Pear Almond Bread with Coconut and Walnuts

With crunch on the outside and a cake-y inside, this bread's for all seasons. Pear Almond Bread features two kinds of flour and sugar, then includes coconut and walnuts.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword Cake, Dessert, Loaf

Prep Time 25 minutes

Cook Time 50 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 15 minutes

Servings servings

Calories 314kcal

Author Jen

Ingredients

¾ cup unbleached all purpose flour
¾ cup whole wheat pastry flour
1½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon kosher salt
½ - 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
⅛ teaspoon ground clove
½ cup butter room temperature
½ cup sugar
½ cup light brown sugar ¾ cup if using nuts and coconut
2 eggs, large room temperature
1 Tablespoon almond extract
½ cup milk
1 large pear, chopped and dusted with flour
⅓ - ½ cup unsweetened flaked coconut (optional)
⅓ cup pecans or walnuts, coarse chopped (optional)

Topping

1 Tablespoon turbinado sugar or raw/granulated sugar
1 teaspoon coconut sugar or raw/granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
⅛ teaspoon ground clove

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F
Line a 9x5 loaf pan with parchment paper and set aside.
Whisk together flour(s), baking powder, spices, and salt. Set aside.
Mix topping ingredients: sugar(s) and spices. Set aside.
Add butter and both sugars to a medium-sized bowl. With a hand or stand mixer, beat on medium for about two minutes, while making sure to scrape the sides down. Turn the mixer to low, add one egg at a time and almond extract then beat again until just incorporated but smooth.
With your mixer still on low, alternate adding flour and milk, beginning and ending with flour. Mix until just incorporated. Add lightly flour dusted pears, coconut, and nuts then stir until just combined.
Taste the batter. Is it to your liking? If not, add more sugar or spice, then pour into the prepared pan. Sprinkle sugar/spice, then on a folded dishtowel, tap the loaf pan down a couple times to distribute the batter evenly.
Bake on the center rack:
High altitude 40 - 50 minutes
Sea level 45 - 55 minutes
If adding nuts/coconut cook on the longer side, possibly adding five extra minutes.
Begin checking five minutes prior to the earliest finish time. Bake until bread's just set and toothpick comes out with very few crumbs or clean. It's better for the bread to be underdone and able to continue baking on the counter, then overdone.
Remove pan from the oven and let stand for 10 minutes, then remove and transfer to a wire rack to cool.
Warm or cool, this bread's to die for.

Notes

Adapted by the master of this bread

All purpose flour can be used and this bread will come out great. I haven't tried, but my understanding is all whole wheat pastry flour won't work.
We like desserts with "just enough" sugar, so include 1 cup. We tested on many who love their sweets; the consensus, the bread was perfectly sweet. It's your bread though, so taste the batter and add if necessary.
To prevent the pears from sinking, dust with flour before adding to the batter.
I'm a sucker for a good top, so add turbinado sugar for texture. Mixing with sugar and spice makes for the perfect crunch!
For crunchy on the out and soft on the in, leave bread on a rack loose tented with foil. For soft inside and out, store airtight.

Nutrition