Kitchen Comfort - Pear, Hazelnut and Chocolate Cake

The beauty of a cold and Wintery Sunday afternoon at home is the chance to enjoy taking the time to bake a cake.  Filling the house with such a delicious aroma is one of life's simple pleasures that nurtures the soul every time.  This weekend I knew exactly what I felt like making - a favourite pear, hazelnut and chocolate cake from a recipe I adapted from one featured in a Good Food magazine supplement saved from ages ago.  It's a wonderful combination of flavours that work really well together to produce a fabulously moist and tasty cake that's very moorish.  Ideally the easiest and quickest way to make this is in a food processor.  If you feel like giving it a go, here's the recipe.  First heat the oven to 180 degrees C (fan 160 or Gas 4) and you'll need a 7" or 8" round cake tin lined or greased:

4oz whole hazelnuts
5oz self-raising flour
5oz butter
4oz golden caster sugar
2 large eggs, beaten
2 medium size pears (peeled, cored and chopped)
2oz dark chocolate (chopped into small chunks)

Method:

1. Grind the hazelnuts in the food processor and add the flour, combine
2. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture forms a crumb texture
3. Add the sugar and eggs. Pulse briefly and take the bowl off the base
4. Stir in the prepared pears and chocolate
5. Put mixture into tin, smooth over to make an even surface then bake in the middle of the oven for 50-60 minutes until firm to the touch.  Allow to cool in the tin