This delicious last course is a little sweet and a little savory—like dessert and a cheese plate in one dish. If you can't find fresh figs, buy dried black Mission figs, soak them in warm water until very soft, then drain and pat dry.
Ingredients
Makes 6 servings
Walnut crunch:
Figs and Pastry:
For walnut crunch:
Step 1
Stir honey, sugar, butter, cinnamon, and salt in medium skillet over medium heat until sugar melts. Cook until mixture boils and is deep golden brown, about 3 minutes. Mix in walnuts. Pour out onto sheet of foil; cool completely. Chop walnut crunch into small pieces.Do aheadCan be made 2 days ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.
For figs and pastry:
Step 2
Stir 1/2 cup sugar, 1 tablespoon water, and salt in heavy large skillet over medium heat until sugar is evenly moist. Cook until sugar begins to turn golden, stirring occasionally, about 4 minutes (mixture may be granular). Place figs in sugar mixture, cut side down, and cook until figs begin to release juice, about 3 minutes. Add butter; swirl skillet to melt. Remove skillet from heat. Add Port and let stand 5 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer figs to plate and cool. Return syrup to boil, whisking until smooth. Cool syrup completely.Do aheadFigs and syrup can be made 1 day ahead. Cover separately and chill. Rewarm syrup before using.
Step 3
Preheat oven to 350°F. Line baking sheet with foil. Roll out thawed puff pastry on lightly floured surface to 12x8-inch rectangle. Using 3 1/2-inch round cutter, cut out 6 rounds; arrange on prepared sheet. Divide walnut crunch among pastry rounds. Top each with 3 fig halves, cut side up.
Step 4
Bake tartlets until pastry is puffed and golden, about 30 minutes.Do ahead蛋挞lets can be made 2 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature. Rewarm at 350°F for 8 minutes.
Step 5
Arrange cheese atop warm tartlets. Brush or drizzle with warm Port syrup, then top with cube of honeycomb or drizzle with honey.
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Reviews (10)
Back to TopThis recipe was wonderful. Everyone loved it. However, the execution was a bit troubling. The walnut crunch wasn't crunchy in the finished product. The sauce was very thin, so the finished product was a bit liquid. I'll definitely make it again to see if I can correct my problems.
Anonymous
Dallas TX
12/28/2011
I had several texture problems. My figs kept sliding off, my crunch was too soft and my syrup was too sticky. Despite all the work involved in producing a fairly disappointing end product on this first attempt, I'll try it again---the flavor is excellent. Next time I'll pay more attention to the guidelines concerning caramelization--- "begins to turn golden" for the syrup, "deep golden brown" for the crunch. I'll also follow Snickers512's suggestion to bake the puff pastry first (with a sheet pan on top) and then pop the assembled tarts into the oven for another two minutes; hopefully this'll to prevent sliding.
consumermcyang
Washington DC
8/28/2008
I used this recipe for my plated desserts class at culinary school and my chef loved it. I did however make a few changes. First, I didn't assemple the tarts then bake them, I baked the puff pastry alone with another sheet pan on top to keep it from rising too much. For the figs, I sauteed them in the caramel/butter mixture for a while before adding the port then I continued sauteing them until they were close to being completely cooked. I then baked them until they were completely cooked. For the walnut crunch, I added a couple ounces of cream to make it a soft caramel rather than a hard caramel. After all the components were completed, I assembled the tarts (I put 5 figs on each tart), minus the bleu cheese, and reheated the whole thing. Then I sprinkled the bleu cheese on top and drizzled the syrup and honey over them. I think doing it this way kept the figs from falling off the tarts.
Snickers512
Austin, TX
11/30/2007
Made for an important family celebration, excellent, worth the steps.
Anonymous
San Diego
9/7/2007
I changed this recipe up a bit and it was fantastic. I used goat cheese instead of blue and put everything on a crostini...much easier! It was very good. Rave reviews. I would definitely make this again.
nrzdunich
San Diego, Ca
9/2/2007
Many in our party liked this dessert. The unique flavors seem promising. However, it involved too much preparation for such a mediocre dish. For example, the brittle is beautiful, but after making it, you sprinkle it on the tarts and bake, so it all ends up as caramel syrup. My pastry puffed up and the brittle/syrup & figs kept falling off during baking. Pastry was tough on bottom, but maybe due to overbaking? There are too many other spectacular recipes out there.
cskempf
Drexel Hill, PA
3/1/2007
This was a bit of a let down. A lot of work and I was somewhat disappointed. I would prefer a straight cheese course followed by dessert
Anonymous
Mississauga, ON
1/2/2007
Incredible dessert. I did not, however, think they reheated well when made ahead (they came out very chewy and hard to cut with a fork, sort of like baklava). When I made the port syrup, I wound out with some sugar chunks that just wouldn't dissolve, so I just ran it through a sieve and it was fine. I used dried figs soaked for a while in hot water and they were great. The flavors of this are amazing, and its good even without the cheese for those not inclined to blue-type cheeses.
thetomas
Somis, CA
12/3/2006
I served this at a dinner party to rave reviews. The pairing of blue cheese, sweet port and fig beat out even chocolate to end a sophisticated evening. This recipe is going to be used again in the future when I want end a meal with a WOW!!
koliber
Coloraodo
11/24/2006
This is an absolutely incredible dish...the kind where people at the table take a bite, pause, start to smile, and begin looking around at eveyrone else at the table, who are all doing the same thing. Then the "wow's!" begin. Stop looking for a dessert to make for your guests. Make this!
米奇
san francisco, ca
11/11/2006
