Apple Walnut Gorgonzola Rustic Tart

Easy to make savory rustic tart with Granny Smith apples, walnuts, maple syrup, thyme and gorgonzola cheese

Apple Walnut Gorgonzola Rustic Tart
Elise Bauer

Every fall we are blessed with a bounty of apples and walnuts. I grew up in what used to be a walnut orchard.

At one time our home had 5 huge trees, covering both front and back yards, and yielding 500 pounds of walnuts a year (which sounds great unless you are the teenager forced into spending your afternoons and weekends raking mountains of dank leaves and stooping to pick those hundreds of pounds of nuts.)

The trees are old now. We've lost 3 of the 5 trees (commercial orchard trees don't last forever and these were planted at least 50 years ago), and the remaining trees are just sputtering. It's only a matter of time before they're gone too.

So we enjoy the bounty while we have it (and leave a bunch for the crows and squirrels.)

Apple Walnut Gorgonzola Rustic Tart
Elise Bauer

This tart is a riff on an apple walnut turnover I made this summer. Same idea, an outstanding combination by the way, just this time with maple syrup instead of honey, and in a dead-easy-to-assemble rustic tart form.

It's savory, and a little sweet. I ate a big slice for lunch; my father had his for dessert. Would be great for a brunch too.

For more information on which apple varieties are best for baking, check out our Guide to Apples.

Apple Walnut Gorgonzola Rustic Tart

Prep Time 15 mins
Cook Time 45 mins
Total Time 60 mins
Servings 6 to 8 servings

Ingredients

  • 1 Pâte Brisée (tart dough) for a 10-inch tart (see all butter crust recipe) or 1 packaged, flat pie crust

  • 1/2 cup walnuts, chopped

  • 1/4 cup crumbled gorgonzola cheese (or blue cheese)

  • 1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped, or 1/2 teaspoon dried

  • 2 tablespoons maple syrup

  • 2 large Granny Smith apples (or other good cooking apples such as jonagold or fuji), peeled, cored, chopped

  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice (optional)

Method

  1. Toss the walnuts, gorgonzola, thyme, chopped apples, and maple syrup together in a medium size bowl:

    As you are working with the apples (chopping them, mixing them in with the other ingredients), if you want, you can squeeze a little lemon juice on them to help keep them from discoloring.

    Cover the mixture with plastic wrap while you prepare the crust.

  2. Roll out the dough:

    Preheat oven to 350°F. Roll out pastry dough to 13-inches, at an 1/8 of an inch thickness. Place pastry dough on a rimmed baking sheet. (Rimmed because the pastry will leak butter during the cooking process.)

  3. Add filling, pleat dough around edge:

    Mound the filling in the middle of the rolled out dough, and spread out evenly to 1 1/2 inches to 2 inches from the edge of the dough.

    Pleat the edges of the dough over the filling.

    Elise Bauer
    Elise Bauer
  4. Bake:

    Bake at 350°F for 45 minutes to an hour, until crust is nicely browned. If at any time it looks like the walnuts are getting a little burnt, you can lightly tent a piece of aluminum foil over the center.

    Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes before serving. A pizza wheel works great for slicing up the tart.

Apple Walnut Gorgonzola Rustic Tart
Elise Bauer
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
303 Calories
17g Fat
33g Carbs
5g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 6 to 8
Amount per serving
Calories 303
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 17g 22%
Saturated Fat 5g 24%
Cholesterol 3mg 1%
Sodium 230mg 10%
Total Carbohydrate 33g 12%
Dietary Fiber 3g 12%
Total Sugars 10g
Protein 5g
Vitamin C 1mg 3%
Calcium 47mg 4%
Iron 1mg 8%
Potassium 163mg 3%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. In cases where multiple ingredient alternatives are given, the first listed is calculated for nutrition. Garnishes and optional ingredients are not included.