These pear fritters are a fun vegetarian dessert, with the perfect balance of sweet fruit and a hint of spice from ginger. Both kids and adults alike will love these tasty sweet treats!
Ever since I made my cardamom apple fritters I knew I had to make a pear version too. The apple recipe has been a favourite dessert here on the blog, and I've loved to see pics of you guys making them!
This pear recipe is quite simple to do, even if it does have a few steps. All are quite easy I promise! I love that these fritters can be a snack or a dessert, and are perfect for surprising guests with as something a little different.
And if you love a fritter as much as my family does, then perhaps you would like to see my zucchini and mascarpone fritters and sweet potato fritters for a fun savoury dinner. They pair so well with salads and cooked vegetables on the side.
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Why this recipe is so good
Best comfort food dessert. Fritters have the perfect combination of crispy edges and softer insides, especially with the sweet pears.
Sweet with a hint of spice. The pears give a lovely sweetness and are balanced out with a touch of spice with ginger.
Easy to make. While they look more tricky, there are just a four steps to make the fritters and all are very simple.
Ingredients
The beauty of these fritters is that they mostly use pantry (and fridge!) staples and fruit that is a staple for many of us on trips to the store.
The full list of ingredients is in the recipe card, but a few notes on some of them:
- Pears - I suggest using conference pears and ones that are ripe, but not overripe. If the latter they could be a bit too 'wet' for the dough.
- Spelt flour - this gives a lovely nutty taste and is preferred by some, including my low histamine readers, over regular flour. I always use the Dove's Farm wholegrain spelt flour.
- Ground ginger - gives a hint of spice. I haven't tried it myself (yet!), but I imagine that fresh ginger would work equally well.
Variations to the recipe
The ginger is optional, so leave out if you prefer. Or increase the amount if you like a more spicy ginger fritter!
Cardamom powder would be a lovely alternative to ginger if it's more your thing!
Step by step instructions
Fritters are quite easy to make, just be sure to have the oil hot enough so they cook through and don't go stodgy in the middle, but not too hot that they burn on the outside. A few steps to your tasty sweet treat:
Step 1
Combine the spelt flour, baking powder, ground ginger and salt in a large bowl, and stir to mix (image 1).
Step 2
In a smaller bowl, combine the egg yolk, non-dairy milk and maple syrup. Whisk to combine (image 2). Then pour this 'wet' mixture into the dry ingredients in the larger bowl. Add the pears and stir briefly to coat in the batter mixture.
Recipe tip: use a whisk rather than a spoon, as you want the egg yolk to fully combine into the milk.
Step 3
Heat the coconut oil in a pan. You want a temperature of 350-370F, or so that the end of a wooden spoon has the oil sizzle around it (as in the picture, image 3).
The dough should also sizzle when you drop it into the pan.
Recipe tip: you may need to adjust the temperature of the pan while cooking the fritters, either increasing or decreasing as required.
Step 4
Drop small handfuls of the dough into the pan. Be careful as the oil is hot. Cook for around 5 minutes, flipping when one side is golden brown. The time will vary depending upon how hot your oil is. Use a spatula to remove them (image 4).
Recipe tip: drop small amounts of the fritter batter into the pan. I suggest around a tablespoon each. They will 'puff up' and expand due to the baking powder and you don't want them too large or they won't cook through in the middle.
Frequently asked questions
The batter will be golden brown on one side. Once they are, flip with a spatula and fry the other side.
No, spelt contains gluten so it is not suitable if you are coeliac or sensitive to gluten.
Yes, and you may like to see my cardamom apple fritters!
More desserts to enjoy
Lots of tasty treats that will satisfy a sweet tooth! Find fun recipes such as my spiced poached pears and blackberry apple crisp on the desserts page.
I’m always in the kitchen, so come join me on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest to be the first to hear of new recipes. And please do leave a star rating if you tried the recipe!
Recipe
Pear fritters
Ingredients
- 1 cup spelt flour
- 1 conference pear peeled and diced
- ⅓ cup non-dairy milk
- 1 egg yolk
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger more to taste preference
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- pinch salt
- coconut oil for frying the fritters
Instructions
- Combine the flour, baking powder, ground ginger and salt in a large bowl and mix to combine.
- In a smaller bowl, combine the egg yolk, milk and maple syrup. Whisk to combine. Pour into the bowl with the flour, and add the pears. Stir briefly to combine (don't over stir).
- Heat the coconut oil to 350-370F or until the end of a wooden spoon sizzles in the pan.
- Drop small handfuls of the dough into the pan (keep very small as they will expand when heated). Cook for around five minutes, flipping with a spatula when one side is golden brown. Remove with a spatula and place on kitchen paper to absorb any excess oil.
Notes
- Keep the amount of dough fairly small, around a heaped tbsp. Much bigger and they won't cook through in the middle as they will 'puff up' from the baking powder when heating up in the pan.
- Stir briefly when combining the wet and dry ingredients and the pears. Don't over-stir.
- Use a spatula and/or tongs - not fingers as the oil is hot!
- Keep an eye on the fritters as they can easily burn if the oil gets too hot. You may need to adjust the heat while frying the fritters.
- spelt scores 0, but has a note ‘Prefer old varieties. Modern ATI-varieties modified by cultivation are often not well tolerated’
- baking powder is not rated.
- pear scores 1.
- non-dairy milk has variable scores.
- ginger scores 1, with a note 'small amounts are well tolerated'.
Marlene Ebinger says
Thx Claire! How do you always know what's in my fridge waiting for your recipes to make into dinner & dessert?
I figured out coriander is "cilantro" in USA (we only call it coriander for the seeds)... But what is a "conference" pear? We have the brown skinned Bosc, green with pink blush D'Anjou and green to yellow Bartlett pears mostly. Does it matter? Can't wait to make these fritters 😊
Claire says
Hi Marlene, I've only used conference pears for the fritters but I wouldn't think that the type of pear would matter to much for the recipe as long as it is a regular eating pear with some sweetness and not too crisp. I believe that a conference pear looks similar to a Bosc pear. Hope you enjoy the fritters 🙂