A rustic yogurt cake topped with sweet, soft pears and a dusting of cinnamon sugar is worthy of both your dessert and breakfast tables.
I have been researching a proper yogurt cake. Not a cake that has a spoon or two of yogurt, but one which has the distinctive light tang from full-fat yogurt. It would be even cooler if yogurt could replace all or part of the butter/oil in a cake. Tall order? Well, a couple of deflated, over-baked trials later, I think I have one that actually works.
My initial idea was to make an Apple Yogurt Cake for our Thanksgiving meal, but I didn’t have a proper recipe at that time. I ended making this baked yogurt pudding that is a never-fail recipe. So if your cake baking adventures don’t go according to plan, just make pudding!
Now, it so happened that I actually used pears instead of apples when my yogurt cake recipe did work finally. And I think I really loved it better than apples.
In our household, I am the only one who likes pears, my husband simply hates them when they turn soft. But I think sweet, soft, bruised pears are perfect for baking.
When you top the yogurt cake batter with slices of sweet pears, they bake into an almost custard-like layer on top. I like to fan out the pear slices slightly, so that the batter puffs up between them and turns deliciously golden.
I sprinkled some cinnamon on top of the cake batter and lightly dusted the baked cake with powdered sugar. A lightly sweetened, spiced whipped cream would be perfect as well.
I used Greek yogurt in this recipe. You can use thick plain yogurt too, but make sure to use yogurt made with whole milk for best results. The cake itself is soft and delicious, with the perfect golden crust. This cinnamon pear cake is great as dessert, snack or even a Holiday weekend breakfast. Just make sure to have a fresh pot of tea on hand. What say?!!
Here is the easy recipe for Pear Yogurt Cake.
- Greek yogurt - ¾ cup (or full-fat plain yogurt)
- Oil - ¼ cup
- Sugar - ⅔ cup
- Eggs - 2, large
- Vanilla extract - ½ tsp
- Lemon zest - 1 tsp
- All-purpose flour - 1¼ cups
- Baking powder - 1¼ tsp
- Baking soda - ¼ tsp
- Salt - ¼ tsp
- Pears - 2 medium-sized, very ripe
- Cinnamon powder - 1 tsp
- Powdered sugar - for serving
- Pre-heat oven to 350 deg.F. Line bottom of an 8" round cake pan with parchment. Grease and flour pan thoroughly. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, mix together the yogurt, oil, sugar, eggs, vanilla and lemon zest till smooth.
- Placing a large sifter or sieve right over the bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt into the bowl.
- Whisk into the wet ingredients until fully incorporated and batter is smooth.
- Pour batter into the prepared cake pan and smooth top with a spatula.
- Peel, core and cut pears into thin slices. Arrange pear slices on top of cake batter. Sprinkle cinnamon powder on top.
- Bake for 40-50 minutes or till cake is puffy and golden and passes the toothpick test.
- Remove from oven and cool in pan over a wire rack for 10 minutes. Dust lightly with powdered sugar, cut and serve. Enjoy!
- Cooled cake covered properly keeps well on the countertop for 2 days, refrigerate for longer durations.
2. If you like, add a pinch of ground green cardamoms into the cake batter. It really perks up the flavors.
Enjoy this beautiful yogurt pear cake for a lovely dessert or indulgent breakfast for the Holidays.
Don’t forget to PIN & SAVE this recipe for later.
Do you like pears? Have you baked with them? Do try this recipe and let me know how you like it.
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I am sharing this over at Fiesta Friday.
Can I use almond flour instead of all purpose?
I have not tried this particular recipe with almond flour. That being said, I do substitute it for flour in some recipes. I would use maybe 1/4 cup extra almond flour. Do let me know if you try it!
No butter in this cake?
No, recipe requires oil and yogurt instead.
Thanks for sharing! Does it keep long?
You can keep it covered on the countertop for 1-2 days. For longer time, cover well and store in the fridge.
This looks so good! Do you use this cake mix with any other mix ins?
Hello! Apples work well instead of pears here.
Hi there, Made your pear cake last night and it was a huge success, everyone complimented on texture and taste. Thank You for the great recipe!
Awesome! Glad you enjoyed the cake, Rick!
Hi Anjana,
I loved this cake and wonder if it can be made ahead and frozen?
Leah
I have personally not frozen this cake, but I can’t see why you cannot! Do let me know if you try it!!
Can I use canned peaches?
I’m looking forward to baking this.
Thank you for sharing.
Of course, you can use peach slices instead of pear, fresh or canned.
Hi Anjana, planing to make this for my son’s birthday – will coconut sugar be okay ? and which oll should be used? thanks for this wonderful recipe.
It should be ok, but batter will be darker and will have coconut sugar flavor. I usually use a neutral cooking oil like canola or vegetable oil.
Can I use coconut oil? Thank you.
Yes, but make sure it is in liquid form while measuring and mixing.
Thank you! That’s how I use coconut oil in baking.
Cannot wait to try!
I have got crazy about baking with pears, after my first love banana and then apples! I guess this is the next one I must bake! Pinning this up for trying…
Thank you Rafee, hope you’ll give it a try!!
This recipe makes me weak in the knees… especially the way you describe how the batter puffs up between the slices of pear. I love the tang and moist texture of a yogurt-based cake. This one is absolutely stunning!
Thank you so much, Shinta!
I haven’t tried baking with pears, but I guess this would be the first one. 😀 This looks amazing, Anjana. My tea is so ready for this! Thanks for sharing and happy Fiesta Friday!
Thank you, Jhuls. And yes, make sure you have a cup of tea handy!!
There are so many good pears at the market just now, and I am sometimes at a loss as to how to cook with them. This recipe looks perfect.
Thank you, Hilda. Let me know If you give this a try!
Looks Yumm!!
Thank you, hope you’ll try it!!
Beautiful cake
Thanks dear 🙂