

1 teaspoon baking powder  

1/2 teaspoon sea salt 

 

Preheat oven to 375.  Coat a 9" cake pan with nonstick spray.  Pour caramel into the bottom of the pan and distribute so it evenly covers the bottom of the pan.  Cut pears into thick slices (~1-1.5" thick, to your liking) and arrange in a circle on top of the caramel.  

 

In a large bowl, beat butter until light and creamy. Add sugar and beat until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Mix in cottage cheese (best if you mash it with the back of a spoon first so it's not so chunky) or ricotta, almond flour, vanilla, and orange juice. Mix cornmeal with baking powder and salt, and fold into batter.

 

Bake for 50-60 minutes or until the center is set and you feel like it's done.  Carefully flip the cake over onto a platter and serve slices with extra caramel drizzled over the top.