In this pear custard pie, fresh pears are combined with a rich and creamy 5 minute custard, then baked to perfection for a simple yet elegant dessert.
This crustless pie is my absolute favorite way to enjoy pears, I make it almost every week during the fall months!
I am not a huge fan of pears. I like them fine when they’re cooked but I don’t eat them raw, I think it’s the somewhat grainy texture that bothers me. A long time ago before we had kids a relative sent us a big box of those fancy mail order pears. My husband did his best to try and eat them before they turned to mush but it was just too many pears for him to finish. I made this pear custard pie to use them up and I have been making it ever since. It’s definitely my favorite way to eat pears.
We go through a ton of produce in this house. My kids are total fruit monsters and between the three of them they can polish off a whole pound of grapes or strawberries in one sitting when they’re in the mood. My mom often brings us bags of apples, oranges and pears to help keep our household well stocked in the fruit department. When I have extra fruit on hand, I make blackberry salad or this pear custard pie.
Some weeks we don’t get through all the fruit and that’s when I make pear custard pie. The beauty of this recipe is that it only uses pantry staples that you probably always have lying around. Which means that if you’ve got pears, you can whip this up whenever you feel like it. I’ve made it twice in the last two weeks!
How do you make pear custard pie?
The batter for this custard is made in the blender. After you peel and cut the pears, toss them in the dish and pour the custard over the top. That’s all there is to it, 40 minutes later you’ve got an amazing dessert.
You can sprinkle some powdered sugar over the top if you want to dress it up for a special occasion. I’ve also put some cinnamon sugar on top which is great too. It probably comes as no surprise that the kids love this recipe. I’ve made it dozens of times over the years and it always gets rave reviews. It’s simple, but sometimes the simplest recipes are the best, don’t you think?
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More delicious dessert recipes
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Pear Custard Pie
Ingredients
- 4 firm pears of any variety cored, peeled and thinly sliced
- 1/4 cup of unsalted butter melted
- 3 eggs
- 3/4 cup milk
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- Powdered sugar for garnish
- Cooking spray
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 9 inch round pan with cooking spray.
- Arrange the pear slices in the pan.
- Put the butter, eggs, milk, salt, granulated sugar, flour and vanilla into a blender; process until smooth.
- Pour the batter over the pears. Bake for 40-45 minutes until the custard is golden and firm to the touch. Dust the top with powdered sugar before serving.
Can you use heavy whipping cream instead of milk?
Yes that works!
All I have is fat free milk..will that work?
Yes that’s fine!
Thank you!
I love this recipe, I’ve made it so many times! It’s my go to when I want something that’s not too sweet, plus I love custard! Thank you! 😊
What is the ideal pan to bake this in? The photo makes it look like that would be cast iron.
I’ve made this in cast iron, a regular oven proof skillet and glass and metal pie pans!
Can you use margarine instead of butter?
That should be fine!
Serve warm or cold?
Warm or room temperature!
My kids think I’m a chef thanks to you! However, this chef needs to know if she should keep this masterpiece refrigerated?
P.S. Had zero vanilla extract…had zero of any extract so I used honey…:)
I keep it refrigerated!
Can i use ripe pears for this recipe? Im just worried it will become mushy. Thank you.
It’s best to use pears that are somewhat firm, not super soft.
This recipe was so easy and so good. It will become a must make often in my house!
Just made this recipe and it is so good!! Thank you for sharing this recipe!
Hi there, could I put Greek yoghurt instead of milk?
I would do 1/2 cup of yogurt thinned out with 1/4 cup water so it’s more approximate to milk in consistency. I haven’t tried this myself though!
Thanks 😊
I made it this morning with what ever milk I had left in the fridge ie: some coconut milk and soy, the batter was very runny and was doubting it however, it turned out so beautifully well. I made it in a fluted tart pan and looks so elegant. The taste is so delicate, just so beautiful. I only used 2 pears which was ample, baked it at 165c for 33 mins. Thank you, great recipe
In so excited to try this! I just started a double batch since I had way too many pears but only one 9” round pan. The other pan is a loaf. 8×4 ish or something. Anyone know how long to bake that one? 🙂 🤞🏻
I’d check it around 30 minutes!
Loved it! Easy recipe. Only had two pears and one apple. Worked out great. Have one firm mango, will try that and add some nutmeg as someone else tried.
Richard–stay -at-home- old man now, lol
Louisville
Can I put this in a pie crust?
Yes that should be fine!
Does anyone know if this can be frozen?
I haven’t frozen it myself, but I believe other readers have and it works!
Thank you so much my husband just came home with a case of beautiful pears and I am like now what do I do? I really appreciate your quick response. Why is you can never find perfect pears when you want them and then boom out of nowhere he comes home with a case when you are totally unprepared.
Added cinnamon and substituted the sugar for Monk fruit. It was so so good. I didn’t know it was going to poof up so much when it baked. And then I didn’t know it was going to fall so much as it cooled lol. Absolutely delicious. It is pretty important to let it completely cool to room temperature otherwise it falls apart. Wish I could add pics here.
Very quick and not overly sweet, I used beurre bosc pears, sliced thinly they cook through well. Will make again, thanks! 🙂
Delicious and creamy and quick & easy.
I made it and the flavor is lovely! Howevery custard was more eggy than creamy. How did you get yours creamy and not eggy?
How firm should my pears be? Mine are very hard, so should I wait a couple days for them to soften?
They soften a little as they cook, but not a ton so if the pears are really hard you may want to wait!
Thank you!
Made it. Easy and yummy. Would add a dash of cinnamon next time maybe even a QT of nutmeg. Good recipe!
Tried recipe as is and turned out delicious. Tweaked a bit and cut down vanilla to 1 1/2 tsp from 2 tsp. added 1 tsp ground cinnamon, 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg and 1/2 tsp ground cardamom. Those subtle flavors take it to another level of deliciousness!
I love this! My husband is a type 2 diabetic so I try to make an occasional dessert. I love bosc pears and found this recipe! I substituted the flour for almond flour and used a 1/2 cup of natural Xylitol. I also added a healthy teaspoon of cinnamon. I lightly sprinkled the sliced pears in the pans with the cinnamon and Xylitol before adding the mixture. The rest of the recipe I did the same. I doubled everything because I was making for my Bunco girls too and so many are staying away from sugar and white flour. I used the cast iron pan and I used a Pyrex pie dish. I had to cook for over an hour before the center would set. So delicious!