Old Sweetwater

Old Sweetwater

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Brie Cheese




















Quite by accident, we discovered Brie cheese. It's a soft cows' cheese named after the French province, Brie.  We don't eat the "crust" as some do, but the inside....ooooo la-la!

It's great to eat with apples which are in abundance now.  Below is a recipe for a snack that is heavenly. Oh, you can buy Brie nearly anywhere. We found two good brands at Sam's Club. Yes, Sam's. Any other Brie enthusiasts?


Preheat oven to 378 degrees F. Line a good quality baking sheet with parchment paper.

Ingredients:
  • 2 Golden Delicious apples, peeled, cored and cut into bite-size pieces
  • 1 Tablespoon of unsalted butter
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1/8 tsp. ground cardamom (optional)
  • 1 round Brie cheese, 6 to 8 oz. and about 4 1/2  inches wide, slightly chilled
  • 10-inch round of puff pastry dough, rolled out to 1/4-inch thickness
  • 1 egg, beaten with 1 Tbs. water
  • Assorted crackers for serving

Directions: Melt butter in a saute pan. Add apples and cook until apples are tender (5-7 minutes). Add the sugar and cardamom, stir to dissolve and cook until most of the liquid has evaporated, (12-15 minutes more). Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature. 

With a sharp knife, cut the cheese in half horizontally. We don't like the rind, so we take it off first. Use a sharp knife and be patient.  Place one half of the cheese in the center of the puff pastry dough, which is on a lightly floured surface. Evenly spread 1/2 cup of the cooked apples over it. Set other half of cheese on top of apple-covered half and spread 1/2 cup cooked apples over the top.

Fold the dough up over the sides of the two cheese halves topped with apples. Pleat the upper edges to fit snugly around the cheese. Pinch the dough together in the center to seal. Brush the dough with egg and water. Place on the prepared baking sheet.

Bake until the pastry is golden all over and crisp, 40 to 45 minutes. Let it rest for 5 minutes, then transfer to a platter along with a sharp knife and the crackers. Serve any remaining apples alongside the crackers. Serves 6 to 8. Photo below.      Photo and basic recipe is from Williams-Sonoma Kitchen

17 comments:

Kathleen Grace said...

Our family loves Brie! We usually buy a wheel of it around this time of year and have it with our Advent teas every Sunday night, along with fresh fruits and some other appetizers and little treats:>)

Karen said...

If I had the ingredients I would have this in the oven right this minute! For sure I will be trying this recipe very soon. I am curious though about the 378 degrees. Will 375 do?? Not sure my old oven (new one due this week) will be that exact.
I-heart-brie-Karen
Ladybug Creek

Andrea said...

ooooh...yummy!

Blessings and prayers, andrea

Becky Garrison said...

Ohhh, I love brie! Especially with apples, pears, and some nice heavy grain crackers. So good!

Scientific Housewife said...

Sounds great! I might have to try this at my holiday party, thanks :)

Darlene said...

I've never tried it but that recipe sounds delicious.

Pondside said...

I love Brie too - also Camembert. I have another wonderful recipe or two that I'll share if you like. Just let me know.

Bevery @My Sew Sweet Studio said...

Thanks for the recipe, that looks delicious. I saw it on Paula Deen once, but she used Raspberry jam. I like the idea of apples better. Good to serve aroung the holidays.

Vanessa said...

As I sit here reading your post I'm eating manchego cheese. If you haven't tried it it's a MUST!!! It's made with sheeps milk. I love, love, love cheese with a good glass of red wine, YUM!!

Lisa said...

Brie on fresh crusty bread. Just delish!
Lisa x

Sew a Fine Seam said...

We LOVE brie cheese! I'm gonna have to try this recipe. I usually cut the outside rind off but sometimes we eat it. the rind is definitely better if you are heating the cheese we think:)
Merry Christmas!
Jill

Lisa@Pickles and Cheese said...

Mmmm, we love Brie in our house! Yours looks almost too pretty to eat! At a party last year someone served a Brie without the puff pastry and instead she put brown sugar, pecans, butter and dried cranberries and I think some cinnamon over it and baked it. It was delicicous! Love it on slice apples and pears and of course french bread. Thanks for reminding me that I need to make this over the holidays!

Farmgirl Cyn said...

Love Brie....love pretty much any cheese!

Blondie's Journal said...

This sounds delicious, Janean!! And it looks so pretty too. I have a wheel of brie that I was just going to heat up and serve with apples. Now I think I will get your ingredients and do it up nicely!!

xoxo
Jane

Stickhorsecowgirls said...

Oh my goodness! That looks divine--especially that rustic crust! I will definitely be giving this a try! V.

Rita said...

Sounds delicious. I'm going to try it!

Anonymous said...

That looks like a brilliant recipe !!! There are two major towns were the Bries are made : “Melun” and “Meaux”
It is in the surbub of Paris. There is quite a lots of different bries :) old ones, black, blue... They are all different and delicious. The most popular one is from Meaux (white)

I will taste your recipe :) Thanks for sharing :)