Here’s an easy and delicious recipe for Pear Bread!
I traveled earlier this week and stocked up the house with food for my husband and son before I left. When I came home, the three beautiful pears I left for them to snack on sat in the fruit basket ripened beyond the point of wanting to eat them. Darn. All turned out okay though since I remembered I had been wanting to create a recipe for pear bread. It was Thursday night, and it was a good time to make a breakfast treat for the upcoming weekend. As I write this now (Friday night), we have one of two loaves left!
A nice alternative to classic banana bread, fresh pear chunks are dotted throughout this spiced-up quick loaf. It doesn’t matter if your pears are near mush. Turns out mushy pears are perfect for pear bread. I chose to lighten the loaf a bit by using 1/2 applesauce in place of 1/2 cup oil (so… 1/2 cup oil + 1/2 cup applesauce). You won’t see any difference in flavor if you do it that way. The applesauce keeps things moist just as the oil does.
If you’ve got some ripening pears, give this bread recipe a try. Make a loaf for you and make a loaf for a friend (unless your family dives in before you can object!) You might also like to try my friend’s fabulous recipe for pear buttermilk breakfast cake. That’s good too!
Pear Bread
Ingredients
- 2 cups granulated white sugar
- 1 cup vegetable or canola oil
- 3 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 2 to 2½ cups peeled and chopped ripe pears (about 3 medium)
- 1 cup chopped pecans, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly spray two 8x4-inch loaf pans with nonstick spray.
- In a large bowl, combine the sugar, oil, eggs and vanilla. Whisk together well.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Stir the dry ingredients into the wet mixture; stir just until combined. Gently stir in the pears and the pecans (if using). Divide the batter between the prepared loaf pans.
- Bake for 45 to 55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a loaf comes out clean. Allow the loaves to cool in the pans for 10 minutes before removing them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
- *To lighten-up this bread a little bit, sub half unsweetened applesauce for half of the oil (½ cup oil and ½ cup applesauce).
- Nutritional information does not include the optional pecans.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Oh My Gosh! just made your pear loaf and it was amazing! I made if for a family visit and was told to leave the rest! So easy and quick to get in the oven and is now my new favourite go to – thank you!!!!
Thank you for your recipe!! It was delicious and I have made the bread twice and have given it to my family and friends. They also said it was delicious. Thanks again! Bilma Carrasco
I love pear cake and I love pear cobbler, so this works for me! Looks delish!
I love the idea of pears with warm yummy spices. Your bread sounds fabulous! I like the idea of using the applesauce to lighten it up a bit.
Mm pear bread is one thing I have never tried. Sounds awesome!
I love the sound of pears with spices! Yum!
This pear bread looks wonderful, Lori! I love banana bread, but it’s nice to see another fruit get its turn in the limelight!
I adore pear bread! The addition of the spices make this bread aromatic and perfect for fall!