Baking - pear cake

The children get given fruit every day at school.  This year my class really aren't keen on pears and some weeks in autumn we were getting pears twice a week.  There were always bags left at the end of the week so in the end (post horrible morning sickness times) I decided to try take them home and make a cake.  I often took it back to school for the staffroom and it proved popular.

I've used this Genius Kitchen recipe and though it takes a long time to peel and chop and mash the pears, it seems to work ok in the end although I haven't succeeded with the topping yet.

Apple or Pear Cake

READY IN:

1hr 5mins                                                                                   

• CAKE

• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 1 cup oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 3 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 4 cups raw diced apples or 4 cups pears

• TOPPING

• ¹⁄₂ cup brown sugar
• ¹⁄₄ cup milk
• ¹⁄₄ lb butter

Directions

1. Cake:
2. Mix all cake ingredients by hand in order given.
3. Pour in a greased 9 x 13 inch pan or springform pan.
4. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes and remove.
5. Topping:
6. In saucepan mix all ingredients and bring to a slow boil for 3 minutes.
7. Pour over cake and return to oven for 4 minutes.