Give Your Next Flatbread A Sweet And Savory Upgrade With Bacon And Pear

Sometimes unconventional toppings for flatbread and pizza end up as the most delicious combination of flavors and textures. Sure, there are reasons why we put pepperoni on pizza and why more traditional recipes like artichoke tomato pesto flatbread are delicious, but unexpected topping pairings can elevate a dish while giving our taste buds a new sensation. That's the case when you combine bacon and pear on a flatbread, providing a perfect balance of sweet and savory flavors.

Bacon pieces and pear slices might not seem like they work together, but it's all about the combination of sweet and salty foods. The reasons why sweet and salty foods work together are to do with how salt enhances flavors and because our bodies naturally crave both salt and sugar. The bacon offers salty umami while the pears bring fruity sweetness. There's a happy mix of textures, too, with the crunch of the bacon contrasting with the soft pears for a textural difference in every bite. It's why the two complement each other well in Tasting Table's bacony pear and brie flatbread from recipe developer Katie Rosenhouse, whose recipe also integrates brie, fig jam, fresh arugula, and balsamic glaze.

Read more: The Best Meat For Your Charcuterie Board Isn't One You'd Expect

Pick A Cheese To Complete The Bacon And Pear Flatbread

Even with bacon and pear, the flatbread still needs the help of cheese to complete the dish. We suggest one of either brie, blue cheese, mozzarella, or goat cheese, which all provide an excellent match. In her recipe, Rosehouse uses 4 ounces of brie. The soft cheese works well because it's creamy, buttery, and slightly salty which harmonizes with the bacon and contrasts with the pear slices. The cheese is best warm and ripe if you want to serve brie like an expert, and when heated melts into a gooey dream, so it will be delicious on the flatbread straight out of the oven. Blue cheese's pungent flavor pairs famously well with fruits like pears so use that instead if you love a blue-cheese flavor. Fresh goat cheese or mozzarella are also great options for this sweet and savory flatbread.

To get more crunch on the flatbread, add candied walnuts to lean into the sweetness with some nuttiness. Other toppings that pair well with the two main ones are fig slices, roasted beets, caramelized onions, shallots, or roasted Brussels sprouts. For a similar flavor profile with a different meat, swap the bacon for diced pancetta or prosciutto. Finish off the flatbread with a balsamic glaze like Rosehouse suggests, or use a drizzle of honey or maple syrup to balance this bacon and pear flatbread.

Read the original article on Tasting Table.