With only 13 days left until Christmas day there are probably numerous gatherings you will still need to prepare for. Hors d’ oeuvres are part of the holiday party tradition. I think that the best appetizers are ‘finger foods’ that you can eat easily and with very little mess. It seems every culture has its own collection of favorite appetizer recipes which have evolved over the years.
In North America, frozen puff pastry has become the ‘go-to’ when it comes to party fare. Puff pastry is so magical. It looks just like regular dough, but it doesn’t contain yeast, baking powder, or baking soda. Nevertheless, it puffs in the heat of the oven into flaky golden layers. Probably the big plus is that you can buy it frozen and have great success without it being labor intensive.
Not only do puff pastry appetizers make for a chic presentation, but they also make it easy to time your guests’ arrival with taking the appetizers out of the oven if you are serving them hot. Most recipes require a short cooking time, which allows you to pop them in the oven half an hour before your guests arrive and serve a warm appetizer as soon as they walk through the door.
Combining pears, gorgonzola cheese, and red onion in puff pastry appetizers creates a delightful blend of sweet, savory, and tangy flavors. Certain flavor pairings are so underrated and pear and gorgonzola are definitely one of them.
Gorgonzola is an Italian, blue-veined cheese, made from cow’s milk. It can be creamy, firm, or crumbly. Neither Brion nor I like the taste of traditional blue cheese, but we really enjoy the dolce gorgonzola (the milder and creamier version).
This combo of pears, red onion and gorgonzola is very versatile in that you can use it to make appetizers as well as topping for pizza dough.
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- 1/2 cup walnuts or hazelnuts, chopped, OPTIONAL
- 1 sheet frozen puff pastry Either a 10" x 10" OR 11" x 15" sheet.
- 1 egg beaten OR some milk to brush edge of pastry
- sea salt, OPTIONAL
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 340 gm (12 oz) red onion, sliced thinly
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 tsp cider vinegar
- 1 Tbsp brown sugar
- 1 pear, peeled, seeded & thinly sliced
- 3-4 sprigs fresh thyme
- 125 gm Gorgonzola Dolce
- 2 Tbsp sour cream
Ingredients
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- Preheat oven to 400 F.
- Chop nuts & roast them in a dry skillet until golden brown. Spread them on a plate & allow to cool.
- Place the sheet of puff pastry on a large piece of parchment paper. Score each edge with a sharp knife about 3/4" in from outer edge making sure not to cut all the way through. Beat the egg & brush the EDGE of the pastry with it. If you prefer, sprinkle a very small amount of sea salt on the EDGE.
- Heat 1 Tbsp olive oil in skillet until hot. Add red onion & sprinkle with salt. Cook & stir about 15 minutes or until moisture is evaporated & onion is soft. Reduce heat; sprinkle with vinegar. Cook & stir until golden. Stir in brown sugar; cook & stir until caramel brown in color.
- Peel & seed pear. Cut into thin slices. Strip the thyme leaves from the sprigs & crumble gorgonzola.
- Brush sour cream over inside of the pastry (NOT on the edge). Top the pastry with pear slices, gorgonzola & the red onion. Sprinkle thyme over all. Sprinkle with freshly ground pepper if you wish.
- Bake the tart for about 20 minutes or until golden brown on bottom & edges. Sprinkle with nuts (if using).
- Cut in whatever size you wish. Serve for hors de oeuvres or as pizza with a simple tomato-arugula salad.
