Cranberry Brie Bites

5 from 7 votes

Cranberry Brie Bites are easy to make in 15 minutes using 5 simple ingredients. Perfect finger food for a holiday party or appetizer before the main meal, these adorable mini-filled pastries are deliciously sweet and tangy, creamy and crunchy, all at the same time.

Prep Time15

Cook Time15

Total Time30

Course: Appetizer

Cuisine: American

Servings: servings

Calories: 84kcal

Author: Jennifer Fishkind

Ingredients

All-purpose flour for dusting
2 count box frozen puff pastry thawed and refrigerated
8 ounce wheel brie cheese refrigerated
1¼ cups cranberry sauce
⅔ cup walnuts finely chopped
24 fresh thyme leaves

Instructions

Spray two muffin pans with cooking spray and preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. (If you only have one muffin pan, you will need to make this recipe in two batches).
Sprinkle flour on a hard, clean surface and lay one of the sheets on it. Use a rolling pin to roll out the dough into a 10x15 inch rectangle (it is originally 9x9 inches).
Create 12 even squares by cutting the rectangle into three strips lengthwise along the two ready-made folds. Then, cut the squares out by making three cuts, perpendicular to the first cuts, and evenly spread out, to make 12 squares total.
Lightly press each of the squares into the mold of one muffin pan. If you have two muffin pans you can prepare the other puff pastry sheet and muffin pan in the same way. Otherwise, leave the extra pastry in the refrigerator and prepare it after this pan is finished and cooled.
Grab the brie cheese from the refrigerator and cut it into 24 small, bite-size pieces.
Place one piece of brie into each pastry square in the muffin cavity.
Scoop a small spoonful (a little less than 1 Tablespoon) of cranberry sauce onto each of the brie cheese pieces.
Top each muffin cavity with a sprinkle of walnuts and one thyme leaf.
Bake in the oven for 15-18 minutes or until the bites start to bubble and the pastry turns golden brown.
When finished, take out of the oven and let cool for about five minutes. If you need to make two batches, carefully remove the brie bites to use the muffin pan again. Otherwise, plate and serve warm.

Notes

Storage :

To Store: Store your cranberry and cheese bites in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.
To Freeze: You can freeze these bites in a freezer-safe bag or container for up to two months.
To Reheat: To reheat from the fridge, place an bite in the microwave, wrapped in a paper towel, for 20 seconds. Use the oven to reheat from frozen at 350 degrees Fahre

Tips:

Thyme leaves are an excellent addition to these bites and add a beautiful and savory component. However, you generally just want the leaves and not the entire stem of a thyme sprig. If you place the thyme into the oven, like directed, the stem will cook and be easy to eat. But, eating the thyme leaves fresh is also a wonderful option, and if you decide to go that route, you will need to separate the leaves from the stem to make them more edible. You can either use a small paring knife to cut off the leaves or gently pull the leaves from the stem.
My first time using brie cheese, I was shocked at the strange rind on the brie. Your first instinct may be to get this rind off, but you don’t need to worry about it. It will melt and disappear into the rest of the cheese and is completely edible. Just cut up the brie wheel like normal, including the rind.
You can also make these bites much smaller by using a mini muffin pan and slicing each pastry sheet into 24 squares instead of 12. This would make 48 total bites after using both pastry sheets, which means you will need to slice the brie inYto 48 pieces. Use about a ½ Tablespoon of cranberry sauce and a smaller amount of walnuts. You will also need less amount of time in the oven, so check the bites after 12 minutes or so to see if they are finished.

Nutrition