This easy cranberry baked Brie is made with flaky, golden puff pastry, cranberry sauce, chopped nuts, and a wheel of Brie. Serve it this winter as a cheeseboard centerpiece at your next party!
Fall was absolutely beautiful this year.
The trees put on a bright orange, red, and yellow show for us, a final burst of color before the leaves slowly fell away.
Icy winter winds arrived shortly after, blowing away the rest of the once-colorful leaves.
The cold air makes going out (even for fun things) more of a struggle, so when I invite friends or family into my home in winter, I feel compelled to welcome them with the most delicious, decadent food I can think of.
One of those foods is baked Brie in puff pastry.
Eating baked Brie is like getting a hug from a bite of cheese.
Until recently, I've always filled my Brie en croûte with jam, but my friend Jessica gave me another idea. I'd just made some bourbon cranberry sauce, and she told me, "Use it with baked Brie!"
Now, Jessica did not know how much I already adore baked Brie, and that her suggestion immediately had me dreaming of cheese.
I immediately grabbed my favorite Wewalka puff pastry, a wheel of Brie, and started cooking!
This cranberry baked Brie is an extra-easy party food and is perfect as an impressive cheeseboard centerpiece!
Want more cheese recipe ideas? Try this Brie grilled cheese sandwich, apple tartlets (with Brie), goat cheese stuffed mushrooms, blue cheese stuffed mushrooms and marinated feta.
Where Can I Buy Brie?
You should be able to find Brie at your regular grocery store. I've bought Brie at Walmart, Kroger, Trader Joe's-- it's everywhere.
It's usually with the specialty cheeses (not the shredded or sliced cheese), and is generally sold in a round balsa wood container.
This recipe will work perfectly with a standard Brie, but is also delicious (maybe even more delicious?) with a double or triple cream Brie.
Should I Use Homemade or Store-Bought Cranberry Sauce?
I always recommend homemade cranberry sauce, because it's easy and almost always tastes better than store-bought.
This baked Brie is an excellent way to use up leftover homemade cranberry sauce.
But yes, you can also use store-bought sauce or relish in this recipe, and there are some delicious pre-made cranberry sauces out there! Look for whole-berry cranberry sauce not jellied sauce.
Need a cranberry sauce recipe? Try making my Instant Pot bourbon cranberry sauce or pear cranberry sauce.
Can I Make This Cranberry Baked Brie Ahead of Time?
You can prepare it ahead of time, but wait until you're ready to serve before brushing the dough with egg and baking.
This cheesy pastry tastes best right after baking, but in the unlikely event that you've got leftovers, you can enjoy them for a day or two after baking.
How to Make Cranberry Baked Brie
Unroll the puff pastry, and place it on parchment paper on a baking sheet.
Refrigerated puff pastry often comes wrapped in parchment paper, so if you're using refrigerated (instead of frozen) dough you can simply use the paper it came in!
Cut the puff pastry into a large square by trimming off the bottom third of the dough.
Set the Brie in the middle of the puff pastry square.
Add the cranberry sauce and chopped nuts to the Brie, and then wrap the puff pastry up around the Brie.
It's like a little cheese present.
Use your fingers to smooth out the dough, and then brush it with a beaten egg.
If you want to decorate your pastry, use a small cookie cutter (or the lid from a spice jar) to cut shapes out of the leftover dough.
I use these round cookie cutters.
Add the shapes to the dough, and then brush with more egg.
Slide the wrapped cheese into the oven, and bake until the pastry is golden.
Add the cranberry baked Brie to a serving tray along with some fruit and crackers. Slice into the flaky puff pastry right away, and let your guests happily devour this pastry!
Cranberry Baked Brie
Ingredients
- 1 sheet puff pastry
- 8 ounce wheel Brie
- ½ cup cranberry sauce homemade or store-bought whole-berry cranberry sauce
- ¼ cup chopped pecans or walnuts (or both)
- 1 egg, beaten
- To serve: grapes, apple slices, crackers, sliced baguette
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Roll out puff pastry onto the paper. Cut off about ⅓ of the puff pastry (reserve).Note: This recipe was written for tested with refrigerated puff pastry. If using frozen puff pastry, thaw before using and roll out to ¼" thickness.
- Place the wheel of Brie in the middle of the larger piece of puff.
- Top the Brie with cranberry sauce.
- Add nuts.
- Fold the puff around the Brie until it is entirely wrapped, smoothing any seams with your finger.
- Brush the puff with the beaten egg.
- Optionally, cut use a cookie cutter to cut decorative shapes out of the reserved, unused piece of puff. Add the shapes to top of the wrapped Brie, and brush with more beaten egg.Tip: If you don't have a cookie cutter, you can use the lid from a spice jar to cut circles.
- Bake the Brie for 20-25 minutes or until golden. Serve immediately along with fresh fruit, crackers, or sliced baguette.
Gloria says
This is the perfect winter appetizer. I love playing with puff pastry in the kitchen. Both my daughters LOVE Brie, so I know they will be thrilled if I bring this out for an afternoon appetizer at a dinner party!
Melissa says
The perfect appetizer! I love baked Brie. And I need to try that cranberry sauce!
Lisa says
This is the quintessential appetizer -- and one that will get devoured by the revelers in about 30 seconds. Using cranberry sauce is genius, but it's the refrigerated and NOT FROZEN nature of the puff pastry that has my attention. The ease, the convenience -- and HELLO, EUROPEAN STYLE PASTRY. I'm sold. We're having parties next week and this gorgeous brie has made the list of apps! Thank you, Sarah!
Jessica says
Made this and loved it! This baked brie was a hit at the dinner party I went to! I didn’t have cranberry sauce or bits so I improvised- I used a combination of fig jam (the fig seeds added a somewhat nutty crunch!) and a blueberry jam. The wewalka puff pastry was really nice- it had a doughy consistency that was flaky and crisp in the outside! Yummmmm
Sarah Trenalone says
Yay!!! I’m so glad you loved it 😀 Your version sounds delicious- I’ll have to try it with fig and blueberry jam next time!
Annemarie says
Puff pastry is wonderful (though I've never seen a refrigerated one, so I'll have to look for that!) and who can resist it wrapped around a brie? Especially with fresh cranberry sauce on top. Not me! This appetizer will be devoured in minutes when I bring it out.
Sean@Diversivore says
Alright, I have a hard enough time controlling myself around a baked brie, and now you're going to wrap it in puff pastry? What are you trying to do with me?! This is a fantastic recipe - love the way that crumbly, flaky pastry plays against the creamy cheese. Cranberries and pecans (or walnuts - equal love from me) are both classic, delightful partners too - though I'm sure you could explore all kinds of similar combinations with that baked brie/pastry base too. I volunteer to explore any additional recipe experiments. Lol.
Jenni LeBaron says
I LOVE baked brie and completely believe that puff pastry makes everything 100 x more delicious so I am all about his delicious recipe! This would make a tremendous appetizer for a party. However, I might be the girl hoarding the whole dish to myself in a corner!