Quick Pear Streusel Coffee Cake

Buttery streusel can transform simple cakes, breads, muffins and pies into decadent dishes with just a few simple ingredients. Butter, flour, sugar and spices to taste are all that it takes to cover other preparations with a delicious, rich crunch. The recipe for our quick pear coffee cake comes thanks to Gale Gand and Christie Matheson (Clarkson Potter/Publisher, 2009). It's a simple, fantastic family recipe adapted from a tasty apple streusel by Gand's grandmother. A spongy and moist cake gets a punch of flavor thanks to ripe pears chunks. Once the streusel tops the batter, you need 35 minutes in the oven. Serve this delicious cake as part of a brunch spread or with a cup of coffee as a tasty breakfast or afternoon pick-me-up.

When adding fresh fruit to batters, most home cooks have noticed that the fruit tends to sink to the bottom of the cake, becoming the first layer once the cake is un-molded. To avoid the fruit clumping together at the bottom, simply coat the pears slightly with a dust of flour. Once it's time to add them to the batter, don't dump them and mix them in, but gently fold them in with slow movements so they get evenly distributed, maintaining their shape, and most importantly, their place in the batter. Check that all the pear pieces have a similar small size to ensure no big chunks are going to sink purely by gravity.

For this recipe, you'll need Bartlett pears, the juicy and buttery pears with the ultimate "pear" flavor, ideal for baking, but also delicious on their own. Bartlett pears are green on the outside, with white flesh inside. To check for ripeness, simply press near the stem and feel if the flesh gives a little—this is a sign of ripeness. If the pears you have are too green to use, simply give them a few days at room temperature, or place the pears in a bowl with bananas to speed up the process. Bananas release ethene, a gas that helps in the ripening process. Serve this delicious pear streusel with a touch of whipped cream, or make it a whole dessert by adding vanilla ice cream on the side, along with a few pieces of dried pear and chopped-up walnuts for crunch. This cake keeps for up to four days, covered at room temperature.