This apple and goat cheese tart with fig jam (topped with thyme, honey, and crushed pistachios) is the perfect appetizer for any gathering! Bake it up as one large tart, then slice and serve however you’d like.
If you’re still looking for an easy holiday appetizer that can feed many—welcome, you’ve found it! Tips for baking and assembly below, friends. Let’s bake!
This recipe is sponsored by Yes! Apples.
Some Materials You May Need:
- Apple peeler + corer
- Large baking sheet
- Parchment Paper
- Various mixing spoons/cups
- Pastry brush (or something to apply egg wash with)
- Offset spatula/spoon (to spread jam over pastry)
- Rolling Pin
Tips for Handling Puff Pastry
Puff pastry, with it’s high butter content, tends to get sticky and hard to handle. Which is why you generally want to work quickly with it. Plus, the colder your puff pastry is going into the bake, the higher it’ll rise and the flakier it’ll be.
Thaw out your puff pastry according to the instructions on the packaging. During the assembling process, if the puff pastry starts to become too flimsy, throw it in the fridge for 15 minutes and then continue working. This is also the reason I suggest building the entire thing on your baking sheet from the start. It makes it easy to transfer to and from the fridge, and also to the oven.
Store-bought puff pastry is perfectly fine for this recipe, but if you’re up for the challenge then you could make rough puff pastry too! I tested this recipe with both kinds and each came out great. I love this rough puff recipe by Erin McDowell. Just pay attention to the amount it makes as you made not need all of the dough. You can just save the rest for another bake!
Assembling this Apple and Goat Cheese Tart
This apple and goat cheese tart is truly so simple to assemble. There’s not too many ingredients and you don’t have to worry about it looking perfect. Tarts, especially large ones like this, are meant to look a little rough and rustic!
My biggest tip is to have ALL of your ingredients prepped and ready (apples peeled/cored/cut, jam ready, thyme to the side, etc.). That way, once your puff pastry is done thawing you can quickly assemble and throw it in the oven. Like I mentioned before, the longer puff pastry sits out, the sticker and harder to handle it becomes—speed and preparedness are your friends here!
Assembly Steps
- Thaw your puff pastry and roll out out any creases (if using store-bought). My puff pastry was about 10×12 inches and roughly 1/4 inch thick. Dock (poke) the pastry all over with a fork to allow steam to escape during the bake.
- Brush the border with your egg wash (doesn’t have to be perfect).
- Spread your fig jam evenly around the pastry, leaving about an inch or so border around the outside.
- Evenly sprinkle your crumbled goat cheese overtop the fig jam, leaving the boarder untouched.
- Arrange your thinly sliced apples as desired. I chose to alternate and fan out 4 slices as I worked my way across and down (see images below to follow that style).
- Sprinkle your thyme and sugar overtop the apples and crust. Then bake!
Baking Tips for this Apple and Goat Cheese Tart
Every oven distributes heat a little differently. That’s why its important to pay attention to visual cues more so over bake time. Generally, 30 minutes should get you to a good point and then just pay attention to the crust. None of these ingredients are at risk of being underbaked.
Really you just want that puff pastry to be baked all the way through and the crust of it to be nice and dark or golden. I suggest really being generous with your egg wash and baking this longer than you think! Most people stop when they see a tiny bit of browning around the outside. My tip is when you think it’s done, give it 5 minutes longer and it’ll be perfect.
Be sure to drizzle your honey and sprinkle those crushed pistachios overtop just as it comes out of the oven. This lets the honey soak into those warm apples and the pistachios to stick in place better.
Why the Right Apple Matters (Say Hello to Yes! Apples)
Not every apple is fit for baking. Now that’s not to say your bake is ruined if the wrong apple is selected. But why not ensure that you’re letting a recipe reach its greatest potential? That’s why I always reach for Yes! Apples when I’m looking to bake!
Their apples not only come fresh every time, they stay fresh longer than any apple I’ve tested with! With over a dozen varieties to choose from with this NY-grown, woman-owned, and sustainable business—you truly cannot go wrong with Yes! Apples. I tested this tart with both their RubyFrost® and Fuji apples. The Fuji really added to the sweetness and the scrap pieces are great to snack on.
Grab some here and get ready to make this tart truly shine, friends!
I rounded up some of my favorite holiday apple recipes for my buddies over at Yes! Apples too: check out 10 of my favorites here!
Tag me over on Instagram (@joshisbaking) if you make this apple and goat cheese tart, friends! Truly such an easy crowd pleaser for the holidays.
Happy baking!
Apple and Goat Cheese Tart with Fig Jam
- Prep Time: 30 Min.
- Cook Time: 30 Min.
- Total Time: 1 Hour
- Yield: 1 Large Tart 1x
Description
This apple and goat cheese tart with fig jam (topped with thyme, honey, and crushed pistachios) is the perfect appetizer for any gathering! Bake it up as one large tart, then slice and serve however you’d like.
Ingredients
- (1) sheet store-bought puff pastry, thawed (375g) or homemade
- (1) egg for egg wash (50g)
- 1 cup fig jam/spread (~300g)
- (2) large apples (peel/core/cut in 1/4 in. slices), like Fuji from Yes! Apples
- 4 oz. crumbled goat cheese (113g)
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves (off the stems)
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 1/2 Tablespoon honey
- 1/4 cup shelled pistachios, crushed (however much you’d like)
Instructions
-
Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C) with a rack in the upper thirds position. Prep a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Roll out puff pastry a little to seal the creases (mine was about 10×12 inches big, 12×14 works too). Place onto your prepared baking sheet and build the entire tart on the baking sheet for easy transfer.
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With a fork, poke the pastry all over to create holes for steam to escape during the bake. Brush your egg wash (one egg lightly whisked) around the outside edge to create a “crust” border (about an inch or so).
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Spread your fig jam evenly overtop, leaving that border untouched. Evenly distribute your crumbled goat cheese overtop the fig jam (doesn’t have to be perfect). Arrange your sliced apples overtop the goat cheese however you’d like. I worked with groups of 4 slices fanned out, alternating their direction as I worked my way around (4 rows down, 3 rows across)—see photos in blog above!
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Sprinkled your thyme and granulated sugar evenly overtop (border too). Bake at 400°F (200°C) for 30-35 minutes, until the crust is dark golden (rotate the pan halfway through for even browning).
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Right after you pull the tart out of the oven, drizzle the honey/sprinkle the crushed pistachios overtop. Cut into however many slices. Best served and enjoyed same day.
Notes
- See the blog above for step-by-step photos of the assembly process if you’re not sure how somethign should look! You can also arrange the apples however you’d like.
- If your pastry ever starts to get sticky or hard to handle, throw it in the fridge for 15 minutes to firm back up a little and continue working.
Check out my most recent recipes:
- Hot Cocoa Cream Pies
- Roasted Crispy Rice Treats Dipped in Chocolate Frosting
- Giant Chocolate Blueberry Pop Tart
Looking for something else to bake?
It was fantasic! So easy to make just like you said. Instructions were spot on. I am so proud of myself for making it. What a wonderful recipe. Got some fig jam from a friend as a gift.
This makes me so happy Marianne! Love that the process was easy and straight-forward, always great to hear. And what a great use of that gift of fig jam! Thank you for sharing this with me!