Blue Cheese Puff Pastry Tarts Recipes

BLUE CHEESE PUFF PASTRY TARTS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 200 Degrees C (390 F).
• Remove the pastry from the freezer shortly before preparing the filling.(Don't remove it too early or it will be difficult to cut neatly. The pastry will have a better texture if it is still chilled when placed in the oven.)
• Grease the patty pan tin (or muffin tin if using) well - see Note 4.
• Add the blue cheese, cream, egg, chives and freshly ground black pepper to the bowl of a food processor and blend until thoroughly mixed.
• When the pastry has just defrosted, using a 6 cm (2 ¼ inch) cookie cutter for patty pan tins or 7 ½ cm (3 inch) cutter for muffin tins, cut rounds of pastry and put into prepared muffin tin/patty pans, gently pushing the pastry down into place.You will cut 12 rounds for the patty pan or 9 for the muffin tin.
• Evenly distribute the filling between the pastry cases. This is about 1 tablespoon (4 teaspoons) for the patty pans and 1 ½ tablespoons (6 teaspoons) for the muffin tins.
• Bake in the oven for about 12 minutes in the patty pans or 12 - 15 in the muffin tins. The time will vary depending on the heat of your oven but bake until the filling puffs and becomes golden brown.
• Remove from the oven and cool for 5 minutes before removing and placing on a wire rack to cool and store - or serve warm immediately.
• If making them in advance, reheat in a pre-heated 180 degrees C (350 F) oven for 5 - 7 minutes.

CARAMELIZED ONION & BLUE CHEESE PUFF PASTRY TARTS RECIPE

Steps:

• Heat butter and oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add onions and and stir to coat in oil. Grab a glass of wine and a magazine and plop yourself in front of the stove because you are going to be here for a while. You will cook the onions for 60 minutes total, stirring every 4-5 minutes or so. After they've cooked for 10 minutes add a pinch of salt. After they've cooked for 40 minutes add a teaspoon of sugar. After they've finished cooking for 60 minutes and are a gorgeous dark brown color, deglaze the pan with the white wine, season with salt and pepper to taste, then set aside. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Unwrap the puff pastry and cut along the seams of each sheet, creating 6 rectangles total. Lightly flour your work surface and roll each piece into a 3.5″ x 12″ rectangle. Use a 3″ cookie cutter to make four tarts out of each rectangle. Transfer tarts to (2) parchment lined baking sheets. Combine puff pastry scraps into a ball, roll them out to the same thickness as your previous tarts and use the cookie cutter to make 10-12 more tarts. Arrange tarts on the two baking sheets about an inch apart. You will have 30-32 tarts total. Use a 2″ cookie cutter to score each tart in the center, creating a half inch wide crust. Brush the crust portion of the tart with the egg wash. Heat fig jam in a small saucepan over medium heat just until it becomes loose and spreadable. Spread a teaspoon or so of fig jam in the center of each tart. Top that with a teaspoon or so of caramelized onions. And then, you guessed it, top that with a teaspoon or so of blue cheese. Divide thyme evenly between the tarts, sprinkling a few leaves in the center of each tart. Bake tarts for 15-18 minutes or until the crust starts to get dark golden brown Remove tarts from the oven and drizzle with honey. Serve warm and enjoy! NOTES These tarts are also delicious at room temperature!