alex loves pears - he feels about pears the way i do about pumpkin. so when i saw this recipe i knew it had to be made. it needed a few tweaks, but they are excellent.
pear and granola muffins
adapted from everyday baking
muffins:
1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup whole-wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon apple pie spice
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
3/4 cup plain low-fat yogurt
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2 bosc pears (2 cups), peeled and cut into 1/4-inch dice
1/2 cup plain granola
granola crisp topping:
1/2 cup granola
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter
preheat oven to 400 degrees.
in large bowl combine the dry ingredients.
in a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, brown sugar, yogurt, vanilla, and
butter.
make a well in the center of flour mixture.
add egg mixture to well, and mix in flour mixture until just combined.
gently fold in the granola and pears.
make granola crisp topping: in a bowl, toss together 1/2 cup granola, 1/4 cup each all-purpose flour and packed light-brown sugar, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. cut 3 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter into pieces; add to granola mixture, and rub in with fingertips until clumps form.
divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each 3/4 full. sprinkle with granola topping. bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean, about 20 minutes. cool 5 minutes before
removing from tin.
If you enjoyed this recipe, please consider leaving a comment and/or
subscribing to the feed to have future recipes delivered to your feed reader.
if you have read picky cook for any amount of time you will know my
love of lemon. i know it may seem like a lot of zest in this recipe but
trust me - it is perfect. the lemon flavor is strong but not over
powering. the poppy seeds are like little surprising pops in your
mouth. the pancakes are moist and thick - just the way i like them. i
served these lemon poppy seed pancakes with macerated berries (any mix
of berries would work). just add a bit of sugar to the berries and let
them sit at room temp while you make the pancakes. 
