This simple pear cake is a buttery French-style cake with a tender crumb, golden edges and is filled with fresh sweet pears. This rustic French pear cake is easy to make and wonderfully comforting. Serve it with a dusting of powdered sugar for a delicious dessert, afternoon treat, or cozy weekend bake.
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Why Make This Recipe
I absolutely adore an easy and delicious pear dessert. My Maple Pear Cake, Cranberry Pear Tart and Cardamom Pear Loaf Cake are just a few of my favorite simple pear recipes from the blog. I am so excited to add this French-style pear cake recipe to the blog.
- Layers of flavors and textures. From the soft, moist and buttery vanilla cake, to the sweet chunks of pears and an ever so slightly flaky golden brown crust, this easy pear gateau will delight your senses.
- Easy to make with simple ingredients. This pear cake uses a handful of basic pantry ingredients and bakes into a beautifully rustic pear dessert you will love.
- Perfect for afternoon tea or as a simple dessert. This easy pear cake tastes like you just bought it from a quaint French bakery, but is actually incredibly quick and easy to make at home. It’s just as perfect for breakfast or as an afternoon snack as it is for a simple dessert.
Ingredients and Substitutions
This French pear cake recipe requires just a handful of simple ingredients to make and you probably already have them in your pantry and fridge. If you don’t have all the ingredients, here are my recommended substitutions as well.
- All Purpose Flour: To make this pear dessert cake gluten free, use a good 1-1 gluten free flour. I recommend using the one from Bob’s Red Mill. Make sure to measure the flour by weight (120 g) rather than cups to ensure the best outcome for the pear cake. Keep in mind that gluten free flours absorb liquids differently, so the overall texture may be a bit different.
- Baking Powder This acts as a leavener in this pear gateau.
- Granulated Sugar: This pear cake calls for granulated sugar, but maple sugar would also work well to make this recipe refined sugar free.
- Eggs: This recipe has not been tested without eggs.
- Vanilla Extract: The scent of vanilla gives a warm cozy background flavor to this cake. Use vanilla bean paste as an alternative.
- Melted Butter: Vegan butter or plant based can also be used in place of regular unsalted butter. Make sure the butter is melted and cooled to room temperature before using in this rustic french cake recipe.
- Pears: Bartlett, Anjou, and Bosc pears are all excellent choices. Look for pears that are fragrant and ripe but still firm enough to hold their shape during baking.
How To Make
Learn how to make pear cake in a few easy steps.
- Preheat the oven to 350 F (177 C). Grease and line the bottom of a 9 inch (23 cm) springform or cake pan with parchment paper. In a small bowl, melt the butter and set aside to cool to room temperature (about 15 minutes). In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt together until well combined.
- In a large mixing bowl whisk the eggs and sugar until smooth. Continue whisking until the eggs and sugar mixture thickens and lightens to a ribbon stage. Lift the whisk up and allow the liquid to drop down like ribbons. Whisk in the vanilla extract and sour cream or yogurt until smooth and well combined. Alternating dry ingredients and melted butter, mix in ? of the dry ingredients into the wet, followed by ½ of the melted butter. Repeat until all the ingredients are just combined. Fold in the peeled and diced pear chunks.
3. Evenly spread the pear cake batter into the prepared pan. Top with more sugar if you like. Bake the french pear cake for 45 - 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the pear cake comes out clean. Cool the cake pan in the pan for 15 - 20 minutes. Gently remove the cake from the pan and allow it to cool for 10 -15 additional minutes. Transfer the cake to a serving plate, top with powdered sugar, slice and enjoy!
How To Store, Freeze, Thaw and Serve
- Store: Place the moist pear dessert cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 days. Then the cake should be transferred to the fridge for up to another 2 - 3 days.
- Freeze: Make sure the cake is completely cooled to room temperature. Wrap the cake or cake slices in plastic wrap and place in an airtight container. Store in the freezer for up to 2 - 3 months.
- Thaw: The easiest and tastiest way to thaw the pear cake is to let it sit out at room temperature overnight. Enjoy at room temperature or microwave until it’s your preferred temperature.
- Serve: This from scratch french pear cake is best served as is or topped with a dusting of powdered sugar. This cake is also delicious topped with freshly whipped cream, crème fraîche or cold vanilla ice cream.
M’s Expert Tips
- Use pears meant for baking. Bartlett, Anjou, and Bosc pears are all excellent choices. Look for pears that are fragrant and ripe but still firm enough to hold their shape during baking. Use ripe, but still firm pears. Make sure to peel, core and dice the pears to your preferred size. I find that ½ inch size pear chunks make the best pear cake.
- Bring cold ingredients to room temperature. This allows the ingredients to mix together more evenly which requires less mixing, resulting in soft, fluffy, moist and tender pear cake.
- Measure the flour properly. I highly recommend using a food scale to get perfectly measured ingredients every time.
- Don’t overmix the batter. Make sure to mix the dry ingredients into the wet until just combined.
- Use the baking times as a guide. All ovens vary and baking times should be used as a guide. As a general rule, when the pear dessert becomes very fragrant, it’s a good idea to start checking. Begin checking on the cake at the minimum baking time. A toothpick inserted into the center of the cake should come out clean. The top of the cake should be golden brown.
- Let the cake cool. This cake needs about 15 minutes to cool enough to slice clean slices.
- How to top and serve. A simple dusting of powdered sugar is delicious on its own. To serve this French-style cake for dessert, try serving it with whipped cream, crème fraîche, or vanilla ice cream.
FAQs
Bartlett, Anjou, and Bosc pears are all excellent choices. Look for pears that are fragrant and ripe but still firm enough to hold their shape during baking. Use ripe, but still firm pears. Very firm pears may not become as tender or sweet during baking. If your pears are underripe, let them ripen at room temperature for a few days before making the cake.
Yes. Drain the canned pears thoroughly and pat them dry before adding them to the batter. Fresh pears are ideal, but canned pears are a convenient alternative.
Definitely! Pear pairs especially well with almond, cinnamon, vanilla, ginger, chocolate, and walnuts. A small amount of almond extract or a sprinkle of cinnamon or ginger can give the cake a delicious variation.
You can experiment with a good-quality cup-for-cup gluten-free flour blend designed for baking. Because different blends absorb moisture differently, the texture may vary slightly from the original recipe.
Other Simple Cakes to Try
If you try this Pear Cake recipe please rate the recipe and leave a comment below. Doing so helps other readers decide if this is a great recipe to bake. Don’t forget to tag me on Instagram using @olivesnthyme so I can see what you’re baking! - M
Pear Cake Recipe
Equipment
- 1 sheet parchment paper
- 1 knife
- 1 whisk
Ingredients
- 1½ cups (180 g) all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 1¼ cups (250 g) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons (10 ml) vanilla extract
- ½ cup (120 g) sour cream or yogurt
- ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter, melted
- 4 cups peeled, cored and diced pears
- 2 tablespoons (25 g) granulated sugar for topping, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 F (177 C). Grease and line the bottom of a 9 inch (23 cm) springform or cake pan with parchment paper.
- In a small bowl, melt the butter and set aside to cool to room temperature (about 15 minutes). Peel, core and dice the pears in about ½ inch cubes. Set aside for now.½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter, melted, 4 cups peeled, cored and diced pears
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt together until well combined.1½ cups (180 g) all purpose flour, 2 teaspoons baking powder, ½ teaspoon salt
- In a large mixing bowl whisk the eggs and sugar until smooth. Continue whisking until the eggs and sugar mixture thickens and lightens to a ribbon stage. Lift the whisk up and allow the liquid to drop down like ribbons. Whisk in the vanilla extract and sour cream or yogurt until smooth and well combined.3 large eggs, room temperature, 1¼ cups (250 g) granulated sugar, 2 teaspoons (10 ml) vanilla extract , ½ cup (120 g) sour cream or yogurt
- Alternating dry ingredients and melted butter, mix in ⅓ of the dry ingredients into the wet, followed by ½ of the melted butter. Repeat until all the ingredients are just combined. Fold in the peeled and diced pear chunks.Evenly spread the pear cake batter into the prepared pan. Top with more sugar if you like.2 tablespoons (25 g) granulated sugar for topping, optional
- Bake the french pear cake for 45 - 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the pear cake comes out clean. Cool the cake pan in the pan for 15 - 20 minutes. Gently remove the cake from the pan and allow it to cool for 10 - 15 additional minutes. Transfer the cake to a serving plate, top with powdered sugar, slice and enjoy.
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