This recipe came about quite by accident. I was hoping to make my belle-mère’s Pear and Roquefort tart for a luncheon I was invited to at a friend’s house, but as I peeked into the fridge to collect all the ingredients I thought I had stocked up on to make her recipe, I realized I was short a few. Plus, my husband isn’t the biggest fan of strong cheeses like Roquefort, despite being French. So, I did something we are always told never to do:  I threw something together for the very first time just hours before I was meant to be at the dinner party. Thankfully, Lady Luck was smiling down on me that day.

With a few tweaks, my mother-in-law’s fabulous Pear and Roquefort tart was transformed from a dessert to a main dish and to my delight is was a success!

For those of you who enjoyed the original recipe, I encourage you to give this one a try too. It is my first stab at developing a recipe all on my own, so please let me know what you think.

You’ll notice it is rather lighter than the other quiches I’ve previously posted. There are no eggs in this recipe, which was originally an oversight.  But I think you’ll find they aren’t missed.

Of course, I haven’t looked thoroughly online for similar recipes, so it may turn out that I didn’t create this recipe at all.  In that case, my hat goes off to whoever came before me – although I hope this one has my own fingerprint on it.

For this recipe, you’ll need:

  • 1 red onion, thinly sliced
  • 1 medium size ripe pear, thinly sliced
  • 4 oz or 100g lardon (or chunky bacon), cubed
  • 3 oz or 90g goat cheese in rounds
  • 1/2 cup grated cheese
  • 1 tbsp butter
  • 3 tbsp honey
  • sea salt
  • 1 pie crust (pâte brisée)

For those of you who have been trained in the fine art of cooking or who have a great deal more practical experience than I do, you’ll be able to slice the pears more decoratively so as to form a beautiful bouquet of fruit slices along the bottom of the tart. The prettier the better. I’m still practicing!

Once assembled, bake at 350F for 15-20 minutes until crust is golden. Serve warm, goes great with a green salad.

Bon appétit!