Desserts & Baking

Warm Spiced Pear Crumble

Name: Warm Spiced Pear Crumble
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 1 h
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: International
Ingredients: 4 Pear (peeled, cored and quartered); 2 tbsp Light Brown Sugar; 1 tbsp Vanilla Extract; 1 tsp Lemon Juice; 230 g Self-Raising Flour; 110 g Butter (cold, cut into cubes); 100 g Light Brown Sugar (plus a little extra for sprinkling); 50 g Pecans; 0.5 tsp Ground Cinnamon

A comforting autumn dessert with tender spiced pears beneath a buttery, crunchy pecan crumble topping. Perfect served warm with custard, cream, or ice cream.

By Ricky Robinson • Updated October 14, 2025

Pear crumble is one of those puddings that makes the house smell wonderful while it bakes. The pears soften into tender, sweet pieces whilst the crumble topping turns golden and crisp. This version uses pecans in the crumble mixture, which adds a lovely nutty flavour and extra texture that works really well with the pears.

The key to a good crumble topping is getting the butter properly cold before you start. Putting the cubed butter in the freezer for 20 minutes makes it much easier to work with and helps create that breadcrumb texture you want. The food processor does most of the work here, pulsing everything together until it resembles rough breadcrumbs. You can do this by hand if you prefer, rubbing the butter into the flour with your fingertips until it looks right.

The pears themselves need very little doing to them. Just peel, core, and quarter them, then toss with a bit of light brown sugar, vanilla extract, and lemon juice. The lemon juice stops the pears from browning and adds a subtle sharpness that balances out the sweetness.

Freezing the butter before making the crumble topping creates a much better texture and prevents the mixture from becoming too sticky to work with.

This recipe serves four people comfortably, and it is good for a Sunday lunch or a weeknight when you want something warming without too much fuss. The crumble takes about 40 minutes in the oven, just long enough for the pears to cook through and the topping to turn golden and crunchy. Serve it warm straight from the oven with custard, double cream, or vanilla ice cream for a proper comforting pudding.