It's no contest - my favourite appetizer for Christmas time is baked brie. I adore cheese, and a wheel of brie all goey & yummy right from the oven is at the top of my list! For the last few years, I've made the same recipe, but this year I wanted to try something new. Meet my newest baked brie concoction: cranberry pecan baked brie. And if you want more appetizer recipes for all of your holiday gatherings this year, make sure to slide down to the bottom of this post for more ideas from my blogging friends.
My ultimate favourite combination of toppings for a baked brie cheese is something sweet and something savoury. Usually, I'll do a mix of apricot jam, walnuts and balsamic vinegar, but this time I tried an ingredient that's even more festive - cranberries.
This baked brie wheel is topped with a a mixture of warmed honey, pecans, dried cranberries and balsamic vinegar and it's absolutely delicious!
I happened to have all of the ingredients on hand, but if you don't feel free to sub different nuts or dried fruit to create your own signature baked brie topping.
The first trick when baking a wheel of brie cheese is to slice off the top of the rind so that it's easier to dip into once it's baked.
Then as you bake the cheese in a pie plate for about 15 minutes at 350 degrees F, you can create the simple topping on the stove.
In a saucepan, I mix together ½ cup honey, 2 teaspoon balsamic vinegar, ½ cup pecans and ½ cup dried cranberries. Stir everything on medium heat until it's warm and thick.
Once the topping and the cheese are ready, simply mound the topping onto the baked brie and serve immediately with firm crackers and apple slices.
Here's the recipe to print and share!
- ½ c honey
- 2 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
- ½ cup pecans
- ½ cup dried cranberries
- 1 small wheel brie cheese
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Slice off the top of the brie rind, and place the brie in the center of a pie plate.
- Bake the brie in the oven for 15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, prepare the topping by mixing the honey, vinegar, pecans and cranberries in a small saucepan on the stove top on medium heat.
- Once the topping mixture is warm & thick and the cheese is baked, spoon the topping over the baked brie and serve immediately with firm crackers and apple slices.
Want more Holiday appetizer inspiration? Check out these recipes from my blogging friends!
Goat Cheese Log by Barbara of Hodge:Podge
Cranberry Pecan Baked Brie by Christina of The DIY Mommy
Cheese Fondue Appetizer by Jo-Anna of A Pretty Life
Festive Crostini with Cranberry Compote & Brie by Shauna of Satori Design for Living
Stuffed Mushrooms by Dannyelle of Life is a Party
Olive and Cream Cheese Dip by Beth Ann of The Hunted and Gathered
Loaded BLT Dip by Jen of Kitchen Counter Chronicles
Cranberry Baked Brie by Jenn of Clean & Scentsible
Ritz Pizza Crackers by Shannon of AKA Design
Whipped Goat Cheese and Cranberry Jalapeno Crostini by Kristeena of Motherhood in Stilettos
Jo-Anna Rooney
Mmmmm, my kind of appetizer...baked Brie is really the best. I love the addition of balsamic vinegar...so much yum!
Lindsay - The DIY Mommy
It's our fav too! Can't stop eating it!
barbara
Nothing better than pecans and balsamic vinegar with honey ON cheese! YUM!
Lindsay - The DIY Mommy
Christina couldn't agree more!
Shauna
Can't go wrong with brie, right?! Love the flavour combinations here and your presentation is beautiful too 🙂