Pears with Pistachio Goat Cheese and Fig Butter

           If I haven't mentioned this already, one of my biggest pet peeves is food waste. I hate having to throw away food that has gone bad, it's a waste of money and food that could have been enjoyed! So when I am trying to come up with a last minute snack or meal I usually end up using random ingredients left over in my pantry or fridge. And, most of the time, my creations come out pretty delicious!  
        This time I was trying to come up with a quick appetizer for a family New Years party and had a bunch of pears that needed to be used up. Pears are a great seasonal snack, but I wanted to spice them up a bit and so was born these sweet and savory pear bites!  For something savory I added goat cheese and pistachios and for natural sweetness I used some leftover fig butter. Who says cheese needs to go on crackers anyway? All in all these tasty seasonal snacks are packed with flavor and texture and make a easy appetizer for your next dinner party.
     

Pears with Pistachio Goat Cheese and Fig Butter

Ingredients

• 3 pears, cut into 1/4 inch slices
• 4 ounces goat cheese
• 1/2 cup fig butter
• 1/4 cup pistachios, crushed

Directions:

1. For each pear slice, spread on 1 teaspoon goat cheese, 1 teaspoon fig butter and sprinkle on 1/2  teaspoon pistachios.

If you don't have these ingredients you could substitute another soft cheese (i.e. brie, light cream cheese, or Neufchatel etc.) for goat cheese; apples for pears; apple butter or pumpkin butter for fig butter; and crushed walnuts or pecans for pistachios. Be creative and let me know what you come up with!