Published: 01/08/2019 | Updated: 03/29/2024
This Easy Caramelized Onion, Bacon & Blue Cheese Puff Pastry Tart is the perfect appetizer that comes together quickly! With less than 5 ingredients, it can also be made ahead and is freezer-friendly, so it’s ideal for last-minute company, football games or holiday parties!
I’m always a fan of recipes that taste delicious, but that kind of goes without saying, right?
What I’m also a fan of are recipes that don’t require a lot of prep, can be made ahead of time, and use ingredients that I pretty much always have on-hand.
This recipe for a caramelized onion, bacon, and bleu cheese tart hits all those marks! With under 5 ingredients, this comes together quickly and is super easy… even if you aren’t a master chef.
How to Make an Easy Caramelized Onion, Bacon & Blue Cheese Puff Pastry Tart
I always start by making my bacon first. You don’t have to… but you should! If you make your bacon first, you can then use the bacon drippings to caramelize your onions. There’s no such thing as too much bacon flavor!
I know a lot of people are a fan of baking their bacon in the oven. I’m with you sometimes, but for this recipe, I highly recommend using a cast iron skillet. It’s what you’ll be using to caramelize your onions so you might as well not dirty too many pans if you don’t have to.
You can use a regular skillet to caramelize your onions if you have to, but they will taste different. There’s nothing quite like frying them up in a cast iron skillet. If you don’t have one, you should. They’re inexpensive, they make your food taste better and they’re perfect for one-pan meals since they can go from the stove top to the oven.
But back to this recipe… I used kitchen shears to cut my bacon into 1″ pieces. Add them to a cold cast iron skillet and cook over medium heat until just starting to crisp.
Transfer the bacon pieces to a paper towel. Drain your bacon fat out of the skillet, leaving about 2 tablespoons still in the pan for the onions.
Slice up on your onions and add to the bacon grease. It’s totally up to you how long you let your onions caramelize for. A lot of people let them go for about 15 minutes or so. Just until they turn translucent and start browning.
I like mine much more caramelized than that! In fact, I usually let them fry up over medium heat for about 30-40 minutes. Stir them frequently and make sure you scrape the bottom of the pan to get all those little bits that settle.
While the onions are cooking, I pull the puff pastry sheet out from the freezer. It only needs about 20 minutes to thaw, so don’t pull it out too earlier. You want it as cold as possible but thawed enough that you can unroll it without it cracking.
Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and unroll your thawed puff pastry sheet out. Then just layer your ingredients!
I started with the caramelized onions, added the bacon and then the blue cheese! Leave a small border around the edges so it can crust up into that perfect golden shell.
Freezing Puff Pastry Appetizers
One of my favorite parts of using puff pastry is that you can refreeze it! Even your thawed, uncooked puff pastry can be refrozen after you add your toppings.
Of course, not all toppings can be frozen but these caramelized onion, bacon and blue cheese tarts are perfect to make ahead, freeze and have ready to go for your company!
Just make and assemble your tarts using the instructions above and instead of putting them in the oven, put your cookie sheetcookie sheet into the freezer until it is frozen solid (about 30 minutes to an hour). Then transfer the frozen appetizer to a freezer bag until you’re ready to use it.
On the day you want to make it, remove the frozen puff pastry from the freezer bag and transfer it to a parchment-lined cookie sheet. Allow it to thaw on the cookie sheet for about 30-40 minutes and then follow the recipe for the cooking time!
Looking for more Freezer-friendly recipes
Looking for more freezer-friendly recipes? Check out these recipes that can be easily prepped and frozen. From easy weeknight meals to quick and easy weeknight snacks, these recipes will help you stay on track when it comes to meal planning.
- Make Ahead (Freezer) Buffalo Chicken Dip
- Salami Roll Ups
- How to Zest and Juice a Lemon
- Banana Crumb Muffins
- Pork BBQ Sandwich
- Sausage and Spinach Stuffed Shells
- BBQ Glazed Meatloaf
- Instant Pot Pulled Pork
Caramelized Onion, Bacon & Blue Cheese Tart
Ingredients
- 1 sheet Frozen Puff Pastry
- 2 medium Onions sliced
- 12 slices Bacon
- 4 oz. Blue Cheese
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400.
- Using kitchen shears, cut your bacon into 1" pieces. Add bacon to a cast iron skillet and cook over medium heat until just starting to crisp. Transfer cooked bacon to a paper towel.
- Drain most of the bacon fat out of the skillet, leaving about 2 tablespoons in the pan. Add sliced onions to the pan and cook over medium heat, stirring frequently. Continue cooking until brown and caramelized, anywhere from 15-40 minutes depending on how well done you like your onions.
- While the onions are cooking, line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Remove puff pastry from freezer and place on parchment paper to thaw.
- When onions are done cooking, unroll the puff pastry. Top with caramelized onions, bacon and bleu cheese.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes until the puff pastry is golden brown. Cut into slices and serve!
Notes
In conclusion, the onion bacon tart puff pastry is a delicious and easy to make dish. It is perfect for any occasion, whether it be a casual get together or a formal dinner party. This bacon onion and cheese tart dish is sure to impress your guests and leave them wanting more.
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