Brie is a soft cheese from France made in the Seine-et-Marne region. Brie cheese can be served warm as a simple appetizer. In addition, it can also be baked in a pastry shell. The savory taste of brie cheese also goes well with a topping made of sweet sauce, fruits and nuts. This article will show you how to make simple grilled brie cheese, and baked brie cheese in a pastry shell, called “brie en croute”.
Ingredients
Ingredients for Making Simple Baked Brie Cheese
- 225 grams of round brie cheese
- 2 to 3 tbsp honey
- Nuts, dried cranberries, rosemary, or thyme (optional)
Ingredients for Making Brie en Croute
- 1 sheet of frozen pastry skin dough, thawed
- 225 grams of round brie cheese
- 2 to 3 tbsp honey
- Nuts, dried cranberries, rosemary, or thyme (optional)
Egg Spread (optional)
- 1 egg, cracked
- 1 tbsp water
Step
Part 1 of 3: Making Simple Baked Brie Cheese
Step 1. Preheat the oven to 177°C
Open the oven and make sure the grill rack is in the center of the oven. Close the oven, turn it on, and set the temperature to 177°C. It will take 5 to 10 minutes to get to the right temperature.
Step 2. Prepare the pan
Place the parchment paper on the baking sheet. If you don't have a baking sheet, you can use a heat-resistant glass or ceramic dish. Make sure the plate is big enough to fit the brie cheese.
Step 3. Choose a soft brie cheese and unwrap it
Choose cheese that is not too ripe or that says “double cream” on the packaging; avoid the "triple cream" type, because it will crumble when baked. You'll need to remove the wrapper if the cheese is wrapped in plastic or paper. Leave the cheese white layer.
Baked brie cheese is usually eaten by cutting it slightly with a knife and then spreading the melted cheese on top of the cookie. You can make dip-baked brie cheese by cutting the white layer on top of the cheese. Leave the side and bottom layers intact; This layer will keep the cheese from melting while baking
Step 4. Pour honey over the cheese
You will need 2 to 3 tablespoons of honey. Make sure the honey is clear and watery. Brie cheese can also be sliced in half, resulting in two thin round cheeses. Spread honey (and any other desired ingredients) over the underside of the cheese. Then cover the top with the remaining cheese-just like making a sandwich.
In addition to honey, you can also use maple syrup, agave syrup, fruit jam, or fig/tin jam
Step 5. Consider adding sprinkles
You can make brie cheese more unique and rich in flavor by adding a few toppings. If the brie cheese is halved, these sprinkles can be placed with honey between the two cheese slices. Put the sprinkles on top of the honey. Here are some suggestions and sprinkle combinations:
- A few sprigs of fresh thyme and a handful of chopped walnuts.
- A few sprigs of fresh rosemary and a handful of chopped walnuts.
- Before placing the brie cheese in the oven, add a little thyme. Sprinkle the chopped figs once the cheese is removed from the oven.
- Replace honey with maple syrup, then add brown sugar, a handful of chopped pecans, and a handful of dried cranberries.
Step 6. Bake the brie cheese
Put the cheese on a baking sheet and put it in the oven. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes. If it feels soft to the touch, it means the cheese is done.
Step 7. Refrigerate for 5 minutes, then serve immediately
Grilled brie cheese is best served warm. You can add other toppings if you only use honey while the cheese is baking-only the topping won't warm up. Favorite toppings include: fresh herbs such as rosemary or thyme, crushed walnuts or pecans, dried cranberries or fruit jam. Brie cheese can be served with pastries or bread. For more serving suggestions, see the “Serving Brie Cheese” section of this article.
Part 2 of 3: Making Brie en Croute
Step 1. Preheat the oven to 190°C
Make sure the grill rack is in the center of the oven. If not, adjust the rack position before the oven is heated. It will take 5 to 10 minutes to reach the desired oven temperature.
Step 2. Prepare the pan
Place the parchment paper on the baking sheet. If you don't have a baking sheet, you can use a heat-resistant glass or ceramic plate instead-just make sure the plate is big enough to hold the cheese.
Step 3. Buy some brie cheese and unwrap it
Choose cheese that is not too ripe, or one that says “double cream” on the package. If the cheese is coated in paper or plastic, open it and remove the wrapper. Leave a white coating on the cheese.
Step 4. Roll out the pastry shell
Sprinkle the surface of the pastry shell with flour before grinding. Lightly sprinkle with flour, and roll out the pastry crust with a dough roller. You want the pastry crust to be 2.5 to 5 centimeters larger than the original.
If the pastry is frozen, then thaw it first. It will take 15 to 20 minutes to defrost. Do not try to spread the frozen pastry shells, or you will crush them
Step 5. Place the cheese in the center of the pastry shell
The pastry crust will be much wider than the cheese, you will need to smooth the edges with a knife. Leave enough pastry shell so that the cheese can be wrapped without pulling the pastry shell.
Do not throw away the remaining pastry shell. You can use a small cookie cutter to cut it out, and place it on top of the cheese once it's wrapped
Step 6. Make and spread the filling over the brie cheese
After selecting the filling you want, spread it over the cheese. Do not spread the filling all over the cheese; Spread the filling up to a distance of 1 cm from the edge. If it's too much, the filling will overflow and tear the pastry shell. The following are suggestions for serving fillings.
- To make a simple sweet filling, you will need raspberry jam or other fruit jam, brown sugar and 56 ml of maple syrup.
- To make sweet and savory brie cheese, you'll need 2 tablespoons of chopped pecans, 30 grams of dried cranberries and 2 tablespoons of honey.
- In addition, you can also fill with brie cheese. Split the cheese into two plates. Press red grapes, thinly sliced and seeded, onto the top of the bottom plate of cheese. Add 1 tsp finely chopped fresh thyme, and tsp finely chopped rosemary over the wine. Cover with the top cheese plate, form a sandwich, and press gently. Wrap the brie cheese in a pastry sheet.
- Cut the cheese in half, and spread the fruit jam on top of one of the cheeses. Put the cheese back together and wrap it using a pastry sheet.
Step 7. Brush the surface of the pastry with egg
Beat 1 egg with 1 tablespoon water in a bowl using a fork. Then, lightly brush the egg mixture onto the surface of the pastry using a brush. This will make it easier for you to glue the pastry while wrapping the cheese. Don't brush the eggs too much, or the dough will become soggy.
Step 8. Wrap the brie cheese in the pastry
Fold the ends of the pastry up to cover the cheese. You can stack them and make little pleats, or you can just collect the ends and twist them like candy wrappers. If you are twisting the dough, tie it with cake twine.
- If you accidentally cut too much of the pastry to cover the cheese, don't pull the pastry. But use the leftover pastry that has been cut to fill the hole.
- To release steam while baking, poke a hole in the top of the pastry with a fork.
Step 9. Brush the top of the pastry with egg
This will make the pastry look shiny. Use a brush and lightly brush the egg on top of the pastry.
Step 10. Decorate the pastry ties
If there are still pastry sheets left, you can shape them with a small cookie cutter. Use whatever shape you want, but the leaf shape will look the best. Stick it on the pastry ties and brush lightly with egg wash.
Step 11. Put the cheese on a baking sheet and put it in the oven
Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until pastry is golden brown.
Step 12. Refrigerate for 5 to 10 minutes, then serve immediately
Grilled brie cheese tastes best when it's warm. You can serve it with pastries or sliced bread as an appetizer. For more serving suggestions, see the “Serving Brie Cheese” section of this article.
Part 3 of 3: Serving Brie Cheese
Step 1. Think of making a simple grilled brie cheese without any additives then add cranberry sauce after baking
Remove the cheese from the oven and spread the crumbly cranberry sauce on top. Bake for 5 minutes. Before serving, garnish the cheese with grated orange zest and a handful of chopped walnuts.
You can replace walnuts with almonds or chopped pecans
Step 2. Add savory or sweet sprinkles
Drizzle the toasted brie cheese with honey or maple syrup, and add toppings such as chopped pecans or walnuts, dried cranberries, sliced almonds, or almonds, you can also spread fruit or cranberry jam on top of the beer cheese.
Step 3. Add a little sweetness with apples, figs, or grapes
Cut apples into small pieces or form wedges, and serve with grilled brie cheese. Sweet, sour, and crunchy apples go well with grilled brie cheese, but you can use any apple. In addition, you can also use figs cut into wedges and then place them on top of the grilled brie cheese before serving. Serve the grilled brie cheese with wine for more color.
Step 4. Serve the grilled brie cheese with crackers
Plain crackers, such as vegetable crackers, are best served with grilled brie cheese, but savory or seasoned crackers can also be used. Use a knife so your guests can spread the cheese over the crackers. You don't need a knife if you make grilled brie cheese for dipping by cutting off the white layer on top of the cheese.
Brie cheese can also be served with sliced bread. Choose bread with a crisp crust, such as French bread, and thinly slice the bread. Avoid using sliced sandwiches
Step 5. Make grilled brie cheese an appetizer for your party
Grilled brie cheese is the perfect appetizer for a winter party. Next time, consider serving it when you plan to host (or attend) Thanksgiving, Christmas, or New Year's dinners.
Step 6. Wrap the remaining cheese back in plastic or wax paper and store in the refrigerator
You can store the cheese in the refrigerator for several days.
Step 7. Reheat the grilled brie cheese if necessary
Make sure the grilled brie cheese is at room temperature if you want to reheat it. Place the brie cheese on a baking sheet and cover with aluminum foil. Place the pan in the oven and set the temperature to 177°C. Bake for 5 to 10 minutes until the cheese is warm.
Tips
- Don't use brie cheese, which is brown in color and has a strong ammonia smell. Both are signs the brie cheese is overcooked.
- Buy only as much cheese as you will use in 2 weeks so it doesn't go bad. Brie cheese is sold in whole circles or in small pieces.
- Don't buy brie cheese, which is hard and shriveled. Hard-textured brie cheese is an immature cheese and will never ripen. Because once the brie cheese is cut, the ripening process stops.
