Cooking From Books: Goat Cheese Tarts with Black Oil

I have LOTS of cookbooks. I mean LOTS. They are reference books, sources of inspiration, and food porn. Love them.

And I've always intended to pass the best parts of some of them on in this blog. But I get bogged down by the countless family recipes and ripped-out magazine pages I also cook from. Well, suddenly, I learn that October is National Cookbook Month. Perfect time to post a cookbook recipe a day, right? Yeah...if I were prepared. So you'll have to wait for March...National Reading Month...for daily cookbook tidbits.

In the meantime, I'll make another commitment. Every Tuesday will be another installment of "Cooking from Books." Let's get things rolling.

One of my favorite sources for good cookbooks is the discount shelves at Barnes and Noble. That's where I found this one. The World in Bite Size. We entertain a lot, so I'm always looking for new recipes for appetizers, canapes and other nibbles. This one is packed with them. Author Paul Gayler takes us on a world journey of "tapas, mezze and other tasty morsels."

Here's one of the best. I am very familiar with the delicious combo of puff pastry, goat cheese and roasted tomatoes. But, here, black olive-laced oil and a sliver of pear takes it to new levels.

Goat Cheese Tarts with Black Oil
From The World In Bite Size.
Makes twelve tarts.

6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
8 black olives, pitted
12 large cherry tomatoes
1 teaspoon sugar
1 garlic clove, crushed
1/2 teaspoon fresh oregano leaves
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
Olive oil
1 package puff pastry dough
4 ounces fresh goat cheese, cut into twelve pieces
1 small ripe pear, peeled and thinly shaved

Make the black oil by blending the oil and olives in a small blender until the olives are finely chopped and incorporated into the oil.

Preheat the oven to 425°.

Cut the cherry tomatoes in half and place on a foil-lined baking dish. Sprinkle them with the sugar, garlic, oregano, salt, and a drizzle of olive oil.

Place in the oven and roast for 30 minutes. (They should end up soft and wilted, but not mushy.) Remove from the oven and let cool.

Roll out the puff pastry to 1/8 inch thick, then cut out twelve 3-inch circles. Prick each pastry circle with a fork and top with roasted tomatoes.

Transfer to a baking sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes, until the tarts are nearly cooked. Scatter the goat cheese over them and return to the oven for another 2 minutes.

Remove from oven and let cool. Before serving, drizzle with the black oil and top with shavings of the thinly sliced pear.