Pear Pie
If you’ve never tried Pear Pie, you’re in for a real treat! Sweet, fresh pears are tossed with warm spices and baked in a buttery, flaky crust. This pie recipe is beyond delicious and would make the perfect addition to your holiday dessert menu. Serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream for the best fall treat!
This Pear Pie is so delicious that I don’t even know where to begin! Apple Pie gets all the credit when fall baking begins, but pears are an underrated superstar. Baked pears take on a buttery, silkiness that when paired with warm spices is absolutely incredible! We’re using a store-bought pie crust to keep things easy, but I do have a delicious pie crust recipe that would be wonderful. Once you try pears in your pie, you’ll be reaching for this easy fall-flavored dessert again and again!
Wow! Can’t believe it turned out so good! The instructions were simple and easy to follow. The taste was great; not too sweet but just right. We loved this even more than the classic apple pie. Will be making again for Thanksgiving!
— Amy
Why you’ll love this recipe
- Easy to make. We’re keeping things simple with this dessert and just using a store-bought pie crust. Once you peel and slice the pears, this recipe moves quickly.
- Uses pears. A great way to use up this underrated fall fruit!
- Very delicious. This is perfectly spiced and loaded with tender, sweet pears. Pears have a lovely buttery texture that pairs perfectly with a crisp, flaky pie crust.
Ingredients needed
Other than fresh pears, ginger, lemon and a pie crust, this pie recipe consists primarily of pantry staples. Here’s everything you’ll need:
- Flour. Just 3 tablespoons of all-purpose flour will help to thicken the pear filling, so it doesn’t get overly juicy while baking. You can sub with cornstarch.
- Sugar. To sweeten the dessert, we’re using 1/2 cup granulated sugar. I don’t recommend brown sugar in this recipe because it may overpower the flavor of the pears.
- Salt. To help bring out all of the delicious flavors.
- Cinnamon + nutmeg. These spices pair beautifully with the pears and give the dish cozy warmth.
- Lemon zest + juice. For a bright, fresh pear flavor.
- Fresh ginger. Adds a slight peppery sweetness to the taste. Ginger + pears = a match made in heaven!
- Pears. You can use whichever pears you like and have available, however we highly recommend choosing Bartlett Pears. They’re crisp, juicy and have a fresh zing that goes well with the spices.
- Butter. For a lovely, rich flavor, a very small amount of butter is added on top of the sliced pears before adding the top crust. We typically use unsalted butter.
- Pie crust. Use a store-bought pie crust for convenience. However, if you’d like to make one from scratch, try my trusty homemade pie crust recipe. It’s buttery, flakey & delish.
- Egg wash + course sugar. For that perfect golden crust and sugary crunch.
Variations
This pie is pretty much perfect as-is, but you can add other fun flavors. Here’s some options:
- Fruit. You can mix in 1/2 to 1 cup fresh cranberries to add color and give the pie a subtle tartness.
- Crumb topping. Use this apple crumb pie recipe as a guide to make a crumble topping.
- Nuts. For an added crunch, feel free to add about 1/2 cup chopped nuts to the filling; such as walnuts, almonds or pecans.
- Caramel sauce. Add a drizzle of caramel sauce over the top before serving.
How to make this recipe
This pear pie recipe is one of the easiest pies to make! The most complicated part of making it is peeling and slicing the pears. Here are the details, but for the full, printable recipe, reference the recipe card at the bottom of the page.
- Make the pear filling. In a medium bowl or gallon-size ziplock bag, combine dry ingredients (flour, sugar, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and lemon zest). Add pear slices and gently toss or seal bag and lightly shake to coat the pears.
- Pie crust. If using a refrigerated pie crust, line your pie pan with the bottom crust and transfer spiced pears to the crust-lined dish.
- Lemon juice. Add the lemon juice either to the bowl where you mixed your spices or to the bag. Try to get the lemon juice to pick up all of the remaining sugar/spice dust. Pour the juice evenly over the pear slices. Add the small squares of butter over the top.
- Top crust. Add the top crust and pinch to make a seam. Cut 4 slits in the top crust to allow venting. Alternatively, you can make a lattice (or other) pattern with the top crust. Here’s a lattice crust pie dough tutorial and here’s one for braiding pie crust dough.
- Bake pie. Lightly brush the top crust with the egg wash mixture and sprinkle with coarse sugar. Place a pie crust shield on the crust’s edges (or cover with foil) to prevent it from browning too quickly. Here’s a tutorial for a DIY pie crust shield. Bake at 450ºF for 10 minutes and then lower the oven temperature to 350ºF and bake for an additional 35-40 minutes.
- Cool and serve. Once baked, allow pie to cool for 3 hours before slicing and serving. It’s hard to wait, but if you cut into it while it’s still warm the filling will be too juicy. We love to serve individual slices with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream!
Expert tips
Here are some tips, you might find helpful when making your own fresh pear pie!
- Pie plate. This is the inexpensive pie dish that I use and love. It’s 9-1/2″, and works great for all pie recipes.
- Pears. Be sure your pears are sliced in similar thickness – about 1/4 to 1/2″ is perfect. Once your pie is baked, you don’t want some pears to be solid and some to be thin and mushy.
- Lemon. Zest the lemon before juicing it. It’s much easier, trust me! And when it comes to baking, don’t use bottled lemon juice, use fresh for the best flavor.
- Cooling the pie. It is very important to cool the pie completely or for at least 3 hours before slicing! Otherwise, it will be a bit too juicy and fall apart, it’ll still taste good, though!
- Serving. This pie goes great with some vanilla ice cream or whipped cream!
Frequently asked questions
The best pears for pie are Bartlett Pears. They are juicy, smooth, and when baked, have almost a creamy, buttery texture. Are you drooling yet? Other pear varieties that I recommend for baking are: Anjou or Bosc Pears. These types of pears have a firmer flesh, so they hold up well when baked in a pie.
Here is a great tutorial for how to cut a pear. You’ll want to use the slicing method and your slices should be in similar size, about 1/4 to 1/2-inch.
When choosing your pears for this pie recipe, they should be just ripe. Not underripe or overripe! But perfectly ripe! Underripe pears will not be very sweet or flavorful. Overripe pears will become overly soft and mushy while baking.
It is best to ripen pears at room temperature, not in the refrigerator. For quicker ripening, place the pears in a brown paper bag for 1-2 days. Determining if a pear is ripe is easy: apply gentle pressure to the narrow “neck” of the pear with your thumb. If it yields to pressure, it’s ripe.
In this recipe, we’re adding either flour or cornstarch to the filling to thicken it. Sometimes tapioca, arrowroot or potato starch can also help achieve the desired consistency.
Storage tips
- Make ahead. This is a great dessert to make ahead of time! Make 1 day ahead of when you plan to serve it. Once it’s baked and after it cools, cover tightly with plastic wrap or foil and keep at room temperature.
- Storing leftovers. After this pie has baked completely, store covered either at room temperature for 1 to 2 days and then in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, though, I doubt it lasts that long.
- Freezing. Baked pie freezes well for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and allow it to come to room temperature before serving. Prepared filling can be frozen up to 3 months, thaw overnight in the refrigerator before using.
And there you have it, a homemade Pear Pie that may make you (temporarily) forget about apples or you may just decide to make both because MORE PIE!
More fall dessert recipes
If you’re looking for more fall recipe inspiration, give these favs a try!
If you try this recipe, let me know! Leave a comment and if your family loves it as much as mine does, be sure to give it a five star ⭐️ rating! Also, tag @kimscravings on Instagram with a picture of your creation. Be sure to subscribe to our mailing list to receive more healthy delicious recipes straight to your inbox.
Pear Pie
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
- 5 cups peeled and sliced (1/4-1/2" thick) ripe pears*
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon cold butter, cut into 6 small pieces
- 1 box refrigerated double pie crust, or make from scratch
- egg wash: 1 large egg beaten with 1 tablespoon milk or water
- optional: coarse sugar for sprinkling on crust
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450ºF and grease a deep pie dish with butter or nonstick cooking spray; set aside.
- In a gallon-size ziplock bag, combine flour, sugar, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and lemon zest. Add pear slices and seal bag. Be careful not to mush the fruit as you toss the sugar mixture to coat. Alternatively, you can mix ingredients in a large bowl.
- Line the prepared pie dish with a single uncooked pie crust. Empty contents of bag into crust.
- Now, add the 2 tablespoons lemon juice to the now empty bag, and seal the top. Toss the lemon juice around to try to get the lemon juice to pick up all the remaining sugar/flour dust. Cut a slit in the corner of the bag and squeeze out the lemon juice evenly over the pears. Pat with the small squares of butter.
- Lay remaining pie crust dough over the top. Tuck any dough that overlaps under the bottom crust, and pinch to make a seam. Cut 4 slits in the top crust to allow venting.
- Lightly brush the top of the pie crust with the egg wash mixture and sprinkle with coarse sugar, if desired.
- Place a pie crust shield on top of the pie to prevent the edges from browning too quickly. Alternatively, you can make a pie crust shield – cut a long piece of tin foil, about two feet long, in half, lengthwise. Use each side to cover the outer seam of the pie, and pinch the edges of the foil together where it meets.
- Bake pie at 450ºF for 10 minutes, then reduce temperature to 350ºF and bake for an additional 35 to 40 minutes or until top looks golden brown. Remove foil. Let pie cool for 3 full hours before slicing. We love our pear pie served with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. Enjoy!
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
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Wow! Can’t believe it turned out so good! The instructions were simple and easy to follow. The taste was great; not too sweet but just right. We loved this even more than the classic apple pie. Will be making again for Thanksgiving!
That makes me so happy to hear! Thanks so much for your comment!