Pear Bundt Cake

Pears are in season, and you’re looking for the perfect dessert. Here it is with this easy to make Pear Bundt Cake. This pear cake recipe is perfect for a fall bake sale, a party, or even a family dinner. The end result is pretty and so, so delicious!

This dessert only takes about 15 minutes to prepare and into the oven. It can’t get easier than that! Paired with this mouthwatering vanilla sauce, it will take a plain ol’ bundt cake to heavenly levels.

If you’re ready for another fancy-looking bundt dessert, check out my Nothing Bundt Cake Recipe for chocolate decadence. And if you’re in the mood for a simple coffee cake, try this Cinnamon Swirl Bundt Cake where hands on time is only 15 minutes.

I received ripe, juicy Bartlett pears from Melissa’s produce and light brown sugar provided by Dixie Crystals; but the opinions on the deliciousness of this pear cake recipe and these products are entirely my own!

This week I am featuring a different fall flavored recipe each day; check out the other days: Panera Autumn Squash Soup, Fall Charcuterie Board, Gluten-Free Apple Pie, Graham Cracker Crumble Topping and this pear cake!

Once you try this pear cake recipe, you’ll see how easy it is to make and want to make it every fall. It looks so fancy and will impress your family and friends. It’s perfect for a luncheon when the kids are in school or for an after dinner treat.

I adore pears, and fall is the perfect time to use fresh pears. If you’re looking for the perfect autumn salad, you’re going to love this Wild Rice Harvest Salad with pears or apples, grapes, pomegranate arils, nuts, and cheese.

Pear Cake Recipe Ingredients

Most of these items will be pantry staples, for the entire ingredient list and instructions be sure to print out the recipe card at the end of the post.

• All-purpose flour | I use organic unbleached, all-purpose flour — a healthy choice for all my baking.
• Butter | Used for flavor and to make the cake’s texture light and fluffy, no substitutes.
• Light brown sugar | I recommend Dixie Crystals, all natural pure cane brown sugar, it’s non-GMO.
• Eggs | They bind the ingredients beautifully, bring them to room temperature first.
• Vanilla | I used a combo of vanilla extract and my homemade bourbon vanilla extract for a rich seasonal taste.
• Vanilla Bean Paste | I use Rodelle, seriously, it is superior and reasonably priced, and delicious, should I go on?
• Buttermilk | My secret ingredient to keep it super moist, no buttermilk to my tip below.
• Cinnamon and Nutmeg | These are my favorite flavors for this autumn treat.
• Toasted walnuts | I love the texture and flavor toasted walnuts give. You could also use pecans, or your favorite nut.
• Pears | This is the signature ingredient! I used Melissa’s Bartlett pears.

HOW TO MAKE YOUR OWN BUTTERMILK | I love using real, whole milk buttermilk, but I get it if you don’t have any. You can use this simple substitute. Add 1 tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice to a 1 cup measuring cup, then add milk to the 1 cup mark, stir and let sit for 5-10 minutes while you pre your other ingredients! Ta-da!

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and grease your bundt pan well, I like using Bak-Klene my bundt cakes release easily every single time.

Use your stand mixer and beat the butter for 30 seconds. Add the sugar and beat until it is fluffy, about 3 minutes.

In a medium-sized bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, baking powder, nutmeg, cinnamon, and salt together. Set it aside.

Add your eggs in one at a time, beating for 1 minute. Then add vanilla and vanilla bean paste.

Alternate by adding some of the flour mixture and then the buttermilk.

Stir in the walnuts. Spoon a third of the batter into prepared bundt pan, sprinkle half the pears, repeat.

Finish with the last third of the pear cake batter, then smooth with spatula and on top. Swirl the layers together with a butter knife.

Tap the pan to settle the batter and bake. After about an hour, your toothpick should come out clean. Cool in pan on wire rack for 10 minutes, then place the wire rack on top of the bundt pan, using hot pads, gently invert the pear bundt cake onto the cooling rack. Allow to cool completely.

While it’s baking, you can make a Vanilla Buttercream Glaze or Vanilla Butter Sauce (recipe in card).

Variations

For a bundt cake glaze, pictured is the vanilla sauce dessert sauce (recipe included) and the thicker glaze is the Vanilla Buttercream Glaze and Vanilla Sauce! Add a bit of crunch, with this graham cracker crumble topping.

You can also play with the spices and mix it up by adding ginger, cardamom, orange zest, pumpkin pie spice or lavender. Each one of these will add a unique flavor and look. But don’t put them all in the same cake. Try adding one new thing at a time to find your personal favorite!

I used Bartlett pears for this recipe, but any ripe pear will work.

TFC Pro Tips

• Pro Tip 1 | Don’t skip mixing the batter at a medium-high speed for 3-4 minutes. You’re whipping in air during this step, making a fluffier pear bundt cake.
• Pro Tip 2 | Add eggs one at a time. Because the eggs give structure to the cake, you want them to mix with the other ingredients instead of each other. Adding them one at a time will give you a consistent batter for your cake.
• Pro Tip 3 | Cool completely! When it’s still in the pan, the heat from the metal is still cooking your cake. Once it’s on the wire rack and completely cool, it’s easier to cut. It’s best to let it cool for a couple of hours on the counter instead of the fridge.

Frequently Asked Questions

High Altitude Pear Cake Recipe

As you know, sometimes baking at high altitude can be tricky, here are the tweaks I made for this recipe.

• Add 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• Decrease baking powder to 1 teaspoon
• Reduce light brown sugar and granulated sugar to ¾ cups (each)
• Bring eggs to room temperature, if you forgot, simply place them in a bowl of warm (not hot) water for 5-10 minutes.
• If your oven runs on the cooler side (use oven thermometer), increase temp by 25 degrees. If using a dark non-stick pan, keep temp at 350F.

Recommended Tools

These tools will help make baking this luscious pear cake recipe so much easier!

• Heavy Bundt Pan | the King of all bundt pans is Nordic Ware, they have been making them for decades, and they are truly superior to thin aluminum bundt pans. Be sure it’s at least 10 cup, smaller and you will have overflow.
• Fruit & Veggie Peeler | This is my favorite vegetable and fruit peeler, this Oxo Swivel peeler, is sharp and non-slip.
• Spatula | You don’t want a flimsy spatula, I adore these Tovolo spatulas.
• Stand Mixer | You can certainly make this pear cake recipe using a hand mixer, but if you love to bake, maybe it’s time to make the investment in a stand mixer, they are superior in their ability to cream and blend.

Similar Showy Desserts

• Traditional Tiramisu
• Chocolate Bread Pudding with Creme Anglaise
• The Best Key Lime Pie | The most popular dessert recipe on the TFC! Fabulous year round!
• Mud Pie Ice Cream Cake
• Best White Chocolate Raspberry Bundt Cake {Nothing Bundt Cake Copycat Recipe}

Storage Tips

Store pear bundt cake the counter for 1-2 days, try using one of these handy bundt savers. Or, cool completely (at least 1 hour), and place in bundt carrier or wrap well in plastic wrap, will keep in fridge for 7 days.

FREEZE | Wrap well in plastic wrap, 1-2 layers, then in foil and freeze for up to 4 months. Thaw overnight in fridge and bring to room temperature before serving.

Pear Bundt Cake Recipe

Pears are in season, and you’re looking for the perfect dessert. Here it is with this easy to make Pear Bundt Cake. This pear cake recipe is perfect for a fall bake sale, a party, or even a family dinner. The end result is pretty and so, so delicious!

5 from 7 votes

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Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour hour

Total Time: 1 hour hour 20 minutes minutes

Servings: 12 servings

Calories: 262kcal

Author: Kathleen • The Fresh Cooky © 2021

Equipment

• ▢
  Tovolo Elements Wooden Handled Silicone Spatula set
• ▢
  OXO Good Grips Swivel Peeler
• ▢
  Nordic Ware Platinum Collection Anniversary Bundt Pan

Ingredients

• ▢ 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour 2 tablespoons additional for high altitude
• ▢ 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder reduce to 1 teaspoon for high altitude
• ▢ 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• ▢ ½ teaspoon fresh nutmeg ground may be used
• ▢ ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ▢ ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ▢ 1 cup 2 sticks butter, softened
• ▢ [1 cup light brown sugar packed (¾ cup for high altitude)]
• ▢ 1 cup granulated sugar ¾ cup for high altitude, I use all natural cane sugar
• ▢ 3 eggs large room temperature
• ▢ [1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract]
• ▢ [1 teaspoon bourbon vanilla extract* ]
• ▢ 1 ¼ cups buttermilk I used whole buttermilk (to make your own see notes)
• ▢ ¾ cup walnuts chopped and toasted*
• ▢ 1 ½ cups pear peeled cored and chopped or shredded (about 2 small pears, I used Melissa’s Bartlett pears)

Vanilla Sauce

• ▢ ½ cup butter
• ▢ ½ cup heavy whipping cream
• ▢ 1 cup sugar
• ▢ 1 ½-2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and grease and flour (or use a baking spray with flour in it) a 10-inch fluted tube pan or 10 cup bundt cake pan. 
• In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking powder, soda & salt. 
• Beat butter in the bowl of a stand mixer or hand mixer on medium speed for about 30 seconds. Add both sugars, mix on medium for another 30 seconds, scrape down sides, then increase speed to medium-high and mix for 3-4 minutes until light and fluffy. (Longer if using cane sugar).
• Add eggs, one at a time, beating for 45 seconds for each egg. Mix in vanilla bean paste & extract. 
• Alternately add flour mixture and buttermilk, mixing until just combined after each addition. Stir in walnuts. While spooning into prepared pan, sprinkle chopped pears as you go, then using a butter knife gently swirl the layers together, smooth the top evenly. 
• Tap the bundt pan gently a few times on a potholder to settle the batter, then bake for 50-65 minutes until toothpick inserted comes out clean. 
• Cool on wire rack for 10 minutes, then invert onto cooling rack to cool completely. If desired, drizzle cooled cake with vanilla buttercream glaze or make vanilla butter sauce (or go crazy and do both).

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Notes

*Homemade Bourbon Vanilla Extract is optional, but adds a delicious flavor. You may replace with an additional teaspoon of vanilla bean paste or regular vanilla extract.

How to make buttermilk | Add 1 tablespoon white vinegar or lemon juice to a scant one cup of milk, stir and let sit for 5-10 minutes.

Toasting Walnuts

Oven: Line a rimmed sheet pan with parchment paper for easy clean up. Place walnut pieces in preheated 350F degree oven and toast for 8-10 minutes.

Stovetop: In a light, non-stick pan, toss no more than 1 cup of chopped walnuts, shaking occasionally over medium-low heart, about 3-5 minutes.

Any ripe pear may be used, typically about 2 small pears is all you need.

Nutrition

Serving: 11 serving | Calories: 262kcal | Carbohydrates: 47g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 48mg | Sodium: 236mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 27g

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More #FallFlavors Recipes Below:

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• Apple Cider Milk Tea With Boba And Caramel Apple from Magical Ingredients
• Apple Cider Old Fashioned from Books n’ Cooks

Breakfast and Baked Goods

• Apple Cider Donut Muffins from Cheese Curd In Paradise
• Pear and Apple Cider Scones from A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures
• Spiced Pumpkin Coffee Cake from Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks

Side Dishes

• Balsamic Roasted Purple Brussels Sprouts W/ Grapes & Chestnuts from Savory Moments
• Cinnamon Sweet Potato Pumpkin Muffins from Blogghetti
• Fall Roasted Vegetable Medley from Family Around the Table
• Glazed Cippolini Onions With Rosemary from Life Love and Good Food
• Sweet Potato Latkes from Take Two Tapas

Main Dishes

• Apple Cider Pulled Pork With Apple Slaw from Simple and Savory
• Butternut Squash Pasta Sauce from Jen around the world

Desserts

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