Divine Baked Brie
Alyson Stringer (originally from Elizabeth Maddeaux)
I’m warning you now, this may be the most heavenly thing you’ll ever put in your mouth — it is absolutely divine! My friend Liz made this at our lakehouse for a gathering of some camp friends and once we started nibbling on it, we giggled uncontrollably because it was THAT good. We could NOT stop eating it and resorted to begging each other to take it away! (Nov 2010)
2 pears, peeled, cored
1 cup dried cranberries
1 Tbsp butter
3 Tbsp brown sugar
1/4 cup walnuts, chopped (optional)
1 sheet frozen prepared puff pastry, 11 x 17 inches, defrosted
1 wheel brie cheese, about 5-inches round
1 egg yolk
1 cup dried cranberries
1 Tbsp butter
3 Tbsp brown sugar
1/4 cup walnuts, chopped (optional)
1 sheet frozen prepared puff pastry, 11 x 17 inches, defrosted
1 wheel brie cheese, about 5-inches round
1 egg yolk
Chop or slice the pears into bite-sized pieces. Sauté with butter, sugar, cranberries and walnuts until soft. Set aside.
Slice the cheese in half so that you have 2 skinny wheels (not two half moons!). Unfold the puff pastry and place one wheel in the center with the cut side facing up. Top this with the pear mixture. Place the second wheel on top with the cut side facing down. Gather the pastry up around the cheese and pinch the edges to hold it in place. Make sure there are no gaps for the cheese to escape.
Flip the whole thing upside down and place in your baking dish so that the smooth side of the pastry is now on top. (A large glass pie dish works well and can be do double duty as serving dish as well.) Brush the top and sides with a mixture of the egg yolk and 2 Tbsp water.
Bake at 350˚F for 30 minutes, or until the pastry is browned. Let it cool for at least 10 minutes before serving to allow the cheese to settle. If you cut it too soon it will be a mess, but it will still taste like heaven.
This recipe has endless possibilities! In place of the cranberries, walnuts and pears, you could try a variety of combinations. Here are a few suggestions:
Fresh peaches, 1 tsp cinnamon, almonds and 1⁄2 tsp almond extract; or,
Fresh raspberries, raspberry jam and almonds; or,
Fresh apple, 1 tsp cinnamon, walnuts and dried cranberries; or,
Dried apricots, apricot jam, almonds and dried cranberries.
Fresh peaches, 1 tsp cinnamon, almonds and 1⁄2 tsp almond extract; or,
Fresh raspberries, raspberry jam and almonds; or,
Fresh apple, 1 tsp cinnamon, walnuts and dried cranberries; or,
Dried apricots, apricot jam, almonds and dried cranberries.