Pear Muffins with Cinnamon Crumble

By Laura Fuentes Updated Jun 16, 2025

5 from 130 votes

Recipe

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Soft pear muffins with a cinnamon crumble are a delicious treat or morning breakfast!

Today’s Pear Muffins with cinnamon crumble topping are a favorite at my house. They’re soft on the inside, with a fluffy, airy texture. And then topped with a crisp crumble. So Good.

Pear Crumble Muffins

There are two recipes that are sure to win over my children for breakfast are pancakes and muffins. But when it comes to muffins, “the ones with crumbly topping on top are the best!” as my daughter likes to say.

My grandmother used to use canned pears in her pear crumble muffin recipe and I’ve continued that tradition with these quick and delicious muffins.

As a child living in Spain, I spent most afternoons and weekends at my grandmother’s house. Over the years, I learned to appreciate the love and kindness that went into every meal she cooked. But baking, though, those were special treats reserved for the weekend.

As an inquisitive child, I would ask a lot of questions that I’m sure my grandmother found to be repetitive and possibly annoying. You know, the type of questions that would start with “why” and end with “but why?”

To her credit, she never grew tired of explaining why things had to be done in a certain way in the kitchen. It’s because of her answers that I am now able to create easy shortcuts in many recipes or know why it’s good to use canned fruit in many of her baked goods recipes.

She’d say that canned fruit has a consistent texture that always cooks evenly. And, even with small baked goods like muffins, the result would be fruit with a softer texture that is pleasant with every bite. This isn’t always the case with fresh fruit, as it often takes longer than the baking time for it to soften up. Plus, the canned pears in this recipe are high in moisture, so they help the muffins have a softer and fluffier texture.

ingredients of pear crumble muffin in a glass bowl

Pear Muffin Ingredients

Aside from the can of pears, all you need to make these muffins a reality is the usual baking ingredients. You’ll find the ingredient amounts in the printable recipe card below, but first, let’s check them out:

For the muffins

All-purpose flour: if you want to use whole-wheat baking flour or gluten-free flour, check the notes in the recipe card below.
Baking powder: makes the batter rise, and the muffins turn out fluffy.
Cinnamon: adds cozy fall vibes to any bakery good.
Salt: enhance the flavors.
Butter: you can swap it for coconut oil.
Sugar: this recipe uses brown sugar and granulated sugar for the right texture.
Milk: any regular or dairy-free milk will work.
Eggs: help bind the batter.
Vanilla extract: makes everything tastier and oh! The aroma!
Pears: canned pear halves in pear juice or fresh pears.

For the crumble:

All-purpose flour: use 1:1 gluten-free flour to make these muffins gluten-free.
Brown sugar: adds moisture and a rich flavor.
Granulated sugar: you get a perfect crumble texture when it’s combined with brown sugar.
Cinnamon: more of this incredible flavor!
Butter: adds taste and binds the ingredients.

How to Make Pear Muffins

Soft and fluffy muffins with tender pears don’t bake themselves, so let’s get to it!

Prepare
Preheat oven to 375F and line 12 muffin cups with paper liners or generously grease and flour each cavity.
Make the crumble topping
In a medium bowl, combine ⅓ cup all-purpose flour with 2 tablespoons brown sugar, 1 tablespoon white sugar, and ½ teaspoon cinnamon, stir with a fork. Add the melted butter and stir until the mixture becomes a crumbly topping.
Mix the dry ingredients for the muffins
In a large bowl, combine 2 cups all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, ½ teaspoon salt, and 2 teaspoons baking powder. Set aside.
Prepare the batter
In a separate large bowl or the bowl of your food processor, combine ½ cup melted butter (or coconut oil), ½ cup brown sugar, ¼ cup granulated sugar, ½ cup milk, 2 eggs, and 2 teaspoons vanilla extract.
Combine
Gradually add in flour mixture into the wet mixture until just combined, careful not to over mix. Gently fold in chopped pears.
Pour into Muffin Cups
Divide the batter into the prepared muffin tins, filling them about ¾ full. Top with the crumble topping (you might have a little extra) and bake for 22-25 minutes until the crumble tops are golden and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
Remove and Cool
Remove the muffins from the oven and allow to cool prior to serving. Grab your beverage of choice with a muffin and bite in!

pear crumble muffin in a tin pan before cooking

Cinnamon Crumble

Crispy, crumbly muffins tops are the best part and this cinnamon crumble is a perfect all-purpose topping for any muffin recipe! You can add it to blueberry muffins, banana muffins, or a coffee cake.

In a medium bowl, combine ⅓ cup all-purpose flour with 2 tablespoons brown sugar, 1 tablespoon white sugar, and ½ teaspoon cinnamon, stir with a fork. Add the melted butter and stir until the mixture becomes a crumbly topping.

From here, you can top it over any muffin or coffee cake of choice! Speaking of- if crumble toppings and coffee cake is your type of thing, let me introduce you to these Coffee Crumble Cake Muffins. Two desserts in one glorious, delicious muffin!

As I share many of her recipes in this blog and my cookbooks; one of the questions that I’m often asked is if she left me a recipe book of sorts. Sadly, no. My aunt Amparo is a chef, and thankfully she has written down many of my grandmother’s recipes as cooked them along with her over the years.

And this recipe is one of them. Check out how easy these muffins are to make:

What I love about this particular recipe is that the crumbly topping gives it a fanciness of sorts, but in truth, it’s simple to make. And, to make them ultra convenient, the batter can be made the night before, the pan can be lined and filled, and baked in the morning.

Because really, who has time to measure flour early in the morning barely caffeinated? Not this girl. My husband jokes that I don’t get breakfast started until the first cup of coffee kicks in, so there is always that!

The crumbly topping of this muffin not only looks fantastic but will leave you wanting more.

Can You Freeze Pear Muffins

Yes! You can freeze the muffin batter or muffins already baked. This second choice is my favorite. Allow the pear muffins to cool down at room temperature. Then, transfer the muffin pan to the freeze for an hour. Once solid, remove from the pan, transfer to a freezer-safe zip bag, and store in the freezer for up to 2 months. Learn how to freeze muffins like a pro in this post.

pear crumble muffins on a blue plate cut in half

After these pear muffins, be sure to try my Coffee Cake Muffins with crumbly cinnamon topping, these amazing Healthy Banana Oatmeal Muffins and my delicious Pear Baked Oatmeal.