Spiced Pear Bread

This is a nice alternative to banana bread, and has a consistency similar to apple cake.  Note: this recipe makes about two loaf pans worth of bread - it's a lot!  Adapted from the Smitten Kitchen.

Ingredients

3 cups flour
1 t baking soda
1/4 t baking powder
1 t salt
1 T cinnamon
2 t powdered ginger
1 c chopped walnuts (optional, but highly encouraged)
3/4 c vegetable oil
3 eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups sugar (use less if your pears are very ripe)
3-4 firm and ripe pears
2 t vanilla

Instructions

1) Preheat the oven to 350F/175C, and lightly grease a loaf pan
2) Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nuts, and stir with a fork to mix.
3) Peel and core the pears (or cut away the core), and chop into small pieces.
4) In a medium bowl, combine oil, eggs, sugar, pear, and vanilla, and mix everything well (I use a mixer, but if you want to preserve the texture of the pears mix by hand).
5) Gently combine the pear and flour mixture, and stir just until the flour disappears.  (If the batter is too dry, you can add a bit of milk to keep it moistened.)
6) Scrape the batter into the pan and bake for about an hour, until the bread is lightly browned and a toothpick comes out dry.