Brie en Croute

For Christmas dinner this year, I wanted to try a bunch of new dishes, having gotten my fill of my favorites at Thanksgiving. So, for a dessert mixed with the cheese course (we live in France, after all) I tried a variation on the baked brie topped with cranberry sauce, wrapped in a flaky pie crust.

This is quite easy to make. I centered a wheel of brie on a pastry crust, then covered it with some cranberry sauce. I folded the rest of the pastry over the sauce and baked it for about 30 minutes at 350°.

This is a rich, rich, rich thing to eat… and I think it would have gone down better had there been more mouths to feed. After all, we were only six, including two little kids and a baby. But it was a delicious idea, and I’m sure I’ll make it again. Only next time, it won’t be after such a rich meal. Instead, this would be the perfect side dish with just with a green salad and grilled chicken breasts.

I’ve also read variations on this dish, like topping the brie with sliced toasted almonds and chopped, cooked chicken breast. Or using apricots (dried or jam) and crumbled bacon. I think there are a variety of ways to serve this, and you could be as creative as you want. Because after all, what’s better than melted brie?

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