In the Kitchen.....

Happy Memorial day. I hope you have all taken a moment of silence to pay your respects to those that have served and are serving.  Without our men and women of service we could not have the freedoms we do.... it is worthy to remember that daily, not just on the day set aside for it.  That being said, if you are celebrating this day in the kitchen cooking for those that you love and care about, be it ones that served or are serving, or simply just for a group of friends, I have a recipe for you. If you hurry the store should still be open and you can get the supplies you need. 

The recipe that I am sharing with you today is not my own. It was given to my daughter Angel for a work leadership program project she is working on by a co-worker of hers. The original was submitted to her by a lovely lady by the name of Emily, and then my daughter tweaked it to her personal tastes. She had spent some time at the kitchen of her work, a gourmet grocery store here in Northern California, perfecting it, and I was lucky enough to get to sample the results and trust me it was YUMMY!!!! So let's get started....

Gorgnzola and Pear Tart ....

12 servings

What you need....

1 sheet of thawed from frozen puff pastry 

(from a 17.3 oz. package) 

1 egg

3/4 cup Gorgonzola Cheese

1/4 cup diced green onion, keep

a bit of the green part set aside

1 ripe pear, cored and thinly sliced

2 tbsp. finely chopped Thyme 

1/2 cup walnuts ( **pre-candied if you like for a sweet version...
if you do use candied walnuts leave off the green onions and thyme

pecans would be lovely too!)

What to do....

Pre-heat the oven to 425 degrees

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper

*foil will work too, that is what my daughter used..

if using foil, spray a bit of cooking spray on it.

Place thawed puff pastry on the lined baking sheet

Using a fork, poke holes down the center of the puff pastry. 

Bake until the pastry begins to puff and brown, about 10 minutes.

In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and the cheese until smooth.

Spread over the dough using a spatula or wooden spoon to move the 

mixture to the corners. Scatter the green onion over the cheese mixture, keeping 

a small portion of the green portion of the onion to sprinkle on at the end,

 then 

scatter the walnuts or pecans over that....

lay the sliced pear over this. Sprinkle with the thyme ...

add remaining green onions just as a nice topper and for further color.

Put back into the oven on the middle rack and bake until the 

pastry is golden brown and the egg has set... about 15 minutes.

Cut into small squares once it has cooled a bit ...serve warm or

at room temperature.

Put a few sprigs of thyme on it for final 

presentation...

(** my personal side note... a dollop of creme fraiche  

would be very tasty with it...If you make the sweeter version, 

leaving off the green onion and thyme,

maybe even a drizzle of honey too!)