Quick & Easy Honey Pear Tart

overhead image of honey pear tart after baking

Here we go! Pie week is coming to an end, but I sort of don’t want to say goodbye! You all know how much I adore putting my rolling pin and pie crust recipe to use. How do you feel? What’s been your fave so far?

I saved one of the best recipes for the very last day. It’s a texture and flavor paradise, not to mention laughably easy which frees up your time for other desserts and dishes during the holiday season. And guess what? It’s Harry and David round 2, complete with ANOTHER giveaway. I received so much wonderful feedback about the first giveaway, so obviously a sequel had to happen. I secretly love how much you love fruit. โ™ฅ

honey pear tart on a parchment paper lined baking sheet after baking

So you know the deal: Harry and David hand-picked high-quality southern Oregon pears are a delicacy. They asked me to create a couple recipes this fall and I went with a cinnamon apple pear crisp to kick off the fun. Crisps are completely my weakness and you know what’s even better? They’re EASY. We love easy. Keeping this whole convenient and simple theme in mind, I decided to spotlight their pears in another completely approachable and delicious recipe: a pear pastry tart combining honey, sea salt, almonds, and… wait for it… goat cheese.

Not only do we all love fruit, we ALL love fruit and cheese. Btw I was tempted to make this with blue cheese, but was afraid you’d run for the hills. Who are my fellow blue cheese lovers?

rectangle crust for honey pear tart on a parchment paper lined baking sheet

So here’s the situation with this quick and easy honey pear tart. You’ll begin with puff pastry, which is a blessing in the whole time-saving scene. Helloooo caramel apple turnovers! It usually comes in 2 sheets, which you’ll roll out and combine into 1 sheet. Just keep using your rolling pin to mold them together. Fold over the edges, crimp the edges with a fork. Not too tricky, right?

Grab the fresh pears, slice ’em thin, mix with a little coarse sugar. That crunch of coarse sugar on the soft, sweet pears is utterly divine. (Also: should have added a sprinkle of cinnamon. Wouldn’t that be unreal with these flavors? Or maybe some savory herbs like rosemary or thyme? Let’s all try it.)

brushing crust with egg wash
2 images of pears and toasted almonds in a white dish on a cutting board with sliced pears

Brush the pastry with an egg wash, then sprinkle with your favorite goat cheese. Again, use blue cheese if you’re a diehard fan like yours truly!! Line the pears up on the puff pastryโ€”just pack them in as many as you can. The more the better, just like we pack in as many apple slices as we can for apple pie. Top with sliced almonds and sea salt.

We’ll add the honey at the end. ๐Ÿ™‚

honey pear tart assembled before baking

How beautiful is this already? Wait until you taste it.

drizzling honey onto honey pear tart

The honey will seep into the pears. So we literally have a bed of puff pastry, topped with goat cheese, lined with pears, and drizzled with honey. Kevin and I both agreed that this is one of the most delicious dishes to come out of the kitchen lately. And I love that it can totally double as a dessert and an appetizer. In fact, now that I type that, I’m 100% putting this on my Friendsgiving hors d’oeuvre menu. Quick & easy, great food, great flavor, great pears, done and done! (Oh, and a great pumpkin pie too, of course.)

slice of honey pear tart on a white plate with a fork

More Pear Recipes

And more pie/crisp/tart inspiration in my roundup of favorite Thanksgiving pie recipes!


This recipe is part of Sally’s Pie Week, an annual tradition where I share a handful of new recipes that fit into the pie/crisp/tart category. Join the community below!

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overhead image of honey pear tart after baking

Quick & Easy Honey Pear Tart

5 from 4 reviews
  • Author: Sally
  • Prep Time: 15 minutes
  • Cook Time: 40 minutes
  • Total Time: 1 hour
  • Yield: serves 12
  • Category: Tart
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: American
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Description

Sweet and salty, super easy honey pear tart with goat cheese, honey, and toasty almonds.


Ingredients

  • 1 package (2 sheets) frozen puff pastry, thawed
  • egg wash: 1 large egg beaten with 1 Tablespoon milk
  • 8 ounces goat cheese
  • 2 large pears, thinly sliced
  • 2 Tablespoons coarse sugar (or brown sugar!)
  • 1/4 cup sliced almonds
  • sea salt for sprinkling
  • honey for drizzling


Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 375ยฐF (191ยฐC). Line a 12×17-inch baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
  2. Unroll the pastry sheets on a floured work surface. Place the edge of one over the other and use a rolling pin to adhere them together. Roll the whole thing out into a 10×14-inch rectangle. Fold over the edges and crimp down with a fork. Crimping is much easier the colder the pastry is, so place into the refrigerator to chill if needed. Review my how to crimp and flute pie crust tutorial if you need extra help with this step.
  3. Brush the entire pastry, edges included, with egg wash. Top with goat cheese.
  4. Toss the pear slices and coarse sugar together. Line the pears on top of the pastry. Sprinkle with almonds and sea salt.
  5. Bake for 35-40 minutes until the edges are golden brown. Remove from the oven, place on a wire rack, and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Drizzle with honey before slicing and serving.

Notes

  1. Make Ahead Instructions: Assemble the tart through step 4. Place in the refrigerator up to 1 full day, then bake and serve. So easy!
  2. Special Tools (affiliate links):ย 12×17-inch Baking Sheet | Silicone Baking Mat or Parchment Paper | Rolling Pin | Pastry Brush | Cooling Rack
  3. Have fun with this pear tart! You can switch up the cheese or maybe use chopped pistachios or walnuts instead of almonds. And/or add some cinnamon or savory herbs like rosemary or thyme.
slices of honey pear tart on white plates
sally mckenney headshot purple shirt.
About the Author

Sally McKenney

Sally McKenney is a baker, food photographer, and New York Times best-selling author. Her kitchen-tested recipes and step-by-step tutorials have given millions of readers the knowledge and confidence to bake from scratch. Sallyโ€™s work has been featured on TODAY, Good Morning America, Taste of Home, People, and more.

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Reader Comments and Reviews

  1. Karen says:
    May 31, 2025

    I made this and it was delicious. wondering if I can freeze it.

    1. Beth @ Sally's Baking says:
      May 31, 2025

      Hi Karen, we don’t recommend freezing this tart. For best results, make it fresh the day you plan to serve it.

  2. Susan says:
    April 8, 2025

    Could I use your home made puff pastry instead of packaged puff pastry?

    1. Trina @ Sally's Baking says:
      April 8, 2025

      Certainly!

  3. Kat says:
    November 10, 2024

    I plan to make this tomorrow. We alwasy watch Holiday Baking Championship as a family, and for every episode, I make a special dessert. We play like I am in the contest and my family are the judges, lol. I made almost all “Sally recipes” last year with great success: eclairs, creme brulee – all turned out perfectly. It might be hard to top that this year, so I am a little nervous. I think this recipe will be easy enough to get me going again, and still be very impressive. I plan to make it into smaller individual tarts – wish me luck!!


    1. Kat says:
      November 11, 2024

      It worked perfectly as individual tarts! My family loved it. It was so simple…I was kind of afraid that it wouldn’t really “pop”, but it was so delicious!! I could make this at least once a week and never tire of it! I really prefer individual tarts, because everyone gets their own rectangle with all that crispy crust ( I sprinkled an extra bit of turbinado sugar around the crust before baking) Just fabulous!!!

  4. Jennifer Buggeln says:
    December 4, 2023

    Wow! Made this to the tee and it is amazing. Possibly the best thing I have baked yet! Thank you so much!

  5. Susan says:
    November 8, 2023

    Very good,changed to parmesan used pecans and cinnamon and oatmeal..
    Loved it!

  6. kristin says:
    January 8, 2023

    How do you think mascarapone would work? I tried blue cheese and it would have been a great appetizer, but looking for something sweeter for dessert.

    1. Beth @ Sally's Baking says:
      January 8, 2023

      Hi Kristin, we haven’t tested this recipe with mascarpone, but it sounds delicious! If you try it, please let us know how it turns out.

  7. Sue C says:
    November 13, 2022

    Sally, just wondering about the goat cheese. Do you just plop globs over the dough, or do you try to spread it? Wish there was a photo showing this step.

    1. Trina @ Sally's Baking says:
      November 13, 2022

      Hi Sue! You just want a light sprinkling of crumbled goat cheese – you can see it on top of the tart of the photos above.

  8. S says:
    July 28, 2022

    Easy and delicious! We’ve even swapped the pears for apples sometimes. Great simple recipe.

  9. Elena says:
    December 6, 2021

    Could you use Caramel and Apples instead of honey and pears?

  10. Janet says:
    September 28, 2021

    Can I use canned pears? Sounds delicious!

    1. Lexi @ Sally's Baking says:
      September 28, 2021

      Hi Janet, fresh pears really are best here. We fear the canned pears will be too soft and the added sugars will compromise the taste. If you do try using canned, we’d recommend blotting them first and you might also want to reduce the sugar a bit. If you can, it would be best to get two fresh pears for best results!

  11. Emily says:
    July 14, 2021

    Hi Sally,

    Would there be any concerns with halving this recipe? I am baking for one, so the 10 x 14 tart is a bit big for me, but it looks so divine I’m dying to make it! I was thinking since the thickness of the puff pastry will be the same, it shouldn’t change the cooking time too much? Do you have any insights here? Thank you so much!

    1. Lexi @ Sally's Baking says:
      July 14, 2021

      Hi Emily, we can’t see why not! Bake time should be about the same, but keep a close eye on it. Hope you enjoy this tart!

  12. Dolores Zambrano says:
    October 15, 2019

    How long does it keep outside the fridge?

    1. Sally @ Sally's Baking says:
      October 15, 2019

      To maintain freshness, I recommend storing in the refrigerator. A few hours at room temperature before serving is OK.

  13. Sierra says:
    September 11, 2019

    Do you think this could be made without the goat cheese ? Was wondering on doing it without any cheese ? Thanks !

    1. Sally @ Sally's Baking says:
      September 12, 2019

      You can certainly try making it without the cheese- or you can sub the goat cheese for another type!

  14. Kaitlyn says:
    November 16, 2018

    Do you have any tips for preparing this ahead of time? I would love to make it as a thanksgiving app, but the turkey will be taking over my oven! All I can think of is to cook it the night before and warm slices up in the toaster oven?

    1. Sally @ Sally's Baking says:
      November 17, 2018

      Hi Kaitlyn! That’s what I’ve done in the past. Bake it ahead, refrigerate it, then warm up the slices. Drizzle with honey and a sprinkle of goat cheese and sea salt before serving.

  15. MARY FATSIS says:
    October 29, 2018

    Love the simplicity and ease of this tart– delish and yummy. Love tarts and love making them, all different kinds, both sweet and savory

  16. Jewels says:
    September 13, 2018

    This is screaming for lavender honey! I can’t wait to try it and will be asking the cheese monger for a mild blue cheese.

    1. Sally @ Sally's Baking says:
      September 14, 2018

      SO delicious with lavender honey!! Enjoy ๐Ÿ™‚

  17. Jenea Empson says:
    July 23, 2018

    I have a pear tree in my front yard. It makes loads of pears every year. I can most of them and make pear butter with no spices just lemon bay leaves and red pepper corn in the pot when I cook them.remove bay leaf pepper corn befor you blend pears. Then put the back on to cook down. So good on toast s very mild butter.

  18. Natalie says:
    November 19, 2017

    Absolutely yummy! will definitely make it soon โ™ฅ

  19. Mackenzie Poole says:
    December 27, 2016

    Made this for our Christmas Eve appetizer spread and everyone agreed it was one of the best things we’ve ever had at any family Christmas gathering! I tossed the pears with 1 t cinnamon and 1/4 t nutmeg as well as about 1/2 t each of chopped rosemary, sage, and thyme; also used walnuts instead of almonds. The extra pears were a treat themselves and we used them on our cheese board. Would definitely recommend trying that addition next time. ๐Ÿ™‚