This baked Brie with roasted apples is warm, gooey, delicious, and easy to make. Served with chunky homemade applesauce, it is a perfect appetizer for you Christmas or Thanksgiving party and is sure to impress your guests at holiday gatherings both formal and informal.
Bries have a range of butterfat content, from 45 percent to 70 percent, and all should be served at room temperature to take advantage of Brie’s inherently creamy nature. A ripe Brie will be slightly oozing out of the center when served at room temperature, and it should be uniformly creamy throughout. It should never have any kind of ammonia smell, which signals that it’s past its prime.
Almost all of the Brie readily found in the United States has a butterfat content of 60 percent. The lower percentages are usually reserved for the unpasteurized versions sold in Europe. Brie with a 70 percent butterfat content is a triple cream style and is richer than the standard Bries. All are delicious.
Baked Brie with Roasted Apples
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 50 minutes
Yield: 20 servings
1 cup Roasted Chunky Apple Sauce, made with Granny Smith apples (recipe follows)
2.2 pounds brie (an 8-inch wheel)
4 French baguettes, cut into 1/2-inch slices
Have the apples roasted and at room temperature.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Slice the Brie in half horizontally. Place the bottom half, cut side up, in a 9-inch deep-dish glass pie plate. Pack the roasted apples over the cheese and put the top half of the cheese back in place, cut side down. Press gently.
Bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until the cheese is melted and beginning to bubble gently. Serve immediately with sliced French bread.
Per serving: Calories 248 (From Fat 135); Fat 15g (Saturated 9g); Cholesterol 50mg; Sodium 359mg; Carbohydrate 19g (Dietary Fiber 1g); Protein 11g.
Roasted Chunky Apple Sauce
This sweet, chunky sauce complements many roasted meats. Try it with ham.
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 45 minutes
Yield: 3 cups
6 medium apples (8 ounces each), such as Cortland or Granny Smith, peeled and cored
1/2 cup apple cider
1/3 cup lightly packed light brown sugar
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Slice the apples into eighths. Toss all the ingredients together in a 15 x 10-inch roasting pan. Roast for about 45 minutes, gently tossing once or twice, until just tender. The apples will be golden brown and will have begun to caramelize. Pay more attention to the caramelization and tenderness, not the roasting time. Drier and older apples might take longer.
Serve warm or refrigerate overnight in an airtight container. Rewarm over low heat on the stove top or in the microwave. May be made one week ahead.
Per serving: Calories 65 (From fat 0); Total fat 0g (Saturated 0g); Cholesterol 0mg; Sodium 3mg; Carbohydrates 17g (Dietary Fiber 1g); Protein 0g.
There’s a difference between cider and apple juice. You could use either, but cider has a fuller, richer flavor.