Almond Pear Pie

Pears have been on sale at the grocery store... and I went a little gang busters when I bought them last week.  We had pears coming out of our ears!  I remembered there was a pear pie recipe I wanted to try and decided that this was a good time to do it.  We loved it!  I actually made it twice because the first time I didn't cook it long enough and the custard didn't set up all the way... which didn't stop us from eating the whole thing. :)  The second time, I cooked it for the full 35 minutes and it turned out fabulous.  My husband and I loved it!  And I thought it was so pretty.  Definitely a keeper recipe.

Almond Pear Pie
Submitted by Mindy ~ The Sisters Cafe

Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 9-inch unbaked pie crust
3 eggs
1/3 cup flour
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon almond extract
1/4 cup melted butter
3 small pears - peeled, cored, and sliced (or 1 1/2 - 2 large pears)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  In a large bowl, combine eggs, flour, sugar, almond extract, and melted butter.  Pour into unbaked pie crust.  Arrange sliced pears in spokes radiating from the center.  Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes, then reduce temperature to 350 degrees and bake for 25 to 35 minutes, or until the custard is firm.  Cool completely before serving.

Recipe Source: Allrecipes by TNMARTIN

Whole Wheat Pear Granola Muffins

Last week, I had some pears that needed to be used and remembered this muffin recipe I had printed off a blog a long time ago. I also had some yogurt and homemade granola on hand. It ended up being the perfect after school snack for my little troop! The muffins were moist, delicately flavored and just wonderful! My boys loved them. In fact my youngest (21 months) kept climbing onto the table, lifting the lid (it is lightweight plastic) off the cake plate and helping himself to more! It was pretty funny to see his smug face as he walked away clutching a muffin in his chubby little hand. He was so proud of his new found independence!! I didn't have the heart to stop him even though he was tracking muffin crumbs all over the place. I have come to accept that babies are just messy, aren't they?!

Whole Wheat Pear Granola Muffins

Submitted by Melanie~ recipe from Cuisine Nie

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole-wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 large eggs
3/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
1/2 cup plain low-fat yogurt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2 (2 cups) D'Anjou pears, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch dice

Crumb topping:
1/2 cup granola

1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter

Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a 12-cup standard muffin tin with paper liners; set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together flours, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.
In a separate bowl, whisk together eggs, brown sugar, yogurt, and butter. Make a well in the center of flour mixture. Add egg mixture to well, and mix in flour mixture until just combined. Gently fold in the pears.

Crumb topping:

In a bowl, toss together 1/2 cup granola, 1/4 cup each all-purpose flour and packed light-brown sugar, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Cut 3 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter into pieces; add to granola mixture, and rub in with fingertips until clumps form.

Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each 3/4 full. Sprinkle with granola topping. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Cool 5 minutes before removing from tin. Serve warm or at room temperature.