For day 2 of my “12 Days of Christmas Recipes” we are making whipped feta stuffed pears! These pears are the ideal appetizer for any holiday party. They’ve got whipped feta, hot honey, and pecans, topped with pomegranate and arugula! They’re sweet, spicy, savory, cheesy — they’re everything!
what ingredients do i need for this recipe?
- pears
- feta cheese
- cream cheese
- hot honey
- pecans
- salt & pepper
- pomegranate
- arugula
how do i make hot honey?
I love hot honey. It’s sweet, it’s spicy, it just makes everything better. If you’ve never had hot honey before, you can buy it in most grocery stores, but it’s insanely easy to make at home so you should save your money and make it yourself! To make it, combine honey with your favorite hot sauce (franks or sriracha are my fav for hot honey) and a pinch of red pepper flakes! The nice thing about making hot honey yourself is you can determine how spicy it is by how much hot sauce you add. I have portions listed in the recipe below, but if you want it more spicy, add more hot sauce!
can i prep this dish beforehand?
The holiday season is an extremely busy time, so I understand that it’s nice to prep things before a big party! These pears can’t be fully prepped beforehand, but there a few things you can do ahead of time that will make these easier when it’s time to eat!
The cheese mixture that the pears are stuffed with can be prepped beforehand. Mix together the feta cheese, cream cheese, hot honey, pecans, salt, and pepper. This mixture can be stored in the fridge and will stay good for a couple days. Then, when you’re almost ready to eat, continue the rest of the recipe! Including cooking time, the rest of the recipe will only take 20 minutes.
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whipped feta and hot honey stuffed pears
ingredients
- 3 pears (i like bosc or bartlett)
- 4 oz feta cheese
- 4 oz cream cheese at room temp
- 2 tbsp honey
- 1/2 tsp hot sauce (i like franks or sriracha)
- pinch of red pepper flakes
- 2 tbsp chopped pecans
- pinch of salt and pepper
- 1/4 cup pomegranate seeds
- 1/4 cup arugula
instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375F. To make the hot honey, combine honey, hot sauce, and red pepper flakes in a small bowl. Stir to combine.
- Add feta cheese and cream cheese to a food processor. Pulse until the mixture is smooth. (If you don't have a food processor, you can just mix these together in a bowl. It will be chunkier, but works just fine.)
- Transfer the mixture to a bowl and add 1 tbsp of hot honey and pecans. Stir until combined.
- Slice the pears in half. Carefully cut the core out of each pear half. Using a spoon or a cookie scoop, scoop about 1-2 tbsp of the cheese mixture into each pear core.
- Transfer the filled pears to an oven safe dish. Bake for 15-20 minutes until the pears are soft. Remove from the oven and drizzle remaining hot honey on the pears and top with pomegranate seeds and arugula. Enjoy!
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