My Pear Spiced Banana Bread is my favorite classic banana bread, spiced with warm spices, with a whole pear baked right in and topped with yummy gluten-free cinnamon graham cracker crumble. It looks impressive, comes together in minutes with just one bowl, and is the perfect snack or breakfast for a houseful of guests.
Happy Post-Thanksgiving-Food-Coma Day! That sounds legit, right?
In case you were wondering, eating more food in one sitting than I’ve eaten in weeks didn’t send me into labor. Though by the end of the night I was convinced it would.
I’m one of those people who finds Black Friday terrifying. Even the online sales. I get panicked and can’t choose and feel so pressured to put stuff in my basket and checkout and I can’t even walk away and think about it… Yeah I end up with nothing. Probably for the best.
I did order a couple baby things but “Black Tuesday” doesn’t really count to me. It was pretty mellow…I went and got a pedicure after my checkout was over.
Friday? Not my thing. Though I’ve never stood in line and shoved past people to try to scoop up a coffee maker or TV, so maybe I just don’t get it.
So, to those of you sitting at home browsing yummy recipes instead of elbowing your neighbor for a video game for your nephew, I’m sharing my recipe for Pear Spiced Banana Bread!
My Pear Spiced Banana Bread is a killer easy, one bowl recipe that is SO delicious and makes your whole house smell like fall. Pressing sliced pear into the top and baking the bread looks impressive and adds a whole other layer of flavor (and really, you just pressed some pear into the batter before baking).
I chose to top mine with crumbled up cinnamon “graham” crackers, but you don’t have to. I just liked the extra spice and texture it gave the bread. If you intend on just wrapping up the bread, though, and throwing it in the fridge for later (totally fine), then you may just skip it because no crumbly topping really survives that. BUT I do love me some graham, so I went with it. I found mine in the gluten-free cookies at Whole Foods, but you can use what you have (or omit, like I said).
I love this bread warm out of the oven, slathered in a bit of butter and some natural peanut butter (for a hit of salty savory-ness).
This is one of those recipes that is perfect to make when you have a house full of people, milling around. Set it on the counter, lay out a knife and some butter to soften, and just let people graze and help themselves. Makes life so much easier.
I hope y’all had a wonderful Thanksgiving and I hope this weekend is full of easy leftovers. Love ya! Enjoy!
- 3 medium-large over-ripe bananas
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- ¼ cup unsalted butter, melted
- ¼ cup plain Greek yogurt
- 1 tsp. vanilla paste or extract
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
- ½ tsp. allspice
- 1/4 tsp. cardamom
- 2 cups all purpose gluten free flour
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- pinch of Kosher salt
- 1 large pear (I used a red pear)
- 1-2 gluten free cinnamon graham crackers (optional; I used Pamela’s)
- Preheat your oven to 325 degrees F. Spray a 9x5” loaf pan with nonstick spray (I used coconut oil).
- In a large bowl, mash up the bananas. Add the brown sugar and start whisking together. Whisk in the eggs, then the butter and Greek yogurt. Next, add the vanilla, cinnamon and allspice.
- Add the gluten free flour and baking soda to the bowl and carefully stir together until just incorporated. Pour the batter into the loaf pan.
- Cut and core your pear (in half and then in quarters so you have 4 pieces). Nestle the pear quarters into the top of the batter. Next, crumble the cinnamon graham crackers and press them into the batter around the pears.
- Bake the banana bread for 55-65 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the “cake” portion (not the pear) comes out clean.
- Let the bread cool, cut and serve.
- Pear Spiced Banana Bread can be kept for up to a week in the fridge, tightly wrapped.
