Baked Brie with Dried Cherries and Toasted Almonds

Every once in awhile I make something that I am particularly proud of. Something that just turns out so right that I even surprise myself. That was the case when I made this Baked Brie. Not only did it look beautiful, but it was cooked to perfection. That doesn't happen to me all that often. My food usually tastes pretty good, but it rarely is pretty.

Joey and I have not had guests over since Christmas so when we planned afternoon cocktails and game night with Kevin and Karolyn I really wanted to make something special. I knew what our entree would be, Island Pork Tenderloin Salad, since Kevin had seen it on my blog and requested it. What, though, would I make for appetizers? I had made baked brie before with dismal results. Either the cheese came screaming out of the puff pastry or it stubbornly refused to soften. In either case it was a disaster.

Joey kept bring home rounds of brie, which was a sure hint that he wanted me to master this, so after and exhaustive search online I finally found a recipe I thought would work. Oh my goodness! JACKPOT! This is the perfect baked brie recipe. I found it on Food Network and it had five stars out of 45 reviews. The recipe is courtesy of Jill Davie. I have no idea who she is, but bless her! This baked brie turned out perfectly from the flackly crust to the ooey gooey goodness of the brie. The dried cherries, toasted almonds and brown sugar were the perfect filling. I even decorated the darn thing and it looked oh-so fancy. You MUST try this recipe. It is as delicious as it is beautiful.

Ingredients

• 1 (7 to 8-inch) wheel brie cheese
• 1/4 cup dried cherries
• 1/4 cup sliced toasted almonds
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 2 sheets (12 by 18-inch) puff pastry
• 2 eggs, beaten

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400° F.
2. Remove puff pastry from package and thaw on table (at least 1 hour)
3. Using a warmed sharp knife, or unflavored dental floss cut the wheel of brie in half horizontally and separate the top half of the wheel from the bottom half.
4. Toast almond over medium heat until golden brown.
5. Sprinkle the bottom half of the brie with the dried cherries, toasted almonds, and brown sugar.
6. Replace the top half of the brie and apply pressure to secure the stuffing.
7. Working on a well-floured surface, roll out the puff pastry so that it will fully cover the brie. (Don't roll it out too much, just enough.)
8. Place the brie in the middle of the puff pastry and fold the excess pastry around the wheel.
9. Put the wheel aside.
10. Roll out another piece of puff pastry and cut out a circle the same circumference as the top of the brie. (If the pastry comes in a round box, just use that as a guide.)
11. Save the trimmings for decorations.
12. Using a pastry brush, brush the egg on top of the brie in the puff pastry and place the circle on top.
13. Brush the top of the circle and and sides with egg.
14. Cut out decorations using cookie cutters or a small knife and place on top of brie. (I did little leaves and made twists around the circle and a twist cross through the middle.)
15. Brush the entire top side of the brie with the egg and place the brie on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper.
16. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes or until the pastry begins to turn golden brown.
17. Turn the temperature down to 325° F and bake for another 20 minutes.
18. Remove from oven and let sit about 5 minutes
19. Place brie and serving dish and serve with sliced baguette or crackers.

Notes

I think the key to this is the higher temperature at first then lowering the temperature. I actually started this way too early so I lowered the temperature to about 250°, opened the oven door to cool it down and then baked it about 30 minutes more. Perfection!