Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Bring a pot of 4 cups water to boil and turn down to a simmer. Stir in the sugar and add the bourbon and cinnamon sticks. Peel the pears, cut in half length-wise, remove the seed area with a spoon, and place them in the pot. Let them simmer, flipping occasionally, for ~20 minutes before removing a setting aside to cool and dry.

Mix the dry ingredients together in one bowl and the wet ingredients in another bowl. Slowly fold the dry ingredients into the wet ones until combined.

Cut 3 of the half-pears into cubes and carefully mix them into the batter. Pour the batter into a greased springform pan (or a standard cake pan if you don’t have a springform). With the remaining 3 half-pears, cut them into slices and arrange them on top of the batter.

Cook in oven for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Place on a cooling rack to let cool and then top with a dusting of powdered sugar.