Mini Baked Brie with Cranberry Mustard Sauce

These mini baked brie appetizers are a simple way to indulge in some ooey gooey brie with a bright pop of flavor. Bites of brie baked with tomato jam in a bit of puff pastry.

Friends, when you’re up to some fancy party planning, keep a few easy recipes up your sleeve. Keeping it simple on the appetizer side, like mini baked brie or delicata parmesan crisps , means if anything goes wrong with your epic dinner at least you can have these up and ready in a good 25 minutes. Plus mini baked brie appetizers are so creamy and indulgent. That velvety rich brie with the sweetness of garam masala spiced tomato jam wrapped in golden puff pastry crunch. So indulgent.

I’d say it’s the perfect addition to POP KITCHEN’S dream Thanksgiving menu. Check out what I have so far…

POP KITCHEN’S THANKSGIVING DREAM MENU

Salad: Shaved Brussels Sprout and Butternut Squash Salad

Vegetable: Autumn Ratatouille with Cauliflower Ricotta Béchamel

Starter #1: Delicata Parmesan Crisps

Starter #2: Mini Baked Brie!

Next week, dessert …

MINI BAKED BRIE

Traditionally, a baked brie is an entire wheel of brie wrapped in a whole sheet of puff pastry and baked. Guests cut off a chunk of the brie en crout, cheese pull to follow. While it’s an eye catching show stopper, it’s kind of messy and annoying to eat. Making individual mini baked brie appetizers gives your guests the gooeyness of brie all in a neat, self contained pocket.

By simply cutting up the puff pastry and brie and folding each individual brie you get the same bang for your buck that is more convenient for your guest. I used my homemade garam masala tomato jam to add sweetness and those autumn spices but you could also use a pre-made fig jam, apple butter, pear jam, or quince jam.

Brush the edges of the puff pastry with an egg wash (an egg mixed with a bit of milk) and fold up the corners of the puff pastry so they are all touching. The puff pastry may open a bit while baking but this is more than alright. The point is to create a small nest for the brie to melt in. Hallelujah! Brie heaven.

Cranberry Mustard Sauce

I really wanted to put some cranberries in these mini baked brie appetizers. It would have been the perfect little pop of tartness. Only there is not enough room in these little pockets for a few cranberries. They are stuffed to the max. Instead, I created this naturally sweetened cranberry mustard sauce. It’s not overly sweet, has all that cranberry tang, and gets a bit of a punch from some grainy mustard. It’s the perfect compliment to melty brie and those autumn cinnamon and nutmeg spices. Bonus! It takes about 5 minutes to make.

POP KITCHEN THANKSGIVING

Friends, I have been up to my elbows in Thanksgiving. While I have been so grateful for blogger Smitten Kitchen and Saveur magazine in the past, I am really stoked to put my own spin on Thanksgiving. I have so many great ideas coming your way to share with friends and family over the Thanksgiving holiday. Stay tuned or subscribe here to keep up to date with POP KITCHEN’S dream Thanksgiving dinner menu.

Recipe

Mini Baked Brie Appetizers with Cranberry Mustard Sauce

Ingredients

• 1 box frozen puff pastry, thawed and cut into 2x2 inch (5x5 cm) squares (let it sit out at room temperature for 40 minutes before unfolding and cutting)
• 1 wheel brie cheese, cut into ¾ inch x ¾ inch (2x2 cm) cubes
• ½ cup autumn jam such as my garam masala tomato jam, pear or fig jam or apple butter
• 1 egg
• 2 Tbsp milk
• A pastry brush or small, clean paintbrush
• Parchment paper
• 1 cup fresh cranberries, rinsed
• 2 tbsp maple syrup
• ½ cup apple cider +1-2 tbsp for thinning out (if this is not around the house you can also use water and just add a little more maple syrup (1-2 tsps).
• 3 Tbsp grainy mustard or dijon
• Pinch of sea salt

Instructions

1. You can fold up your baked bries and keep them in the fridge for up to 12 hours before you are ready to bake them. If your guests are arriving soon, heat your oven to 400 F/200 C/6 gas.
2. MINI BAKED BRIES: First, line two baking sheets with parchment paper or a silpat. You can also use tin foil with a bit of cooking spray on top. Place your cut puff pastry on the parchment paper about 1 inch/2.5 cm apart. Scoop 1 tsp of jam into the middle of each piece of dough. Then place a cube of brie on top of the jam. Whisk together an egg and the milk and brush all four edges of the dough. Fold one corner up into the middle of the square on top of the piece of brie. Next fold the corner opposite that and stretch it over the corner just previously folded and press to make sure it sticks. Continue with the other corners so that all corners overlap in the middle, the last corner stretching over top of them all. Do this with each bit of dough and brie. Just before baking brush the tops of each dough bundle with more egg wash. Cook in the oven for 15-17 minutes or until the puff pastry is golden brown and the cheese melty.
3. CRANBERRY SAUCE: In a small sauce pan, combine the cranberries, maple syrup, salt, and apple cider and bring to a boil. Let the cranberries simmer and cook down for about 5-7 minutes, mashing them as they go. The cranberries should be broken down into a thick paste. Place this paste in the blender with the mustard and puree until smooth. If it is extra thick, add 1-2 more tablespoons of apple cider or water until it resembles the thickness of a dipping sauce rather than a jam. Serve warm or cold with the freshly baked mini brie appetizers.