The other appetizer we are going to make this Thanksgiving are these pear, blue cheese, and green pepper appetizer bites! It sounds a bit strange, but the flavors actually go really well together and make it pretty dang tasty!

The bites are getting ready to go in the oven…

…done and out of the oven!

Ingredients

• 1-2 sheets of pre-made puff pastry dough, thawed
• 2 Bosc pears
• 2 Anaheim green peppers
• 1 clove garlic, crushed, peeled, and chopped
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 yellow onion, finely chopped
• 1 slice of gorgonzola cheese, crumbled*
• 1/4 cup of coarsely chopped walnuts, roasted
• 2-3 tbsp water

Directions

First, prepare the Anaheim pepper relish:

1. Place grill on stove and char all of the skin on the green Anaheim peppers. Wrap in aluminum foil and let cool for 10 minutes.

2. Then wash the peppers under running water and the skin will rub right off. Seed the peppers.

3. In a bowl, combine peppers, garlic, and salt until it forms into a thick paste

4. Heat 1 tsp olive oil in a small pan and sauté the onions. Then add the garlic/pepper mixture to the onion and add 2-3 tbsp of water. Cover the pan and cook over low heat until the raw garlic flavor is gone.

5. Set aside until thickened and cool.

Prepare the Puff Pasty dough

1. Let the puff pastry dough thaw from the freezer. Then use 1 to 1.5 inch cookie cutters and cut out bite-sized pieces. I used pie stamp cutters as above.  Now would be a good time to preheat your oven to 375F.

Prep the Pears

While the dough is thawing, trim, peel, halve, core and cut the pears into small little slices. Set aside.

Assembly

1. Put approx 1 tbsp of onion/pepper mixture onto each puff pastry bite. Then add a few pieces of pear to each bite.

2. Bake in oven at 375F until puff pastry is golden brown, approximately 15 minutes.

3. Then pull out of oven, and place a few blue cheese crumbles on each bite. Then return to the oven for a few minutes until the blue cheese has melted.

4. Remove from oven once blue cheese is melted, and place some chopped roasted walnuts on top.

5. Enjoy! We liked these better warm!

*You can use other blue cheeses too, we just like gorgonzola! This recipe was adapted from Pham Fatale.

We used all different cookie/pie cutters for our bites. We made acorn bites, pumpkin bites, and turkey bites. I personally preferred the acorn bites, they were one bite worth for me. The turkey was two bites worth!

Looking pretty tasty!

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Want to know our #1 Thanksgiving appetizer??  This caramelized onion, apple, and gruyere tart!  The second it comes out of the oven our family gobbles it on up… we have to make double batches so people that arrive a few minutes late can have a bite!  I’m now sharing the recipe with you all because it is SO GOOD.  The secret is out!

Recipe for caramelized onion, apple, and gruyere tarts – printable recipe here

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbs. vegetable oil
• 1 1/2 lb. yellow onions, thinly sliced
• 1 tsp. kosher salt
• 2 Tbs. unsalted butter
• 1 lb. tart apples, peeled and sliced 1/8 inch thick
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 1 1/2 oz. Gruyère cheese, coarsely grated
• 2 Tbs. minced fresh chives
• 1 tsp. chopped fresh thyme
• 1/8 tsp. freshly ground pepper
• 1 package frozen puff pastry dough, thawed
• 1 egg, beaten with 2 Tbs. water

Directions:

In a large fry pan over medium heat, warm the oil. Add the onions and the salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are golden brown, about 30 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl and let the filling cool to room temperature.

Position 1 rack in the upper third and 1 rack in the lower third of an oven and preheat to 400°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

In the same pan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the apples and sugar and stir to coat the apples. Cook, stirring, until the apples are just starting to caramelize and have softened, about 10 minutes. Transfer to the bowl with the onions and stir in the cheese, chives, thyme and the pepper.

Cut the puff pastry into 2-inch squares and place on the prepared baking sheets, spacing the squares about 1 inch apart. Brush the pastry squares with the egg mixture and place a heaping tablespoon of filling into the center of each square. Season lightly with additional salt and pepper.

Bake at 400F, rotating the baking sheets from top to bottom and front to back halfway through baking, until the pastry is crisp underneath and golden brown on top, about 25 minutes. Transfer the baking sheets to wire racks and let the tarts cool to room temperature. Serve at room temperature or warm. Makes 32 tarts.

Yes, the onions got a bit burned in the oven in the picture above but guess what – there were still no leftovers!