Easy Savory Pear and Blue Cheese Tart with Caramelized Onions, Prosciutto and Sage
Fall is in the air. Making it time for things like a savory Pear and Blue Cheese Tart with Caramelized Onions, Prosciutto and Sage.
The temperatures are cool and crisp. Geese are honking high overhead. And fall squash, dried beans, dark leafy greens, apples, and pears are making their appearances in the local markets. With sage becoming the herb of choice (it gets a little neglected the rest of the year) and the roasting season is back.
Another wonderful thing about this time of year is the change in clothing as well. It’s time for cute boots, jeans, and sweaters. And dinner parties, which is exactly where this tart shines!
It’s perfectly elegant for brunch or as an appetizer for the upcoming holiday meals. The buttery flaky pie crust gets filled with a layer of caramelized onions, blue cheese and prosciutto topped with pears and sage. And to top it all off, it’s so EASY to make, sounding fancier than it is.
Pear and Blue Cheese Planning Tips
A huge advantage to this Pear and Blue Cheese Tart is that you can make it ahead. Pop it back into the oven to reheat or serve at room temp. the next day.
And please, don’t let the listed time scare you. This tart does NOT take three hours to make. Two of those hours are fridge time for the crust (or pop in the freezer to speed things up). BUT you do need to plan and not skimp on that chilling time. Otherwise, your crust will not be flaky and crispy.
In fact, you can make the crust ahead – wrapping it and leaving in the fridge for a day or two in advance. Of course, if you’re really pinched for time, you can use an already made crust (not my favorite choice but sometimes life gets in the way).
The actual prep time for making the crust and the ingredients is about a half an hour and the other 30 minutes is baking time.
Caramelizing the Onions and the Details
Making caramelized onions takes a bit of time and patience to get them perfectly right. You want them golden brown without burning them, which means stirring often. Also, because we’re adding a bit of sugar to them as they cook, it makes them burn a bit quicker. So, do plan to pay attention while making your onions.
And one huge advantage to caramelized onions is that you can make them ahead. Then pop into the fridge until you need them.
Once you have your Pear and Blue Cheese Tart put together, you could drizzle the top with a good olive oil. BUT I like to use the oil I crisped the prosciutto and sage leaves in. All that delicious, infused oil just adds another dimension of flavor to your tart. Save the extra to put on potatoes or in another dish.
Substitutions
This is a very interchangeable recipe. If you don’t have pears, use apples. Switch out the blue cheese for your favorite (stronger flavored cheeses will work better here), like a Pecorino Romano. If you don’t have or like the sage – rosemary, thyme, or basil will work.
Make the Pear and Blue Cheese Tart vegetarian by leaving off the prosciutto. And vegan by swapping the cheese for a vegan cheese.
You can even make the crust lighter by switching half the butter for olive oil. Or all of it! If you decide to go all olive oil, drop amount tablespoons to six instead of eight.
Slice of Pie…Or Pear and Blue Cheese Tart
I absolutely adore making this tart because of its incredible flavors and how easy it is to make. It travels well when you need to make a dish for a get together and can be made ahead for your own dinner parties. Have fun and enjoy! That’s what cooking is all about.
And please, let me know if you give it a go or have questions. I’m always happy to talk food. After all, good food feeds the soul.
Pear and Blue Cheese Tart with Carmelized Onions, Prosciutto and Sage
Ingredients
Pastry
- 1 cup all-purpose flour + extra for rolling
- ½ cup whole wheat flour or cornmeal
- ½ tsp. salt
- 8 tbsp cold, unsalted butter cut into small pieces
- 4-6 tbsp ice water
Filling
- 2 cups onions sliced thin
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar
- 3 large pears
- 4 ounces blue cheese crumbles
- 3 strips prosciutto fried and crumbled
- 8-10 large sage leaves fried and crumbled
- ⅓ cup roasted walnuts roughly chopped
- Salt and pepper to taste
- drizzle olive oil or infused oil
Instructions
Pastry
- Mix flours and salt in a large bowl.
- Cut in cold butter, using a pastry cutter or fork, until crumbs are pea-sized.
- Start adding ice water 1 tablespoon at a time, until soft dough forms. Form dough into a ball and wrap in plastic. Place in the fridge for at least 2 hours or up to two days or in the freezer for one hour.
- Roll chilled dough between two lightly floured pieces of parchment or waxpaper to about a 1/4 inch thick”
- Press rolled crust into an 11″ tart pan. Trim edges at top as needed. Place back into the fridge until needed.
Filling
- Preheat oven to 400 F.
- In a large skillet, over medium-low heat, cook the onions in 1 tablespoon of butter and 2 tablespoons olive oil, with brown sugar and rice vinegar until onions are golden brown. Stir often and turn down heat if onions are sticking too much. Do not burn.
- Peel and core the pears, slicing lengthwise into 1/4 inch slices. Over medium heat, heat 1 tablespoon butter and 1/2 tablespoon olive oil. Cook pears until slightly brown. Remove from heat.
- In a small skillet, add remaining olive oil and gently fry prosciutto and sage leaves until crispy. About 2 minutes. Remove to a plate until needed.
- Remove crust from the fridge and spread the caramelized onions in the bottom. Follow with the blue cheese and the prosciutto. Gently arrange the pears in a single layer across the top.
- Season with salt and pepper and drizzle with infused or olive oil.
- Place the tart into the oven for 25 minutes. Remove and sprinkle with toasted walnuts and sage leaves before returning the tart to the oven for around 8 to 10 minutes or until the crust is golden brown.
- Remove from oven and let cool to slightly warm or room temperature. Also good served the next day.