Sour Cream Pear Bread
This moist, rich Sour Cream Pear Bread is the perfect autumn treat with the warm spices of cinnamon and ginger. Totally irresistible with chunks of pears nestled in a sweet, tender loaf.
Disclaimer, I LOVE Pears. I have eaten scrumptious pear coffee cakes, put pears in my salads, but never made nor tasted a pear quick bread. I was bound and determined to create a moist and flavorful loaf, and, indeed, I did. This is one of those Pear Recipes that can’t be beat!
Why You Must Try this Pear Recipe
- This Sour Cream Pear Bread is full of small pear chunks plus a hint of spice from cinnamon and ginger. Perfect for a fall breakfast, snack or teatime.
- Adding sour cream made for a rich batter, which in turn, baked up to a perfect loaf. I shared this with a group of friends and they all were crazy about it.
- Rich, sweet, and addictive, this loaf is a terrific addition to your breakfast or brunch menu, but could also be served with a scoop of ice cream for dessert!
Frequently Asked Questions
What's the Difference Between Quick Bread, Soda Bread, Tea Bread, etc?
All these terms including Fruit Bread refer to a bread that is not made with yeast. Instead, they are made with baking powder or baking soda, making them quick to make since they don’t require kneading or rising time.
These two leaveners start the rising process as soon as they are combined with any moisture.
How Do you Store Pear Bread?
Pear bread can be kept at room temperature for a day or two, but since it is moist, keep it in the refrigerator, well wrapped after a couple of days. PRO-Tip: If storing in a container, add a paper towel to absorb any excess moisture to keep the bread from getting soggy or prematurely spoiling.
Can You Freeze Pear Bread?
Yes! Most Quick Bread freezes beautifully. Just wrap well so it’s airtight and keep frozen up to 3 months. Defrost overnight in the refrigerator.
What Kinds of Pears are Best for Baking?
Bartlett, Bosc, and Anjou pears are all wonderful for baking. Bartlett pears are my personal favorite variety for eating and baking.
What Else Can You Make with Pears?
Many recipes using apples can easily be used for pears instead. Here are some favorite ways to use pears:
- Add to salads.
- Make a Pear Crisp.
- How about a Pear Coffee Cake?
- Use for a Clafoutis, Pie, Galette, Pear Bars, or a Pear Cake.
- Make Baked Pears instead of Baked Apples.
- Poach Pears in wine.
- Or even a festive Pear Cocktail.
Tips for Making Pear Fruit Bread
My home base taste testers had no interest in even a nibble of this tasty pear bread recipe, so I turned to my girlfriends who always love sampling my experiments. The loaf of pear quick bread was whittled down to next to nothing after the initial tasting and the packaging up of slices to be taken home. We all agreed that the pear taste was quite subtle, and there was even the declaration of “this is so much better than banana bread.”
- One astute friend noticed the sweet, crispy crust which was created by dusting the greased loaf pan with a mixture of cinnamon and sugar before adding the batter. Just grease your loaf pan, add some cinnamon sugar, then tilt the pan to distribute. Tap out any excess over your sink.
- Incorporating both ground cinnamon and ginger helped to boost the flavor of what could have been a bland pear bread recipe.
- Avoid using over-ripe or extra juicy pears as they will add too much moisture to your batter. Look for firm, but not rock hard, pears.
- As with all quick bread, do not over mix as your bread will develop tunnels. Do not use a mixer, but instead mix by hand with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula. Mix in dry ingredients just until combined.
With pear season arriving, make sure to grab a couple extra and bake up some Pear Quick Bread, for your friends and family. I really loved this! I always have a stash of pears on the counter, and this yummy pear bread is the perfect excuse to buy some extras!
More Autumn Bread Recipes
- Pear and Cherry Sourdough Bread by Karen’s Kitchen Stories
- Pear, Banana, and Quinoa Muffins by Rhubarb and Honey
- Raspberry Pear Pecan Quick Bread by A Baker’s House
- Savory Pear Flatbread with Gorgonzola by Culinary Adventures with Camilla
- Easy Pumpkin Bread
- Brown Sugar Apple Bread
- Plus, with autumn’s arrival, try one of our favorite holiday side dishes, Spinach Casserole Recipe
- More Bread Recipes
Sour Cream Pear Bread
A delectable fall loaf featuring chopped pears; rich and moist from the addition of sour cream
Ingredients
- Butter, for greasing the pan
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon sugar
- 1 3/4 cups cake flour
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 cup and 2 tablespoons butter,
- softened
- 2/3 cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1 1/2 medium pears, peeled, cored and finely chopped (I used Bartlett pears)
Instructions
- Grease a large loaf pan. Line the bottom of the pan with a rectangle of parchment and grease the top of the parchment as well. Sprinkle cinnamon sugar into the pan, and tilt to coat the buttered surface. Shake out the excess. Set aside.
- Preheat the oven to 350º.
- In a medium bowl, stir together the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and ginger. Set aside.
- In a separate bowl, beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each.
- Stir in the vanilla and sour cream, mixing just until blended.
- Gradually stir in the flour mixture until fully incorporated. Fold in the chopped pears using a rubber spatula.
- Bake for 45 to 65 minutes or till a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Cool the cake in the pan for 15 minutes, then run a knife around the outside edge of the cake.
- Carefully invert onto a cooling rack. If the cake won't come out of the pan, tap it firmly with a knife on the bottom and sides of the pan. Set aside to cool completely.
Notes
Use Bartlett pears that are soft, but not over-ripe.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
12Serving Size:
1 sliceAmount Per Serving: Calories: 190Total Fat: 6gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 44mgSodium: 169mgCarbohydrates: 32gFiber: 1gSugar: 15gProtein: 3g
53 Comments on “Sour Cream Pear Bread”
This recipe worked well in a breadmaker with Jam (warm/mix) and bake functions. I was using up some dried pear halves (3) chopped finely. The ingredients below are metric
• Butter, for greasing the pan
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon sugar
• 1 2/3 cups plain flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 500g butter, softened
• 130g sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 3* 1/2 pears, Dried and finely chopped
1. Use Setting 10 (Jam/Mix)
2. Add ingredients in order& Allow to mix until smooth (Approx 5 mins)
3. Change setting to Bake (11)
4. Leave for 1 hour.
Thanks, David!! Nice to know it works in a bread maker!
I love the flavor and texture of this bread! The pears and sourcream really make a great loaf!
We love this easy pear bread and so did our guests. We will definitely make this again!
Thank you for the tip adding the cinnamon sugar for the crust. That turned out great. The cinnamon and ginger really do add more flavor to the batter. It turned out great. Thanks for sharing a delicious new quick bread.
can I use canned pear and how much in oz ?
Yes, definitely, Steve. I would buy a small can of Bartlett pear halves and use 3 of those halves in the recipe. Make sure to drain them well, then dry them off with paper toweling as you won’t want to add any extra juice to the batter. Let me know how it goes!
this is the perfect breakfast treat on a chilly morning with my coffee!
“sprinkle cinnamon sugar into pan” Bit unclear. Is that part of the sugar and cinnamon in re recipe or in addition?
Hi, Natalie, that instruction refers to the “cinnamon sugar” in the recipe. This mixture (you can buy it premixed or mix it up yourself) is used to coat the pan. Later in the recipe you’ll see “cinnamon” listed. That’s the cinnamon that goes into the batter. Does that make sense?
I did a search recently, using ‘pears’ and ‘sour cream’ as my search terms, and this is what came up. I have made it three times already. It’s delicious!
Thanks so much for the feedback, Tamara! It is a wonderful bread—and nice to use pears for a change 🙂