Recipe File: Pumpkin-Pear Bread

Look at those chunks of pear in the pumpkin bread. The loaf at upper right substitutes shredded zucchini.

With the cooler temperatures I was thinking pumpkin and Kate Lawson, food writer for The Detroit News, read my mind again. I’ve followed and featured many of her recipes over the years because they often coincide with a timely craving or ingredients I just happen to have on hand.

I’d just picked up a can of plain pumpkin that was on sale and—voila—the next day Kate’s Simply the Best column featured a recipe for Pumpkin-Pear Bread.

The recipe makes one loaf, but there was enough pumpkin in the can to make two loaves. I had only one can of pears so I doubled all the ingredients but substituted grated zucchini for pears in the second loaf. Both versions are sweet but delish. No sugar needed in the hot tea I had with the late afternoon treat.

Pumpkin-Pear Bread
Adapted from Vegetarian Times by Kate Lawson
Makes one loaf

Ingredients
1-1/4 cups sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole-wheat pastry flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 large egg
1/2 cup low-fat milk
3/4 cup unsweetened pumpkin puree
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
15-ounce can pears, drained and diced

Method
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 9″x5″ loaf pan with cooking spray.

Whisk together sugar, flours, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda and salt in bowl. Set aside.

Whisk together oil and egg in bowl until smooth. Whisk in milk, then pumpkin and vanilla.

Stir flour mixture into oil-egg mixture until just combined. Fold in pears.

Spread batter in the prepared loaf pan. Bake 50 to 55 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

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