Grappa Cake ( Italian Pear Cake ) - cooking recipe

Ingredients

For cake
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 1/4 cups sugar, plus
1 tablespoon sugar
3 large eggs
1/3 cup milk
1 tablespoon grappa
1 (28 ounce) can sliced pears
1/2 cup raisins or 1/2 cup chopped pitted prune
1/2 cup toasted pine nuts
For sauce
2 large eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon grappa

Preparation

Make pear cake: Preheat oven to 350 and lightly butter and flour an 8 1/2\" springform pan, knocking out excess flour.
In a bowl, whisk together flour, cinnamon and baking powder.
In another bowl, with an electric mixer beat together butter and 1 1/4 cups sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in flour misture and milk alternately in batches, beginning and ending with flour mixture and beating until it is just combined after each addition. Stir in grappa.
Peel and core pears; cut into 1/2\" dice. Fold pears, raisins or prunes and pine nuts into batter. Pour batter into prepared pan and sprinkle top with remaining tablespoons sugar. Bake cake in middle of oven until a tester comes out with crumbs adhering to it, 45 - 50 minutes. Cool cake in pan on rack and remove side of pan.
Make grappa sauce: In a bowl with an electric mixer beat together eggs, sugar and cinnamon until thick and pale. In a metal bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water, melt butter and stir in egg mixture. Cook sauce, stirring constantly, until it is thickened and registers 165F on a candy thermometer (c. 7 min). Remove bowl from pan; stir in cream and grappa. Serve cake with warm sauce.