Recipe: Last Leaf Poached Pear Bread
It's about that time of year — the trees that lined highways leading to music festivals and summer getaways have given way to leaves that crunch underfoot; The sun hits snooze for us, for just a couple minutes longer; We trade in our Double IPAs by the pool for Maple Brown Ales by the fire (or at least a Coffee IPA!). This light and balanced quick bread recipe, adapted from Cooking Light and updated with our Last Leaf Maple Brown Ale, will make the transition all the more smooth.
Ingredients
- 4 cups water
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 small whole Bosc pears
- 1½ tsp all-purpose flour (to brush the pears)
- 1¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 6 Tbsp butter, softened
- ¾ cup packed dark brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- ½ cup Last Leaf Maple Brown Ale
- ½ cup fat-free sour cream
- ¼ cup maple syrup
Preparation
- Preheat oven to 350°. Coat a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan lightly with all-purpose flour.
- Bring 4 cups water and granulated sugar to boil in a medium saucepan. Add pears; reduce heat to medium, and cook at a medium-low boil for 5 minutes or just until pears start to soften. Remove pears from pan; cool slightly. Trim bottoms of pears to the height of the loaf pan. Lightly brush 1½ tsp flour over the bottom two-thirds of each pear and place in loaf pan.
- Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt, stirring well with a whisk.
- Place brown sugar and butter in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at high speed until well blended. Add eggs, one at a time, beating each egg well. Beat in vanilla.
- Combine Last Leaf, sour cream, and syrup, stirring well with a whisk. Beating at low speed, add flour mixture and liquid mixture into a third large bowl alternately, beginning and ending with the flour. Beat just until combined.
- Scrape batter into your loaf pan, around the pears.
- Bake at 350° for 50 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out with moist crumbs clinging. Let cool 10 minutes in pan on wire rack before removing. Quick bread can cool completely on a wire rack or wooden slab, as pictured.
- "Pear" with a bottle of Last Leaf!
Cheers!