Pear and Fennel Tart

I saw a recipe in a magazine for mini pear tartlets with lime, chilli, and goat’s milk cheese. These were to be served as appetizers. I liked the concept but thought it would be nicer to make a heartier dish for dinner, so I decided I’d add fennel too. I thought the anise taste of the fennel could suit the other ingredients. I also caramelised the fennel and pear before baking the tart.

It’s an unusual flavour combination that worked together – tart, sweet, liquorice-y anise, tangy goat cheese – but because of the unusualness, it is not the kind of dish you’d want every week. I think it would be good as a starter for a dinner party. Apples can be used in place of the fennel, and then this would work as a dessert, too.

Ingredients:
1 package puff pastry
2 fennel
2 pears
butter
1 tbsp sugar or agave
1 lime
1 red chilli
200 g goat’s milk cheese

Instructions:
1. Roll out the pastry and place it on baking paper on a baking tray.
2. Dice the fennel and cook it in some butter over low heat in a frying pan.
3. Dice the pears. Add them to the pan, along with the sugar.
4. Grate the lime peel and add that plus the juice from the lime to the pan. Chop and de-seed the chilli and add that too.
5. Stir the ingredients and spread them on the puff pastry. Crumble the cheese over it.
6. Bake for 20 minutes at 200 C.