APPLE AND PEAR CAKE

Recipe from cookbook author and South Berwick resident Kathy Gunst, who said she adapted it from a peach cake recipe in Annemarie Ahearn’s “Full Moon Suppers at Salt Water Farm.” Gunst described the cake as “extremely simple and satisfying”; she likes it with whipped cream.

1 cup flour

1/2 cup almond flour

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

9 tablespoons butter, softened

3/4 cup sugar

3 large eggs

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/4 cup buttermilk

FOR THE PEARS AND APPLES:

1 tablespoon butter

2 tart apples, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces

1 large almost fully ripe pear, peeled and cut into thin slices

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon cardamom

2 1/2 tablespoons maple syrup

1. Heat the oven to 375 degrees F. Thoroughly grease an 8-inch springform pan with butter and set aside.

2. In a medium bowl combine the flour, almond flour, salt and baking powder. With a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, whip together the butter and sugar until light. Add the eggs one at a time, whipping well. Combine the cream and buttermilk in a measuring cup. Mix one-third of the dry ingredients into the butter-sugar-egg mixture, then half of the cream/buttermilk, scraping the sides of the bowl in between additions. Add another third of the dry ingredients, then the remaining cream/buttermilk, and then the final third of the dry. Combine, taking care not to overmix.

3. To make the pears and apples, melt the butter over moderate heat in a large skillet. Add the pears, apples, ginger, cinnamon and cardamom; cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Raise the heat to moderately high, add the maple syrup and cook for 2 more minutes, or until bubbling and thickened. Remove from the heat and cool.

4. Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan. Place the pears and apples on top, spreading them out evenly. Bake the cake on the middle shelf for 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool on a rack and serve at room temperature.

DARK CHOCOLATE-CHERRY ENERGY BITES

Part-time Scarborough resident Kelly Caiazzo says she makes this no-bake treat, from the “Oh She Glows” vegan recipe blog, when she wants to comfort herself in the kitchen and to serve her two children healthy comfort food that won’t hurt the planet.

Yields 15 small bites

1 cup whole raw almonds

2/3 cup lightly packed pitted Medjool dates

1/2 cup dried cherries

3-4 tablespoons dark chocolate chips

1/4 cup raw pecans

1 or 2 pinches fine sea salt, to taste

In a food processor, process the almonds until finely chopped. It’s OK if some bigger pieces remain. Just be sure not to pulverize the nuts into a flour as you want some texture.

Remove 1/3 cup of the processed almonds and set aside for the final step.

Now, add the pitted dates and dried cherries to the machine and process the mixture until finely chopped and sticky. A dough ball will start to form.

Add in the chocolate chips and pecans and process until they are chopped. Add salt to taste and pulse the mixture. Finally, pulse in the reserved 1/3 cup almonds. If the dough is too dry to roll into balls, add water, a teaspoon at a time, until the dough comes together.

Roll into small balls. Place in a container and store in the refrigerator or freezer.