Autumn Pie- Pears, Figs, Walnuts, Honey and French Goat Cheese

                               Autumn pie- Better than birthday cake!

I love this combination of flavors, lightly sweet, it reminds me of  rugelach or kolacky, and the tastes of Autumn.
I think this would be perfect, with a top layer of crust, shaped into leaves. I serve this like a tart, but I prefer the taste of the pie crust, which is very flaky, and tender. I think, you could use cream cheese, in place of the goat cheese, and it would probably be, just as good.

For the single crust:
1-1/4cups flour
1/4tsp. salt
1stick of real butter-cold ( I have used 1/2cup chilled shortening, in a pinch, worked fine)
4Tbl. ice water

Preparation:
Combine the salt and flour, in a bowl. Cut in the butter with a pastry cutter, until it looks like sand. Add the ice water, combine. It will still look dry, and crumbly, but when you gather it into a ball, it will stick together. Refrigerate 30 minutes. Roll it on a lightly floured surface. transfer it to a pie pan, shape it, and pierce the bottom with a fork a few times.

For the filling:
4 ripe pears-peeled, cored, and diced
6oz. dried figs- chopped
1/4cup chopped walnuts
6oz. goat cheese- crumbled or chopped into small pieces ( The cheese doesn't melt)
1Tbl. honey

Preparation:
Preheat the oven to 375*
Add all ingredients to a bowl, tossing it gently, to combine.
Spoon the filling into the prepared crust, and bake about 1 hour, or until the top is begging to lightly brown.
Serve hot or cold.

         Bake until the crust and the top of the pie is just beginning to brown.