Party Appetizer: Caramelized Onion & Pear Tarts
If you love caramelized onions, you have to try these bite-size caramelized onion and pear tarts. They’re the perfect holiday appetizer!
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Caramelized Onion Tarts
Tired of pigs-in-a-blanket? I know, friends. Me too! Up your appetizer game with these caramelized onion and pear tarts! They taste absolutely amazing and happen to be quite simple to make as well.
They do require a little time to caramelize the onions but turn on some tunes and sauté away! It’s worth it! Plus, I have ideas for customizing it below!
Caramelized Onion & Pear Tart Swap-Ins
The caramelized onions pair so beautifully with the pears and goat cheese in this recipe! As always, I like to give you options so you can always swap in apples for the pears or cream cheese for the goat cheese.
You can even use phyllo cups for the puff pastry, though I love the buttery, flakey crust for this appetizer!
To turn this into a show-stopping side dish, fill the entire puff pastry sheet (leave a 1-inch edge) with dots of cheese and the caramelized onions and pears. This is a beautiful dish that doesn’t lack of any flavor!
More Easy Appetizers You’ll Love
Caramelized Onion & Pear Tarts
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 large yellow onion - diced or thinly sliced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 lb. pears - peeled and diced into small cubes
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 2-3 ounces goat cheese
- 3 tablespoons chives - minced
- 1 package - 1 lb. frozen puff pastry, thawed
- 1 egg - lightly beaten
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F. In a frying pan, add oil, onion, and salt. Stir occasionally until onions are just lightly caramelized (about 25 minutes) as they will continue to cook when baked so just look for a light golden color.
- Remove from pan and set aside in a small bowl.
- Add butter, pears, and sugar to same pan and stir to combine. Once softened, remove from heat and add to bowl of onions.
- Create your mini tarts from the puff pasty by using a cookie cutter or sharp knife. I used a 2 inch square cookie cutter. Brush with beaten egg. In the center, add a 1/2 tablespoon of goat cheese and top with onion/pear mixture.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes or until puff pastry is lightly golden.
- Remove from oven and top with minced chives.
Nutrition
This is truly one of those recipes that can go from a fancy silver serving platter for a cocktail party to a tray on the coffee table for a football game. It’s one I’m constantly asked to make again and again, and if you make it, you’ll see why!
Good luck not eating the caramelized onion and pear mixture straight out of the bowl. You’ve been warned!
Enjoy this easy appetizer recipe at your next party – or weeknight meal, also acceptable!
these look wonderful, I love the pear, goat cheese, and other ingredients, very different than most other food pairings in appetizers, thank you for these!
Thanks so much, Sabrina!
What else could you use instead of goat cheese?
Hi Crystal, you could use brie, feta crumbles, blue cheese, even a hard cheese if it was chopped or shredded!
Courtney can you make these days in advance?
Thank Stephanie
Looks delicious, Courtney but how many tarts does it make?
For me, it made about a dozen per sheet of puff pastry. A package has two. If you fill them more, you’ll make less, obviously. Or if you use a smaller/larger cookie cutter, it will vary. One recipe will be good enough for a dinner party appetizer but if it’s a larger party, you could always double!
Thank you for the quick reply, Courtney. I’m in a cookbook club and my category is appetizer. I wanted to decide how many batches I’d need to make. I appreciate the information.
You’re welcome Patti! :)
The restaurant I used to work with used salsa as a base over the crust on its breakfast cheese. Yummy.
Looks delicious! Would I be able to make this with a crescent dough sheet?
Tried these but the puff pastry didn’t rise! Next time, I will bake the puff pastry for 15 minutes and then remove from the oven to add pear/onion and cheese and return to oven for 5 minutes
Just a quick question: I am bringing this appetizer to a wedding on Saturday afternoon and it is Thursday afternoon. Can these be frozen or refrigerated and then heated up later and still taste OK?
Looking forward to making this for my Christmas party this year!
Could I make them ahead of time? What is the best way to store them?
These look so delicious! I would love to know if they can be prepared ahead of time and popped into the oven before guests arrive.