¼tspcoarse Kosher salt(if using table salt, use half the amount)
6tbspunsalted butter,melted
Muffins
2cupsfinely chopped ripe pears(from 3-4 peeled and cored medium-sized pears)
½cuplight brown sugar,lightly packed
2large eggs
1cupsour cream
¼cupunsalted butter,melted
2tspvanilla extract
1 ¾cupsall-purpose flour,spooned and leveled
½tspcoarse Kosher salt(if using table salt, use half the amount)
½tspbaking soda
1tspground cinnamon
½tspground ginger
¼tspground nutmeg
¼tspground cloves
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 425 F, and position a rack in the center of the oven. Line a standard muffin pan with 12 paper liners. Lightly spray the papers and the top of the pan with non-stick baking spray.
In a bowl, combine all of the crumb topping ingredients until moistened and crumbly. Set aside.
For the muffins, peel, core and finely chop the pears. In a large bowl, stir together the chopped pears with the brown sugar, eggs, sour cream, melted butter and vanilla.
Separately, sift together the flour, salt, baking soda and spices in a bowl.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet, and stir together just until moistened. The batter will be thick.
Divide the batter between the muffin cups, filling them full. Spoon the crumble on top of the batter. It may seem like too much crumble, but it's not. Just heap it on, and gently press it into the batter.
When you put the muffins in the oven, immediately turn the heat down from 425 F to 375 F. Bake the muffins for about 22 minutes, until a toothpick or cake tester comes out clean.
Cool the muffins in the pan for 2 minutes, then gently lift them out and let them cool on a cooling rack for 5-10 minutes.
Enjoy the muffins warm, with softened butter.
Notes
Leftover muffins should be cooled completely, then stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days.
You can also make these in a 6-cup jumbo muffin pan, but they will take longer to bake.