Pear and Fennel Tartlets

When fennel cooks down, it caramelizes, becoming nearly as sweet as the pears while retaining its floral anise flavor. Just be sure to cut out the central core of the fennel bulb, leaving just a sliver of it intact so that the fennel wedges hold together.

makes 1 dozen

no eggs

• 1 (17.3-ounce; 490-g) package frozen puff pastry sheets, thawed
• ⅓ cup (36 g) pecans, toasted and finely chopped
• 3 tablespoons raw sugar, such as turbinado
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ⅛ teaspoon ground allspice
• 14 ounces (396 g) ripe D’Anjou or Bartlett pears (about 2 small), halved, cored, and cut into ¼-inch wedges
• 8 ounces (226 g) fennel bulb (about 1 small), halved, cored, and cut into ⅛-inch-thick wedges
• 1 lemon
• Runny honey, for drizzling

1. Position the racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat to 400°F. Line two half sheet pans with parchment paper.

2. Cut each puff pastry sheet into six 3-by-4¾-inch rectangles (you will have 12 rectangles). Place on the prepared pans, spacing them 2 inches apart. Use a paring knife to mark a ½-inch border on all sides of each rectangle, forming a smaller rectangle, but do not cut all the way through the dough. Prick the inner rectangles all over with a fork. Sprinkle the pecans over the inner rectangles and gently press in. If the pastry has softened, refrigerate or freeze until firm.

3. Mix the raw sugar, cinnamon, and allspice in a large bowl. Add the pears and fennel. Zest the lemon on top. Squeeze 1 tablespoon juice from the lemon, add to the pear mixture, and gently toss until well mixed.

4. Shingle the pear and fennel wedges lengthwise in the inner rectangles of the pastry so that they’re parallel to the long sides of the rectangles. For each one, you’ll be able to fit 1 or 2 fennel slices for every 2 to 4 pear slices, depending on the length of the slices and how much you overlap them. Sprinkle any remaining sugar mixture over the fruit.

5. Bake, rotating the positions of the pans halfway through, for 20 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350ºF and bake, rotating the pans halfway through again, until the pastry is deep golden brown and the fennel has softened, 20 to 25 minutes more.

6. Cool on the pans on wire racks and serve warm or at room temperature. Right before serving, drizzle the pears and fennel with honey.

MAKE AHEAD

The tarts are best within an hour of baking.