Pear and Walnut Savoury Snacks with Caramelized Onion #glutenfree #fingerfood

This is a good snack to serve as finger food at a party or with a drink. The individual constituents can be prepared earlier and assembled just before baking and serving. I have used the leftover short crust pastry that I baked when I made Bacon Ricotta Quiche and Chocolate Tarts to make this finger food base. I had kept them in an airtight container then keep in the container and saved myself a lot of time. It also meant there was no wastage. Try our recipe and enjoy!

Pastry

Ingredients:

180g Butter, room temperature
2 cups gluten-free Plain Flour
1 Egg, light beaten
1 teaspoon Caster Sugar
1/4 cup Ice Water
Pinch of Salt


Method:

Place flour, salt, sugar and butter into a large bowl.
Rub butter into the dry ingredients with your fingers until mixture resembles crumbles. 
Pour the beaten egg and iced water into the mixture. 
Mix well with the wooden spoon, then knead gently until smooth. 
Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for about 20 minutes. Roll the pastry dough between 2 sheets of baking paper. 
Cut to required size using a cookie cutter. Place on baking tray lined with baking paper.
Use fork prick the shapes. 
Bake in oven at 180C for approx 15 mins
These may be stored in an airtight container till you are ready to use.

Caramelized Onion

Ingredients:

10 Onions, peeled and sliced.
3 tablespoons Olive Oil
1/3 cup Red Wine Vinegar
2 tablespoons Brown sugar
Water, Salt and Pepper


Method:

Preheat oven to 180C.
Place onion slices and olive oil on large baking tray, cook for 30 minutes.
Remove tray from oven, toss the onion well so it does not burn on the the outside.
Add a little water to the onions so they are not too dry.
Replace in the oven.. Repeat 2-3 times.
When removing after baking you will notice the onion has softened and turned brown.
Add vinegar, salt and pepper.
Bake another 30 minutes.

Use when making  sandwiches or as a topper when cooking steaks.
Keeps up to 3 weeks in the fridge.

Caramelized Pears

 Ingredients:

3 Pears, peeled and sliced thinly
2 tablespoons Caster Sugar
1 tablespoon Olive Oil
Salt and Cracked Pepper


Method:

Place pear slices on baking tray.
Toss with oil, sugar, pepper and pinch of salt.
Bake at 180C for 20 minutes.
Can be refrigerated for up to a week.

To assemble this savoury snack, you need some walnuts and cheese - Blue Cheese is a great  combination with pear bu,t not everyone likes the pungent odour of this cheese.smell. I prefer to use cheddar cheese. You can use Camembert or Brie if you like.
Place the baked pastry bases on the baking tray with baking paper.
Place some caramelized onion on the biscuit base.
Place 1-2 pieces of pears, a piece of walnut, then small piece of cheese on the top.
Bake about 8-10 minutes or until cheese has melted.
Serve hot or cold.

Contact: lee.leehocklai@gmail.com