Rita Marini, the Spice Room & Chutney Bar’s (55 Avenue Road, at Yorkville, 416-935-0000) resident pastry whiz, turns a box of Pepperidge Farm frozen puff pastry into sheer pear perfection.[rssbreak]
Followers of the Room’s Greg Couillard will want to be in attendance when the spicemeister returns to the Yorkville resto this weekend for a series of special dinners before heading back to Mexico to launch his Chili Bang Bar in Ajijic, south of Guadalajara.
INGREDIENTS
1 400 gram package prepared puff pastry, thawed
100 g goat cheese
100 g blue cheese, crumbled
2 pears, washed, cored and thinly sliced
12 tsp ground cardamom
14 cup walnut pieces
2 tbsp honey, to taste
METHOD
Place sliced pears in a bowl and toss with cardamom. Roll puff pastry into a thin 10-by-10-inch rectangle and place on a greased cookie sheet. Spread the goat cheese over the puff pastry and layer with sliced pears. Crumble blue cheese over the pears, sprinkle with walnuts and drizzle with honey. Bake in a preheated 450F oven for 7 to 8 minutes or until the pastry puffs. Rest for 5 minutes, then cut into bite-sized pieces.
