Pear Walnut Snack Cake

This Pear Walnut Snack Cake is a delicious and easy to make cake that is loaded with fall flavors. It has juicy chunks of fresh pear and crunchy toasted walnuts in a tender cake batter that is flavored with maple syrup, brown sugar, ginger and allspice.

One of the things that I like about this recipe is that it is so simple to put together. I call it a “snack cake” because it’s a not-too-fancy cake that doesn’t take long to throw together. It’s the kind of cake that I would put together for myself, rather than for entertaining, on an afternoon when I have a few minutes to spare. The batter mixes up very quickly and, because it is quite thin, it also bakes up very quickly.

You can use almost any variety of pear in this recipe. I typically use Bartlett pears, as they’re widely available and have a nice flavor to them. They have a very thin skin that does not need to be removed before dicing up the fruit. One large pear generally yields enough fruit for this recipe, but consider picking up two pears if you feel that they’re on the smaller side. The pears should be ripe, but firm enough that they’re easy to handle and cut. Overly ripe pears may have difficulty maintaining their shape when they’re folded into the batter.

The cake doesn’t need any frosting and you can cut yourself a slice while it is still slightly warm from the oven! If you do want to dress it up, pear a generous piece – the cake is relatively thin – with a scoop of vanilla ice cream before serving. The cake is at its best within a day or two of baking.

Pear Walnut Snack Cake
1 cup all purpose flour
1 tps baking powder
1 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground allspice
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/3 cup light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup butter, melted and cooled
1 1/2 cups chopped diced pear (1 large pear)
1/2 cup chopped, toasted walnuts

Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease an 8-inch square baking pan.
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, ginger, allspice and salt
In a medium bowl, whisk together maple syrup, brown sugar, egg, vanilla and melted butter. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and stir until a thick batter forms.
Fold in diced pears and chopped walnuts, then transfer batter to prepared pan and spread into an even layer.
Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the cake is golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow to cool before slicing and serving.

Serves 9