Pear Muffins
Spiced pear muffins are the perfect way to enjoy fall flavors! And these have quickly become one of my favorite fall recipes!
Growing up in rural northern California, my parents and I took many a road trip. Whether it was for the day, overnight, or a long weekend, we always seemed to be heading out somewhere.
One of our favorite destinations? Medford, Oregon (yep, to Harry & David). In the fall, they sell pears by the lug-full (roughly 40 pounds) and we stocked up. My mom always canned pints of pears (impossibly delicious by the way) and made pear chutney.
With the slow but definite arrival of fall, I’ve been craving the comfortable flavor, so these spiced pear muffins came to be.
Wondering what else is in season in fall? Check out the complete list with recipes organized by ingredient.
CONTENTS
SPICED PEAR MUFFINS
There are a wide variety of pears – some soft and sweet, other crunchy and more neutral in flavor. Each has their own purpose in life – you just can’t expect an Anjou and a Bosc pear to give you the same tasty results!
The best part about all pears, however, is that with a few tasty seasonings (usually reminiscent of fall), you can have delicious bliss. This spiced pear muffins recipe does everything you need to get that perfection…
Common Pear Varieties
ANJOU: Juicy with a firm texture. Not too sweet. Good for cooking.
BARTLETT: Juicy and great for eating raw. Taste and shape lost when cooked.
BOSC: Crunchy and ideal for baking as they hold their shape.
COMICE: Juicy and sweet. Best for eating raw.
What do Pears Taste Like in Baking?
It took me a long time to understand (or rather accept) that pears have a delicate flavor – raw and, more so, when baked. Pear recipes, more than apple recipes, really require the right balance of flavors if you want to get any pear flavor.
They’re lovely to bake with, but I usually just have to scale back my hopes of having a strong pear flavor.
BAKING WITH CARDAMOM
These spiced pear muffins have two of my favorite seasonings – ginger (a perfect counter to anything sweet) and cardamom. I realized cardamom was so magical about five years ago and now I seek out anything featuring it as an ingredient (just see my cardamom cake and cardamom cookies).
The spice isn’t sweet in and of itself, but goodness is it delicious in baked goodies. I love opening up my container of cardamom, closing my eyes, and taking a sniff.
Immediately I start thinking of all sorts of flavors that it reminds me of, savory and sweet. I’ve been known to add extra to recipes, so do as you will.
BAKING WITH NUTS
I understand that the idea of chopped nuts in cookies and breads is polarizing, but I’m wholeheartedly in the camp that nuts make everything better.
They’re the perfect addition of crunch to break up an otherwise uniform consistency and they provide a great flavor balance.
Best Nuts for Baking?
This is a question with only a subjective answer, but as long as nobody is ready to get up in arms about it…then I’ll wholeheartedly tell you that pecans are my go to nuts for baking (and cooking too – my pesto often has pecans)!
I keep whole pecans in the freezer for months at a time (depending on how quickly I’m using them up really). They’ll keep for a long time in a good, sealed container!
If you aren’t huge into nuts in your cooking, I recommend you just chop them finer rather than omitting them all together.
You may find you get to the point, like me, where you like big chunks of nuts in your cookies and breads and the more the merrier.
Other Pear Recipes
And don’t forget to try these orange carrot muffins and sweet potato bread in fall and winter.
In the spring, these strawberry muffins are where it’s at!!
PEAR MUFFINS
Ingredients
- 2 cups whole wheat pastry flour such as Bob’s Red Mill
- ½ cup sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 Bosc or Anjou pear cored and chopped (about 1 cup)*
- ⅓ cup chopped raw walnuts optional
- ½ cup unsalted butter melted and cooled slightly
- 1 large egg
- ¾ cup reduced fat buttermilk
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Spray a 12-muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray.
- Stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, cardamom, ginger, and salt in a large bowl. Fold in the pear and walnuts.
- Whisk the egg into the melted butter. Pour into the dry ingredients and stir gently. Pour in the buttermilk and continue to stir until a thick batter forms.
- Divide the batter between the 12 slots in the muffin tin. Bake for 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Serve warm or at room temperature.
- *You can peel the pear if desired, but it’s really not necessary as the skin softens when the muffins are baked.
These were utterly delicious! Just the right amount of cardamom for me, so aromatic and autumnal! And wow, that texture was superb – light and fluffy but really moist at the same time! Great recipe 🙂
The cardamom and ginger make these pear muffins so rich and delicious!! Perfect for fall!
Muffins with pear…sounds yum….will try these for sure….
Oh! Those would be good for breakfast, an afternoon treat, lunch boxes or for pudding warmed through with custard! Mmmmm!
I have never tried muffins with pear before. SOunds interesting, and your pics are beautiful. Thanks for the recipe.
I love that you made sure these muffins have just the right amount of pear flavor in them. They are magnificent.
I made these muffins over the weekend and they were wonderful! So full of fall spice!
Enjoyed these for breakfast this morning and they do not disappoint! Perfectly moist and flavorful; easily, the best way to start my day!