Meet your new favorite fall dessert. This soft and tender pear cake is filled with fresh pears and cozy, warming spices, and topped with a buttery streusel topping for the perfect bite! Best of all, it's so simple to make, you'll have it on repeat all season long.
And if you enjoy this recipe, you'll love my apple crumble cake, too!
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❤️ Why You'll Love this Recipe
Quick and Easy - The cake comes together in under an hour, and you won't need a mixer or any fancy appliances. Just a lil' elbow grease to grate, mix, and spread!
Dreamy Flavor and Texture - I structured this delicious pear cake recipe to yield a moist cake with a delicately tender crumb that plays perfectly with the brown sugar crumble on top. You'll taste pears, vanilla, and sweet spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger.
👉🏾 Pear is one of my favorite fruits all year long, but especially during the cooler autumn months. Check out my fresh pear cobbler, warm pear cider, pear sorbet with Riesling, and honey stewed pears next!
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What You'll Need for this Recipe
Fresh Pears are best for this recipe, and you can use whatever you have on hand; hard or soft, yellow, green, or red.
Vegetable Oil or the neutral oil of your choosing helps the cake stay moist and soft even a few days after baking.
Brown and Granulated Sugar provide a nice balance of structure and flavor here. That hint of molasses in the brown sugar is subtle but so necessary!
Check out the recipe card below for full ingredients list, measurements, nutrition facts, and step-by-step instructions!
Substitutions & Variations
Canned Pears are much softer than fresh, and they usually hold more liquid, so if you plan on making this with canned pears, drain them well. They won't hold up to grating, so I recommend mashing them with the back of a kitchen spoon into a chunky puree, then incorporating into the cake batter.
Shape and Size - You can bake this cake in a square or loaf pan. Just note that the baking times may vary, with the loaf typically taking slightly longer to bake.
Vegan - Make this cake vegan by using dairy-free milk and a plant-based butter alternative for the crumble.
How to Make a Pear Harvest Cake
- Step One: Mix the wet cake batter ingredients until uniform. (Photo 1)
- Step Two: Whisk together the dry ingredients. (Photo 2)
- Step Three: Grate the pears into a separate bowl, then fold them into the dry mixture. (Photo 3)
- Step Four: Combine wet and dry mixtures into cake batter. (Photo 4)
Pro Tip #1
Tossing the shredded pear into the dry mixture helps the pieces float evenly throughout the batter so they don't sink to the bottom of the cake and burn. But be sure not to grate the pears directly into the flour mixture, because they will release a lot of liquid!
- Step Five: Mix together the crumble ingredients. (Photo 5)
- Step Six: Spread the batter into a lined cake pan, then sprinkle the crumble over top. (Photos 6 and 7)
- Step Seven: Bake until cooked through and golden brown. (Photo 8)
Frequently Asked Questions
Store leftover cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to three days or in the refrigerator for up to six days. I recommend placing a sheet of paper towel inside the container to absorb any moisture the cake releases and reduce the potential for condensation or mold.
To freeze, cool the cake to room temperature, then wrap it in plastic wrap followed by aluminum foil. Transfer to the freezer, where it will keep for up to one year.
How to Serve
Temperature: This cake is great at room temperature or even cold, but really shines when you eat it warm! Reheat in the oven, microwave, or air fryer.
Pairings: Since it's essentially a pear coffee cake, you can pair it with your morning cuppa. It's delicious with a simple cinnamon tea! Or go the full-on dessert route and serve with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream or homemade butter pecan ice cream.
More Favorite Fall Baking Recipes
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
I hope you'll make this moist pear cake recipe soon and very soon. And sharing is caring, so be sure to pin this recipe for later and follow me over on Pinterest. Thanks for reading!
📖 Recipe
Pear Crumble Cake
Equipment
- 1 silicone spatula or kitchen spoon
- 1 whisk
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 2 eggs
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup brown sugar packed
- ⅓ cup vegetable oil or neutral tasting oil of your choice
- ⅓ cup milk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract or 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
- 1 ½ cup all-purpose flour sifted or fluffed (see notes)
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¾ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- 2 fresh pears
For the Dutch Crumble
- ⅔ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup unsalted butter melted
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaaspoon fine sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease and flour cake pan, or line with parchment paper and set aside.This will be a very soft and moist cake that is prone to sticking, so I recommend lining with parchment and creating “handles” to make it easier to remove intact. (See process pictures in blog post.) Alternatively, you can serve it from the pan.
- Make the Cake Batter: In a large mixing bowl, mix together the eggs, sugars, oil, milk, and vanilla extract until uniform.2 eggs, ½ cup granulated sugar, ¼ cup brown sugar, ⅓ cup vegetable oil, ⅓ cup milk, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- In another mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, leavening agents, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg, and ginger.Grate the pears into a smaller bowl, then fold them into the flour mixture.1 ½ cup all-purpose flour, 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, ¾ teaspoon fine sea salt, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg, ½ teaspoon ground ginger, 2 fresh pears
- Combine the wet and dry mixtures, and stir until just combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl, as necessary. Do not overmix the batter.
- Make the Crumble: In another bowl, stir together the flour, brown sugar, butter, cinnamon, and salt until the crumb topping comes together in clumps. It should have a coarse, gravely appearance.⅔ cup all-purpose flour, ½ cup brown sugar, ¼ cup unsalted butter, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, ½ teaaspoon fine sea salt
- Assemble and Bake the Cake: Spread the cake batter into prepared pan, then sprinkle the crumble mixture evenly over top and lightly tap it into the batter.Use a feather-light hand-don't press the crumble down so that it sinks!
- Transfer the pan into the oven to bake for about 40 minutes or until the top is golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.Cool cake in pan for at least 30 minutes, then remove, slice, and serve warm.
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