Monday, November 14, 2011

Brie and Puff Pastry Bites

I'm a brie freak-a-leak.  It's one of my favorite cheeses and for good reason.  You can eat it plain, or turn it into a savory and sweet masterpiece like the one we have today.  My Mom was in town this weekend and told me about this genius idea of hers.  As soon as she said brie and puff pastry I had my car keys in my hand and was dragging her to the grocery store.  You have to be very careful what you say around me. 


And this is what we made...brie with puff pastry with sour cherry preserves and thinly sliced Granny Smith apples.  Look at all of those flaky layers...you with me or are you with me?


So if you are insane, you can make your own puff pastry.  Or, you can buy it in your grocer's freezer department.  Today, I was sane.  Start with these simple ingredients:

Sour Cherry Preserves (I found mine at Whole Foods)
Roll of Brie Cheese
1 Sheet of Puff Pastry
Granny Smith Apple (impromptu add later)


Lay your thawed puff pastry out and gently press down the seams if anything is sticking up too much.  Now is when you SHOULD perforate your puff pastry dough with a fork but ...we forgot.  See my notes, below.


Cut your brie log width wise, in about 1/2 inch pieces.  Think about how you want to cut and serve this and place brie accordingly.  We wanted to make eight squares so people could easily pick it up and eat it, so we laid it out like this.


I love you brie.  You are so cute, creamy and perfect.  Rind and all.  Awwww, what's that brie?  Cheddar was mean to you?  He's just jealous.


Now, add some of the sour cherry preserves.  You can honestly use whatever you like or have on hand. Raspberry jam, blackberry jam, blueberry jam, toe jam....you get the idea.  My Mom's original recipe called for honey but we decided to switch it up.


After you are done it should look like this.  Pretty, right?  I may or may not have popped one of these in my mouth.  Thank goodness I'm a quick rearranger.


Bake in a 400 degree oven for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown and cheese is bubbly.  Now, see how the puff pastry is huge and blob like?  This could have been avoided by perforating the puff pastry dough with a fork.  No biggy if you forget, it will fall down and be just as wonderful.


See?  It fell down and looked perfect.  No harm, no foul.


This was an impromptu idea.  Cut SUPER thin slices of Granny Smith apple and cut in half.  Sprinkle on top.  You can see the mad genius (Mom) in the background. 


The tartness of the apple cuts through the buttery richness of the puff pastry and brie and balances the sweetness of the preserves.  So delicious.  So tasty.  So pretty. 


Cut and serve.   When I bit into this I actually yelled "Oh my GOD" at the dinner table.  I yelled it so loud I startled my husband and my poor parents.  It was that good.  Go Mom... and stay hungry!

Brie And Puff Pastry Bites Recipe
1 Sheet of Puff Pastry
1 Log of Brie 
1/2 Cup of Sour Cherry Preserves
1/4 of a Large Granny Smith Apple Cut Very Thin

Lay out puff pastry and perforate with a fork.  Cut brie in 1/2 inch rounds and line up on puff pastry.  Add a small dollop of preserves to each brie round with a teaspoon.  Bake in 400 degree oven for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown.  Let cool and add apple slivers on top.  Cut, serve, and listen to your guests enjoy!

1 comment:

  1. You are too cute! We LOVE Brie at our house...I'm pinning this! Thanks for linking up and sharing it!YUMMY!

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