You call me a tart like it's a bad thing!

So, recently, I have been on a dessert kick. Mainly, a baked dessert kick. I blame my sister K for this one. Have you ever heard of Ree Drummond? Yeah, I hadn't either, until my sister sent me an email telling me to check her out. You should check her out, too. Click here to check out her site, The Pioneer Woman. Its really cool, but don't forget to come back here!

Good, now that you are back, I can continue. So, as I was saying, K sent me the link, with the instructions to check out her site. And so I did. And oh man, was I hooked! One of my favorite parts of her site was obviously the cooking part; the dessert part, in particular, actually. So while I was perusing through her site, I stumbled across a recipe for an apple tart. It sounds good, and very simple. But, just a little boring. So, I started thinking, and what follows is what I came up with, using her recipe as a jumping off point to start negotiations.

Making this tart is ridiculously easy. I had never even used puff pastry before making it, and I managed not to screw things up! That has to say something for the ease of it! Plus, it uses remarkably few ingredients! That is always a bonus. Really, you just have to think in twos. 

You can see that I really got into the whole 'think in twos' thing... plus, halves of things just look pretty, don't ya think?

Coring all of the fruit really might have been one of the hardest parts of this whole thing. But, only cause I almost sliced my palm open while coring an apple. Note to self, get an apple corer and a melon baller. Makes life easier.

The other hard part? Slicing everything really thinly. Not particularly difficult, but definitely time consuming.

The pears were easier to slice. I think it's the skin.

Looks pretty though! Red and green; reminds me of Christmas. And it is cold enough here. I swear! It's in the low 60's today! Burrr!

Since I was on the whole Christmas thing, and it is winter here, I decided to go with the traditional winter flavors. Brown sugar. Oh, and cinnamon and nutmeg, too.

 Gives you a warm fuzzy feeling when you start smelling everything mixed together. Also, when you do this, it creates this amazing, gooey, and very very delicious syrup that coats everything. Try a few this way, I promise you won't regret it! Just be sure to leave enough to cover the tart!

Speaking of the tart, I used frozen pre-made puff pastry here. Never used it before. I am now in love with it. Im gonna start coming up with new things to make in it. Also, you will notice the two different sizes there. I was experimenting here, doing the test run. I do have to say that after making both sizes, I like the smaller one best. Looks better on a serving plate.

So the trick to this tart is that you do the alternating layers of apple and pear, so that each bite yields pure deliciousness in your mouth. Also, do this because it looks pretty. Then, into the oven they go, for, seriously, like 20 minutes. Thats it! Easy peasy!

What comes out of the oven is this amazing looking tart. It looks like it took forever to make, and that can be your little secret when you share it at your next dinner party.

Another great thing about this tart? I bet you can totally change up the fruits for whatever happens to be in season at the time. Im sure strawberries and blueberries could work fine, or perhaps peaches? Yummers. Either way, make this, and love it. Just try not to eat all the fruit before you turn it into a tart.

xoxo Craig

Keep reading for the recipe.

Pear and Apple Tart

What you need:

• 2 apples, cored and thinly sliced
• 2 pears, cored and thinly sliced
• 2 lemons, juiced
• 1 cup of brown sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 2 sheets of puff pastry, cut in half and light thawed

Preheat the oven to 200ºC (400ºF). Lay the puff pastry out on a non-stick cookie sheet to thaw. Meanwhile, in a large mixing bowl, combine the thinly sliced pears and apples, sugar, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and juice of the lemons. Stir to evenly distribute the sugar mixture all over the fruit. Let sit for about 5 minutes, until the mixture is nice and juicy. 

Start placing the apples and pears on the pastry, making sure to leave room around the edges (I left about 1/4", or about the distance to the first knuckle of your pinky finger). Alternate the apples and pears, making sure that they overlap. Place in the oven for about 20 minutes, until the edges are puffed and golden brown. 

Serve warm or room temperature, with a nice spoonful of vanilla ice cream.