Caramelized Onion and Goat Cheese Tart

Name: Caramelized Onion and Goat Cheese Tart
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 55 min
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 (17 ounce) puff pastry sheet (fresh is preferred, but frozen is great too); 2 tablespoons salted butter; 1/2 large red onion, cut into 1/4 inch slices; 1/2 large yellow onion, cut into 1/4 inch slices; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 1/8 teaspoon black pepper; 4 ounces classic or original goat cheese (sit out at room temperature for 30 minutes before recipe to soften); 1 tablespoon honey; 1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes; 1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary; 1/4 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves + more to garnish (optional); 1 egg; 1 tablespoon water; Optional: Balsamic glaze for drizzling at serving (Highly recommend)

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This Caramelized Onion and Goat Cheese Tart has a golden flaky crust with a creamy goat cheese and honey spread. It's topped with sweet caramelized onions for an appetizer that is fit for a queen. This tart is elegant, but so easy to make and uses store-bought puff pastry for a great short cut.

Goat cheese tart on parchment paper with caramelized onion.

This Onion and Goat Cheese Tart has the best flavors! I've been all about combining different flavor profiles and textures, and this tart has all the things.

First, you get this flaky layered golden exterior. Then, it's creamy from the goat cheese spread with touches of sweet from the honey and caramelized onions. I love topping mine with balsamic glaze at the end to bring in acidity.

Puff pastry tarts are great for parties and holidays because you can cut them into however many squares and feed a crowd.

For more holiday party appetizers, try these Mini Meatballs, Bacon Cream Cheese Pinwheels, Nutella Puff Pastry, and Charcuterie Skewers.

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Why You'll Love This Recipe:
Ingredients:
Substitutions and Variations:
How to Make a Caramelized Onion Goat Cheese Tart:
Expert Tips:
Recipe FAQs:
More Easy Appetizer Recipes You Will Love:
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Why You'll Love This Recipe:

Easy to Make. This tart is super simple and just requires a bit of time and patience from the caramelized onions.
Elegant. It looks really fancy and is the perfect Holiday appetizer for Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's or Easter.
Bold Flavors. The flavor profile from this dish is out of this world with so many different tastes and textures that work so well together.
Great for a Crowd. Slice this tart up however you would like to feed a crowd. This goat cheese tart easily feeds up to 6-8 people if you have other food available. If you're just serving the tart, I would plan on serving 4.

If you love goat cheese recipes, try these Goat Cheese Crostini with Prosciutto and Roasted Pear Salad with Goat Cheese.

Ingredients:

Puff Pastry: Store bought puff pastry sheets are so easy to use. They bake into the most delicious layered dough that tastes amazing. Frozen or Fresh can be used for this recipe, however I do prefer fresh.

Onions: Caramelized low and slow in butter to bring out the natural sugars. Red onion and yellow onion are used in combination for this recipe for a variation of colors and taste.

Goat Cheese: Plain goat cheese is combined with herbs, spices, and honey for a tangy, smooth, creamy spread.

Egg and Water: Creates a simple egg wash that is brushed onto the outer edges of the puff pastry to allow for a more golden appearance.

Balsamic Glaze: A sweet and acidic touch that is an optional addition once the tart has cooled down. It brings in a lot of flavor and I highly recommend. Make sure to use glaze and not balsamic vinegar. Glaze will stay in place and vinegar will make a mess and soak through the goat cheese.

See recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.

Substitutions and Variations:

Feel free to add extra ingredients onto this tart. Grilled or roasted asparagus would be delicious for Spring or Summer.

Top the tart with some crispy bacon, pancetta or prosciutto.

I used frozen puff pastry sheets in this recipe, but they can be substituted with fresh puff pastry, usually found near the eggs at the grocery store. I prefer fresh for an easier option that doesn't require removing from the freezer 40 minutes before use.

How to Make a Caramelized Onion Goat Cheese Tart:

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Add 1 tablespoon of butter into a large stainless steel skillet on the stovetop over medium low heat. Melt, then add in the onions and stir. Cover the skillet with a lid and cook for 10 minutes, stirring half way through.

Caramelized onions with garlic in skillet.

Step 2: Uncover and sprinkle in salt and pepper. Stir. Cover and cook another 10 minutes, stirring half way through. Uncover and toss in garlic. Cook for 3 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove from the heat and set aside once the onions are soft and caramelized.

Step 3: Whisk the egg and water together to create an egg wash and set aside.

Creamy goat cheese and honey with herbs in glass bowl.

Step 4: In a large bowl, add in goat cheese, honey, red pepper flakes, dried rosemary and fresh thyme. Stir until combined.

Step 5: Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and roll out the puff pastry dough. If you've bought two small sheets, just pinch the two pieces of dough together to form one long rectangle. Lightly score 1 inch from the edge by running a pizza cutter half way through the dough. This will create a crust around the outside. Spread the goat cheese mixture on the inside portion of the scored edge (like you would add sauce to a pizza).

Tart topped with goat cheese and onions.

Step 6: Spread the caramelized onions out over the goat cheese spread.

Tart with egg wash around edges before baking.

Step 7: Brush the egg wash over the outer edge of the puff pastry. Bake for 13-16 minutes until golden brown.

Step 8: Allow the tart to cool for 5 minutes and it will deflate a bit. Cut into smaller squares with a pizza cutter.

Step 9: Drizzle with balsamic glaze if desired and/or top with more fresh thyme leaves. Serve and enjoy!

Expert Tips:

Don't allow the puff pastry to get too warm. If it's frozen, leave out at room temperature 40 minutes before preparing. If it's fresh, remove it from the fridge right before using.
Taking the goat cheese out of the fridge 30-40 minutes before starting the recipe will make it much easier to spread without ripping the puff pastry.
Use the leaves only from the fresh thyme, with no stems.

Love Puff Pastry Recipes? Try these Strawberry Turnovers with Puff Pastry, Asparagus Puff Pastry, Berry Tart and Peach Mango Pie.

Recipe FAQs:

What's the trick to caramelizing onions?

Cook them in a stainless steel skillet low and slow with about 2 tablespoons of butter per large onion. Sugar isn't necessary to add, because the onions will release sugars as they cook making them nice and sweet. Caramelized onions take a minimum of 25 minutes to cook properly.

Do you have the pre-cook the puff pastry before making a tart?

In this recipe, No. Pre-cooking the tart would be necessary if you were using fresh fruits or vegetables with lots of juices, which this does not have.

How to Store Leftover Puff Pastry Tart:

Allow the tart to cool completely to room temperature to avoid moisture in the container. Store in a sealed container or wrap in foil and keep in the fridge for up to 3 days. You can reheat in the oven or eat it cold as a snack like I do. It's so good either way.

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If you tried this Goat Cheese Onion Tart Recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it goes in the 📝 comments below. I love hearing from you!

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