Have you ever put a pear in your purse? It always starts with the best of intentions. Mid-morning snack. Afternoon fruit break. Nope… it’s never going to be any of those. It’s going to get bruised by your wallet and smashed up against some loose pens. It never goes as well as you’d like it to.
Bad idea.
Better idea? Pear in coffee cake.
This coffee cake is tender, spiced with Fall, and pear-studded. So much better than bruised and pen-stabbed, right!?
Let’s melt our butter and get this show on the road.
The flavors of brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg shine! Buttermilk is our great tenderizer, whisked together with melted butter, eggs, and vanilla extract.
Pretty simple!
Pears are important. I used Bartlett, but grab any pear that makes you happy.
It’s important that the pear be ripe, but not overly soft. It’s best if they can hold their shape in the oven.
Wet meets dry and pear chunks are stirred in.
I like to layer a few pears on top of the batter. This is a more-is-more situation.
Crumble topping! Everything is better with crumble. This topping is extra buttery and sweet.
Be generous.
Be kind.
We just turned cake into breakfast. It’s one of those easy things to do if you make a big pot of coffee and enjoy this cake before noon. This cake is soft, sweet, and loaded with soft pear pieces. It’s Fall. This is totally one of those things you should just do.
Pear Crumble Coffee Cake
makes an 8×8-inch square pan
For the Cake:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flours
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup (4 ounces) unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
2 large eggs
1 cup buttermilk
2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 small or 1 1/2 medium pears, ripe but still firm, unpeeled, cored, and cut into 1-inch chunks
For the Crumble Topping:
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons granulated or brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
pinch of salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold and cut into 1/4-inch cubes
Place rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8×8-inch square. Line with parchment paper and grease the parchment paper. Set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spice. Stir in the sugars until well combined. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together melted butter, eggs, buttermilk, and vanilla extract.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and gently stir to incorporate. Once the dry ingredients are almost fully incorporated, fold in the pears. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan.
To make the crumble, in a small bowl combine flour, sugar, cinnamon, salt, and butter. Use your fingers to break the butter down into the dry ingredients until crumbly. Generously sprinkle topping on top of cake batter.
Bake for 25 to 35 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the cake comes out clean. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for at least 30 minutes before serving. Cake will last for 3 days, wrapped well and stored in the refrigerator.
98 Responses
I had approximately 100 pears from my farm box this week and my partner is doing a low carb thing to assert control over something in these perilous times, so abandoned me in my hour of ripe pear window need. I racked the internet for as many pear recipes as I could come up with, and selected this recipe. It turned out AMAZING.
Notes:
1. As mentioned, I had 100 pears, so I added 4 small pears instead of the 2 small pears in the recipe. Reckless, I know. I think this added a few minutes of bake time, but the pear to cake ratio was great IMO.
2. I am confusing when it comes to dairy. I had butter, but no milk or buttermilk. I concocted my own buttermilk substitution: 1 individual-portion container of almond milk yogurt, the juice of half a lemon, and enough unsweetened vanilla almond milk to make up 1 cup.
3. I love cardamom. Full stop. So I added a half teaspoon to the spice mix. I did not reduce any other spices.
4. I accidentally poured in some nutmeg into the crumble when I meant to put cinnamon. I added the cinnamon anyway. It was more nutmeg than I would have preferred, but again, the recipe still turned out not great, but AMAZING. That said, I would leave the nutmeg out of the crumble next time.
5. I live at 5500 feet, and I didnโt make any altitude substitutions, but it did take about 40 minutes at 350 for the toothpick to come out clean.
Even with these whimsical substitutions, this recipe turned out wonderfully. The cake rose beautifully, the texture was moist, the crumble was delightful, and the pears achieved their highest destiny,
Thanks, Joy the Baker! This success helped me manage some stress this Election Eve. May we all continue to fight for human rights for all!
Made this for breakfast this morning. Beautiful, high rising, and delicious! Iโll have to take your word on the โlasting three daysโ cause Iโm pretty sure thatโs not happening here ;) Thanks for another fabulous recipe..
Hi- I made this and it’s amazing!! I’m wondering if it would work in muffin form. Would I have to change anything, other than the bake time?
Thank you, as always, for the copious amounts of butter in my life :)
This recipe looks great and delicious! However, there isn’t buttermilk in my country, is there a substitute?
yogurt also works well!
I made this twice last year at Christmastime. It is really delicious! The pan was very full, but didnโt run over the edge. Donโt use more pear than is called for. I used Bartlett.
Important: Line baking pan both ways with parchment paper, leaving โhand-holdsโ to aid in removing cake from pan.
The cake is not even out of the oven yet, and I’m already ready to pass out from the drips of batter on the spoon: Salmonella might be my maker, but at least I’ll die happy.
Great recipe! I made it vegan by replacing the eggs with 2tbs ground flax + 1/3c water and the butter with Earth Balance spread. I also added 1/3c chopped walnuts into the mix. Flax tends to make baked goods a little gooier/less willing to bake through so I added a total of ~10min baking time and it was perfect.
I shared with my parents and coworkers and I’m surprised there was any left for me! The streusel topping is superb. Thanks!
Do you think doubling this recipe would fit in a 9×13?
If you were to do one whole recipe and then half on one, you’ll be good to go for a 9×13!
Don’t know if you’ll see this in time, but, I want to make this tomorrow and I kind of want to use a bundt pan. Is that possible? What kind of modifications would I need? Thanks Joy!
This is where I land after about 30minutes of aimless Googling for cake recipes. It’s destiny. This will be on my table before sun rise.
Amazing recipe! And the photos make it all look so irresistible. Thanks for sharing!
Haha, I put a peach in my purse with the best intentions. It wouldnยดt have been a problem if I actually decided to eat it, but I didnยดt, and forgot about it, and this wasnยดt my everyday purse…. Yikes! It actually grew together with the purse…..So putting fruit in cakes is a much better idea! Looks lovely!
Ha! Joy, can’t tell you how many times I’ve brought a bruised pear to work. I’ve never learned my lesson though. I’m convinced some day I’ll be able to bring one for a snack without my efforts ending up in a total mangled mess.
i hear your words.
Delicious as i see it from the pictures alone.
Craving,craving,craving, I can’t help it.
Big thanks for this article, i’m kind a like to make these for Thanksgiving.
I am having trouble with the crumble topping– it didn’t really get crumbly as I mixed it, just stuck together as the butter melted in my hands! I took it right from the fridge so it was super cold, but it melted pretty quickly. Any advice for next time?
I have been craving pears lately, so this is perfect! I can’t wait to try it!
i love the way you write! thank you for all your awesome recipes :-)
i have never made something with pear, but this sounds so good!
xo, cheyenne
mmmm, yes please!
Oh dear! This looks amazing. I made an apple crumble Saturday, but am intrigued with the idea of using pear and making it into a coffee cake. Also, as always, your photos are wonderful.
For the apple crumble recipe, go to: https://coffeewithmyoxygen.wordpress.com
I’m having a streak of bad luck with baking fresh fruits into cakes. They always turn out soggy and mushy. Even with barely ripe fruits or Granny Smith apples. I’m not wondering if humidity has anything to do with it. I might still give this recipe a go just to see if it’s me or the recipes I’ve been trying out. Love spices in fall-ish recipes!
Oooh pear cake IS fall. And perfectly acceptable to eat for breakfast.
This recipe promises to help make the most of any ripe fruit I have lying about. Today it happened to be extremely ripe pears, so I cut the amount of sugar and added a bit of finely diced crystallized ginger to the mix. I also added pecans to the crumble because, well, because a crumble should be nutty. We’ve just had a serving for dinner and are already looking forward to breakfast. Best wishes and many thanks!
Wow! A wonderful combination!
Oh I love pears! What a great recipe!
We’ve had some delicious pears around the house the last few weeks and this would definitely be a delicious way to mix things up. Also: the photographs in this post were exceptionally gorgeous!
Hi Joy,
I have recently discovered your blog through your 101 series and love it.
I was wondering how you make buttermilk? Over here in the UK it is hard to find buttermilk, and have heard that you can make your own using milk and lemon juice. Can you confirm?
Many thanks
Kayleigh
sure! we can talk about this!
I made this last night ! Absolutely delicious. Thank you for the recipe :-)
i’m so happy you made it already! wonderful!
Oh my lord!!!! I am so looking forward to your second cookbook!!!!
Oh my lord!!! I am so looking forward to your second cookbook!!!!!!
Oh yummy. I am sitting here having an iced coffee for breakfast and would love to have this.
Delicious! Thank you for this perfect fall recipe. Listened to radical face while making this – you should check him out, you might like the music. He’s easily one of my favorite artists of all time.
That is one of the truest things I’ve heard about pears! I always get annoyed because I continue to put them into my purse anyway, knowing exactly what’s going to happen to them. This cake does indeed look delicious, especially because I’ve been craving coffee cake with streusel topping.
Oh yeah! This IS spiced with Fall and looks divine, lady. Perfect for breakfast or dessert in my opinion!
Everything really IS better with crumble. All hail the crumble topping!
Thanks Joy! You just gave me inspriation for something to make for my co-workers for Thanksgiving. As always….loves.
PS. Calvin says Hi!
I am absolutely going to make this – I love pears. I was a little confused at the beginning of your post though – I was trying to work out how you managed to fit a pear into your purse… and then realised it must be one of those lost-in-translation American/British things like pants!
So much better than purse pear!!
Heidi xo
Your photos are incredible. Love this recipe!
YUM. Such a lovely idea. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
Mmmmmm, good. This coffee cake could be even tastier than my favorite pear/ginger quick bread, but why choose a favorite. Enjoy both, enthusiastically!
Ahh, but there is an answer to smushed pears in purses! Behold the reusable, ingenious Pear Packer: https://usapearsmarketplace.org/pear-packer-set-of-4.html
And Joy, your lovely recipes always exalt us humble pears. Thanks for sharing the pear love!
– Your friends at USA Pears
I think I’m in love! Unfortunately, I just signed up for a fitness challenge at my work (cash prizes!) and get points for skipping amazing things like this. Seems pretty backward to me.
looks delicious!
Yum! I’m a sucker for anything with a crumble and am totally loving pears this season too. Making this for sure!
This looks Amazing! I bet it tastes great too :)
I’m hitting up Macy’s today for my first (man) purse so I can try the pear experiment…maybe not but I can easily put them in cake and I’ll probably look better :)
I hear you about those pears in your bag! What a tasty solution to pear gunk.
this looks unbelievably perfect for fall. i love pear recipes!
I just got a box of ripe pears from some friends last night and I was wondering what to do with them. You solved that problem :-)
Anjou pears are my favourite, the flavour is so much more interesting than Bartlets!
I love the pear in there! Yum!
have to work today. need this cake. please express mail a piece to cleveland, ohio.
Great week for a pear moment – today I making pear vanilla butter. Pear cider is divine! That cake looks delish!
What a delicious looking pear crumble. I love pear anything, and the topping on this is calling my name. Beautiful!
One of my favorite desserts is your pear praline bundt cake thingy, and I’m thinking this looks just as amazing! Gorgeous, gorgeous photos too!
I have to confess I’m not a fan of pears… That is, I can’t stand them! But some friends are coming over later for coffee and they would love this cake. So I’m going to be nice and make it for them and my boyfriend because it looks scrumptious even for a pear hater like me!
Ack! I hate when my afternoon snack of a pear comes out of my purse with a pen sticking out of it and bruised to a point of no return and all I can think is how much pear juice is now smeared on the inside of my purse…oy! Recipe looks great! Happy Monday :)
I’m forever killing a perfectly good banana by squeezing into places it shouldn’t go. Love anything with a good buttery crumble!
oooh how i wish a piece (or six) of this cake could have accompanied my morning monday coffee! i think it could solve any “case of the mondays!”. yum.
“Let’s melt some butter and get this show on the road!” = What I say every morning.
why i love you.
Never had a pear in my purse, but have definitely had a banana in my purse, resulting in an equally poor (if not worse) outcome.
Cake looks amazing!
REEEEEAAALLLLLL CROWD PLEASER
you know.
A refreshing twist on apple crumble! Love your photos and story that goes along with it!
Mmmmm this coffee cake is calling to me — now if I could just stay home from work and make it… :)
imagine having wet pear in school back pack. My daily discovery every time I took pear to primary school. Eugh this pretty cake is enough to make me want to grow my own pears!
Nice recipe, we have made it with apple!
https://inatrendytown.blogspot.com.es/
Have you ever put a pear on your purse? <— Yes, I have. When my daughter was teething, her fave thing was to gnaw on a pear. I have had more bruised, drippy, messy pears in my life than I can tell you. Way better to bake them into this gorgeous cake! I love the slices you arranged on top right before burying them with the crumbly bits. Pinned!
I agree. Everything IS better with crumble topping.
YUM! Marvelous combination. Pears are so refreshing. And coffee cake is wonderful 24/7! :)
https://sometimesgracefully.com
I don’t know what’s more beautiful… the photos or the actual cake!! This sounds divine and I will definitely be trying it out myself! How do you think little mini cakes would go? I was thinking they could be cute as individual desserts. I’d love to know what you think!
Cake into breakfast = yes! Love all that crumble goodness!
As someone who has left pears and other fruit in her backpack and forgotten about them, let me just say that this cake looks like perfect solution–not to mention extremely delicious.