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Can we talk for a minute about an underrated fall fruit? It’s round, yellow and juicy… Do you know what it is? No, it’s not an apple – it’s an Asian Pear! Ranging in color and texture, the honeyed flavor of the fruit just screams fall. While the pears begin to ripen in August, they’re just now truly coming into season. As the fruit continues to mature even after it’s picked, be sure to store these babies in fridge if you don’t plan on enjoying them immediately. I can’t think of a time I’ve seen these in the store and walked past them. Yesterday I bought four! As much as I love them, it turns out that may have been a little ambitious. Each pear is as big as both of my fists put together. To maximize my consumption, I turned half of one into delicious mini muffins with a spiced sugar glaze.
This recipe is super easy and really only calls for one special ingredient – Asian pears. That being said, if you’re reading this out of season or can’t get your hands on any, apples will certainly work as well. I used white whole wheat flour, but good ol’ all purpose flour can definitely be substituted. I made mini muffins, but if you don’t have the correct pan (you can buy one here!) or would plain prefer regular muffins, just be sure to adjust your bake time – add about 8 minutes. At 45 minutes start to finish*, this recipe was quick enough that you could whip up a batch on a Saturday morning.
Full disclosure: My first batch (pictured) turned out a little… meh. To combat this and give them a little more oomph, I dipped the muffin tops into a spiced sugar glaze and that seemed to remedy the issue! These muffins pair (pun 100% intended) nicely with morning coffee.
*I glazed the muffins the next day. It added maybe 10 minutes.
INGREDIENTS
FOR THE MUFFINS:
- 1/3 cup coconut oil
- 1/2 cup cream
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 large egg
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 2 cups whole wheat flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 3/4 tsp mixed allspice, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 Asian Pear (about 1/2 cup), finely chopped
FOR THE GLAZE
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tbsp milk
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1/2 tsp mixed spices
TO BAKE:
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Liberally grease your pan, I used PAM Coconut Oil Cooking Spray.
- In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, mixed spices and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a mixer, whisk the egg, sugar, oil and cream until well blended.
- Slowly add dry mixture to the egg and sugar mix, stir until just combined.
- Fold in Asian Pear.
- Scoop into mini muffin molds. I used a large kitchen spoon but think I should have added more batter to each well.
- Bake for around 12 minutes, then let cool in the pan before transferring to a wire rack.
TO GLAZE:
- Place the sugar in a medium bowl and slowly stir in the milk and vanilla, a little at a time, to make a smooth, pourable glaze. Add spices as desired.
- Once you’ve reached your desired consistency, dip the crowns of the muffins into the glaze. Let the excess drip off, then set right way up on a plate for the glaze to harden.
Recipe inspiration taken from farmfreshfeast.com. Pictures are my own.
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