When you think about the ingredients that compose a salad, puff pastry is not something that immediately comes to mind.  But when I happened upon a photograph of a puff pastry-wrapped pear (Feuillete de Poires if we’re getting fancy) delicately perched atop a bed of greens and Roquefort, I couldn’t resist attempting the curious combination.

From the pictures you would never guess how easy this salad is to prepare.  Admittedly, I was intimidated when I set out all of the ingredients, but decided to go for it and apologize to my guests if their salads turned out looking more like a science experiment than the culinary masterpiece I envisioned…

The first step was to peel the pears – super easy.  Then came the trickier part, involving slicing sticky dough into thin strips and figuring out how to wind them around a wet pear in the illusion of a seamless spiral.  

With four other courses left to prep before my dinner party guests arrived, I didn’t have time to meticulously chart out the process.  I dove in and hoped for the best.   

The result was more beautiful than I’d imagined.  When I pulled the pears from the oven, they transformed from sloppy mounds of dough into flaky golden beehives.  The combination of light pastry, sweet pear, and tangy blue cheese was unexpectedly refreshing, and set the tone for the rest of the elaborate menu.  This impressive (yet simple) dish will be on heavy rotation in the coming months!  xx tt

FINISHING TOUCHES…

t+tTIP: Pair this delicious pear hazelnut jam with your next cheese plate.  The sweet nutty flavor compliments blue cheeses beautifully.