Old Maid Cake submitted by Mom Johnson
Description
A great cake for those cool Fall days when fresh pears are in season. The recipe came from the January '97 edition of Cooking Light.

Directions
Combine the first 8 ingredients in a bowl; stir well. Combine buttermilk, egg substitute, molasses and 2 T. melted butter in a bowl; stir well. Add to flour mixture.

Melt the other 2 T. butter in a 9-inch cast iron skillet. Stir in the 1/3 cup brown sugar; cook over medium heat for 1 minute. Remove from heat; sprinkle with nuts.

Peel and core pears. Cut each in half lengthwise. Cut each half into thin slices, cutting to, but not through, the stem end. Fan the pear halves and place core sides up on top of brown sugar mixture in skillet. Pour batter over pears; bake at 375 degrees for about 35 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 5 minutes on a wire rack. Loosen cake from sides of the pan and invert onto a cake plate. Serve warm with extra pear slices if desired.




Ingredients
v 1 cup flour
v 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
v 1 tsp. baking powder
v 1 tsp. ginger
v 1 tsp. cinnamon
v 1/3 tsp. soda
v 1/4 tsp. salt
v 1/4 tsp. ground cloves
v 1/2 cup buttermilk
v 1/4 cup egg substitute
v 1/4 cup molasses
v 2 T. butter, melted
v 2 T. butter
v 1/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
v 3 T. chopped walnuts or pecans
v 2 medium pears