Up here in Canada, we have our own franchise of The Food Network…are you ready for the name? Food Network Canada.
Us Canadians get to view a diet of American produced shows, some cooking shows from the UK and Down Under and then we round things out with the Canadian produced shows.
One of the Canadian cooking/TV personas is Ricardo Larivee, from Montreal, Quebec where French is the more dominant language. Ricardo’s first language is French and it’s evident when you hear him on the show but who gives a flying-F when the language of food is what matters.
The show is titled “Ricardo and Friends” and in each episode he entertains and lays out a full menu that ends up being enjoyed by his latest entourage of guests. Interspersed in the show are visits by Ricardo to local suppliers like farms, shops and other sources of inspiration for his dishes.
I’ve tried a few of Ricardo’s dishes and they turn out just fine. You’d think in this day and age that everyone would actually test-out and proof a recipe. A tried, tested and true recipe is paramount and Ricardo’s dishes deliver.
Which brings me to the focus of today’s post, Ricardo’s Spiced Pear Cake. Like all food, the dish should catch your eye…I fell in love with this dish when I saw the cross-section of the cake with the pear embedded in it.
The aroma of this cake will warm your kitchen and remind you of mulled spices.
The taste is well, simply satiating. Perfect for an afternoon tea or coffee and those with a seasoned palate will be able to pick out the spices in this easy to make cake that will surely have your guests asking for the recipe.
GO ON…make the cake, share it and enjoy over a coffee with friends. In my opinion, this is a make-ahead cake. Bake it the day before, allow to cool for an hour, DO line the loaf pan with parchment and lift out the cake it.
Transfer to a cooling rack and once cooled, cover overnight. Since the poached pears are denser than the cake, be careful transferring to your serving plate (you don’t want your pears to fall through).
I slid the cake off the parchment and onto the platter, dusted with icing sugar and cinnamon and carefully sliced the cake, giving each person a piece with an exposed pear slice for presentation.
Is it coffee time?
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© 2007-2009 Peter Minakis
37 Responses
Not having cable tv, I tend to miss out on the cooking shows but I do get an occasional dose via Food Canada Network online, where I can enjoy some video streams of cooking shows from Michael Smith, Giada, Laura Calder, etc…I have yet to watch any of Ricardo’s cooking episodes though. This spiced pear cake sounds great and it is quite pretty to look at…Bravo for baking a cake Peter!
You know how i love my sweets and this cake looks so so elegant and so yumm.
I am in love with the cake too.
I am hopping this Ricardo will influence you more for baking.
Pity we don’t get here foodnetwork.
i once saw a loaf of bread with whole potatoes cooked inside and i thought it was the neatest thing ever. that has now been replaced—this is AWESOME.
This is so beautiful!
This is an unbelievably gorgeous cake! I love pears, and spice cake, so I want to give this one a try for sure.
That cake is a real showstopper. I plan to make this for my Italian chit-chat group.
Ah, you beat me to it! I also fell in love with the look of that cake when I saw the show, so gorgeous! And I actually like Ricardo’s accent, it’s part of his charm. ;)
This is so gorgeous with the whole pears! Wow!
Peter you are becoming a great baker. That cake is a work of art.
This cake looks gorgeous with lovely flavours.
So? is it time for coffee? This looks so good! Perfect for the time of year!
This is beautiful Peter, I love the presentation, and it’s a given that it tastes good!
This cake looks just gorgeous – I think we’ll definitely have to give it a try. I love the look of the pears embedded in the loaf.
I love the dramatic effect of that cake. It definitely says: eat me!
Wow, a true feast for the eyes!
I am so ganking this recipe from Canada food network and dazzling my LA LA land friends with it. Those there pears are damn sexy!
I am so ganking this recipe from Canada food network and dazzling my LA LA land friends with it. Those there pears are damn sexy!
I am so ganking this recipe from Canada food network and dazzling my LA LA land friends with it. Those there pears are damn sexy!
oh Peter this cake is soooo beautiful. Re you inviting me over for coffee?
oh Peter this cake is soooo beautiful. Are you inviting me over for coffee?
I love the presentation — I’ve never seen a cake quite like this. I’m going to try it with my favorite pear spice cake batter.
This looks very chic Peter. I have seen similar recipes with chocolate cake, but I think the spices make it far more interesting. In case one has leftover, do you keep it in the fridge because of the whole pears?
Peter, I’m in love with this cake, looks so elegant :-)
That cake looks magnificent!
I love how the pears look lined up like that…
Thanks for turning me on to this!
I really like the way that you used the whole pears in this. Great idea!
WOW!!!! I love these photos. I’m inspired to do something like this in the future. It’s beautiful. Thanks for the post.
I like Ricardo and what I have made so far was good. Let me know on Twitter which recipes you did not like. I won’t make them. This cake is so visual. I am so tempted to give it a try.
This is the coolest cake!! Love it!
Tha’s a hell of a show stopper Petaaaaaah. Love it to bits. That first picture has me wanting o try it SOON. Love the warm mulled flavours…WOW!!
What a showstopper, Peter! And a perfect way to finish a great meal with friends, or just have with coffee.
Love it!
wow this cake looks yummy. I live in Montreal, and I’m a fan of Ricardo. I always watched his show he had in Montreal (in French). I have all his French magazine. Yesterday I was looking at all his magazines. I have so many. I think he began his magazines in 2003. I’ve made a lot of recipes and it’s always yummy.
This is a thing of beauty Peter!!!!!
Wow that cake is really stunning. I love the photos with the pears showing and will have to try this. Yum!
tres belle
that looks cool and delicious. I’m making it!
Hi there,
This is my first time on your blog and definitely will not be the last.
The pear cake seems so good that I have to give it a try. Pears are to be added to my grocery list.
BTW, thanks for sharing.
Cheers,
Noro
I’m not a fan of cake but (as always) anything you make I could eat – everything always looks so yummy.
(Apart from those snails I’ve just seen lol) x