This easy Pear Bread is packed with juicy pieces of fresh pear and topped with a buttery cinnamon streusel and a simple sweet glaze. Made with yogurt and oil for a soft, tender crumb, this fall quick bread is perfect for breakfast, an afternoon snack, or dessert.

Apples get pies, crisps, cakes, muffins, and breads. Pears? They mostly get eaten straight out of the fruit bowl. Which seems a little unfair, doesn’t it?

I’m here to make the case for putting more pears in your oven.

This pear bread is a good place to start. You don’t need a mixer, the batter comes together in a few minutes, and you don’t even need to wait until your pears are super soft. In fact, slightly firm pears work better because they hold their shape as the bread bakes.

And because I firmly believe that a good crumb topping makes almost everything better, we’re adding a generous layer of buttery brown sugar streusel. The drizzle of glaze is optional, but I’m certainly not going to argue against it.

Breakfast, afternoon snack, dessert? I think we’ve covered all the bases.

Ingredients and Substitutions

Most of the ingredients for this pear bread are pantry staples, but there are a few things worth knowing about choosing the right pears and making substitutions.

Pears

Bartlett, Anjou, and Bosc pears all work well in this recipe. Look for pears that are ripe but still slightly firm. Overripe pears can become mushy and release too much moisture into the batter. Want to make apple bread instead? Swap the pears for an equal amount of peeled, diced apples. Honeycrisp, Pink Lady, or Granny Smith are all good choices.

All-Purpose Flour

To make this pear bread gluten-free, use a 1:1 gluten-free baking flour blend in place of the all-purpose flour.

Yogurt or Sour Cream

Either plain yogurt or sour cream works in this recipe. Plain Greek yogurt is also an option. Avoid sweetened or flavored varieties. For a dairy-free version, use a thick, unsweetened plant-based yogurt, dairy-free butter in the streusel topping, and your favorite plant-based milk in the optional glaze.

Cardamom

Cardamom adds a subtle floral, citrusy flavor that pairs beautifully with pears. It’s optional, so you can leave it out entirely or substitute ¼ teaspoon ground ginger or ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg for a slightly different flavor.

Glaze

The powdered sugar glaze is completely optional. The cinnamon streusel adds plenty of sweetness on its own, so feel free to skip the glaze if you prefer a less sweet bread.

How to Make Pear Bread

This pear bread comes together with just a couple of mixing bowls and no electric mixer. Here’s how to get plenty of pear in every slice, a tender crumb, and a thick layer of buttery cinnamon streusel.

Make the Streusel

Mix the dry ingredients for the streusel, then work in the cold butter with your fingertips or a fork until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs with a few larger clusters. Refrigerate while you make the bread.

Mix the Batter

Whisk the dry ingredients together in one bowl. In another bowl, whisk the eggs and sugar until slightly pale, then add the remaining wet ingredients. Gently fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until just combined. Gently fold in the diced pears, making sure they’re evenly distributed throughout the batter. Don’t overmix, or the bread can turn out dense and tough.

Add the Streusel

Spread the batter into the prepared loaf pan and sprinkle the chilled streusel evenly over the top. Press down very gently to help the crumbs adhere.

Bake and Cool

Bake for 55–65 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out without wet batter. If the streusel is browning too quickly, loosely cover the loaf with foil. Let the bread cool in the pan for 15–20 minutes before transferring it to a wire rack. Whisk the powdered sugar and milk together until smooth, adding a little more milk if needed for a pourable consistency. Drizzle over the cooled bread and let the glaze set before slicing.

Butter Temperature and Streusel

Have you ever noticed that some crumb toppings have big, almost cookie-like chunks, while others are made up of smaller, delicate crumbs? A lot of that comes down to the temperature of the butter. For this pear bread, we’re using cold butter to create a crumbly topping with plenty of crisp, irregular pieces that contrast with the softer loaf underneath.

Kitchen Chemistry

When cold butter is rubbed into flour and sugar, it remains in small, separate pieces rather than coating everything evenly. As the streusel heats in the oven, the butter melts, flour absorbs some of the moisture, and the sugars begin to dissolve. As the moisture evaporates, the topping becomes firmer and crisp. Melted butter, on the other hand, distributes fat and moisture more evenly from the start, creating a cohesive dough that can form larger clusters.

That’s also why we refrigerate the streusel while mixing the bread batter. Keeping the butter cold helps preserve those distinct crumbs until the loaf goes into the oven.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to peel the pears?

I recommend peeling the pears for this recipe. Pear skins can be a little tough, especially on varieties like Bosc, and removing them gives the bread a more uniform texture. If you prefer to leave the skins on, they’ll soften somewhat during baking, but you may notice them in the finished slices.

Can I use canned pears?

Fresh pears are best for this recipe. Canned pears are typically much softer and have more surface moisture, which can affect the texture of the bread. If you want to try canned pears, drain and pat them dry thoroughly, but keep in mind that this substitution hasn’t been tested.

Why did my pear bread sink in the middle?

A sunken center usually means the bread wasn’t fully baked before it came out of the oven, although too much moisture or excessive leavening can also contribute. Measure the pears so you’re not adding extra fruit, and check the center for wet batter before removing the loaf from the oven. If the streusel is getting too dark before the center is done, loosely tent the bread with foil.

How do I keep the streusel from falling off?

Gently press the streusel into the surface of the batter before baking. Don’t press too firmly, or the crumbs may sink into the bread. Some loose crumbs are normal, especially when slicing!

More Fall Fruit Recipes

• Caramel Pear Pie with Oatmeal Cookie Crumble
• Apple Crumble Bars
• Cranberry Bread with Apple Cider Glaze
• Brown Butter Pear Tart with Shortbread Crust
• Apple Bread with Cinnamon Crumble