Creamy brie cheese wrapped in puff pastry and baked until golden brown: These mini baked brie bites are the easiest, fastest, cheesiest and most delicious way to make any occasion more special! Made with just two ingredients and a couple of tools, these little brie cups are the ultimate crowd pleaser.
Get ready my friends, because I’m about to share with you one of the most delicious appetizer recipes out there!
Baked brie: the perfect holiday appetizer
These mini brie bites are so easy to make ahead, quick to bake, and incredibly delicious. This recipe makes the ultimate holiday appetizer for both ease of preparation and its ability to please a crowd! Try making these during the holiday season as a delicious Thanksgiving appetizer, Christmas appetizer, or for any other special occasion where something warm, cheesy and delicious will be enjoyed.
Growing up, my family always made baked brie for our Christmas Eve charcuterie-style buffet, and it was always a hit!
How to make baked brie
Baked brie is one of the easiest things to make on earth, with just two simple ingredients: brie cheese, and puff pastry. Here’s the process of this easy brie recipe* in a nutshell:
- Unwrap the wheel of brie cheese and remove the rind from the brie, if desired.
- Roll out or unwrap your prepared puff pastry into a 12″ square. Cut the square into 9 equal portions (or 16 for extra small brie puff pastry bites)
- Cut little 1/2-inch chunks from the wheel of brie, and place one chunk into each cut square of pastry.
- Moisten the edges of each square with a bit of water, and pinch the corners and sides together until sealed.
- Set the pastry wrapped brie bites into a lightly greased muffin tin.
- Bake at 375 degrees for about 20 minutes or until golden brown.
*See the full recipe for more detailed notes and instructions!
What kind of pastry to use for mini baked brie
I recommend using puff pastry for this recipe. You can make your own or buy it pre-made (and pre-rolled!) as in this tutorial. I have also made baked brie with croissant dough which is incredibly delicious as well.
Sweet additions to baked brie
Baked brie is often made with some kind of jam spread on top of the brie before it is baked. You can add a little dollop of your favorite preserves to each little brie bite before you wrap it in pastry, or you can serve the jam on the side with some crusty bread or crackers. There is nothing so delicious as a little salty/sweet combo with these melty brie cheese pastries! Try serving your brie with toasted baguette and a drizzle of honey or a smear of your favorite jam for the perfect complement.
What to serve with baked brie
Baked brie is amazing served on its own or with a slice of crusty bread. It also makes a fantastic addition to a charcuterie board, featuring any of the following on the side!
- Apricot jam
- Fig jam
- Cranberry sauce or jam
- Hot pepper jelly
- Honey
- Maple syrup
- Mustard
- Hot mustard
- Honey mustard
- Pretzel sticks
- Any crust bread (baguette, sourdough, etc)
- Bread sticks
- Crackers and/or gluten free crackers
- Apple slices
- Pear slices
- Grapes
- Celementines/mandarin oranges
- Assorted deli meats
- Salami or pepperoni
- Pepperette rods
- Pickles
- Olives
- Artichoke hearts
- Other assorted pickles
- Other assorted cheeses
Baked brie also makes a wonderful appetizer for a hot creamy soup, like cream of broccoli or cream of potato soup.
Do you take the rind off of brie before baking?
That is completely up to your taste; you do not have to, but it is my preference to do so. I don’t like the added texture/flavor of the rind (personally), so for this recipe, I show in the pictures how to remove it.
How to prevent the brie from leaking
You can sometimes purchase whole mini brie rounds that will prevent leaking from taking place if you leave the rind intact. When I make a whole baked brie, I have sometimes left the rind on to prevent leaking, but again – that is up to your preference.
To prevent the cheese from making the brie bites stick to the muffin tin, I recommend lightly greasing the tin with butter before you bake them, and remove the puffs while they are still warm.
How long does baked brie last in the fridge
Baked brie will last in the fridge usually up to 7 days, in my experience; however, the pastry will lose its crisp exterior after the day it is made. Be sure to store leftover baked brie in an airtight container or with a tight plastic wrap covering. If the cheese develops visible mold or a “perfume” aroma, it has spoiled and will need to be discarded.
Can you make these baked brie bites in advance?
Yes, absolutely! Just make sure you bake them fresh on the day you want to serve them.
You can either prep these little brie pockets the day before you want to serve them (and then place the unbaked pan of brie bites into the fridge overnight), or you can prep them, freeze them unbaked, and then bake them fresh on the day you want to serve them. Just be sure to store them in a covered or airtight container until you plan to bake them.
Baking them fresh is important for an optimal baked brie experience!
You will need:
- Ingredients (see recipe card)
- Rolling pin (if using homemade puff pastry)
- Sharp knife
- Muffin tin (or Mini muffin tin)
- Cup
- Pastry brush (optional)
Easy Baked Brie Bites with Puff Pastry
These cheesy pastry bites are the best, easy appetizer!
Ingredients
- 1 wheel* brie cheese *I used a medium sized (550g) wheel, which is more than enough. A small wheel of brie is plenty for this recipe.
- 1 pkg (225g) pre-made puff pastry
Instructions
-
Lightly grease a muffin tin with a little bit of butter. Set aside.
-
Unwrap the pastry and cut it into 9 segments. If using homemade pastry, roll out 225g into a 12" square, and then cut it into 9 segments.
Note: For a mini muffin tin, cut the pastry into 16 segments.
-
Optional: Use the sharp edge of a knife to roughly scrape off the rind of the brie.
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Cut the cheese into little cubes, just big enough to fit into the center of the pastry squares (about 1/2-inch for regular muffin tin size chunks). Set aside 9 (or 16 small for a mini muffin tin) cubes of cheese, and return the rest to the fridge for next time.
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Using the tips of your fingers, brush a little water (just enough to make the edges sticky, not slippery) around the sides of the squares.
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Bring the corners into the center and pinch together, like a {crab} rangoon.
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Place the little pouches into the prepared muffin tin.
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Bake at 375 degrees F for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool for a couple of minutes, remove from pans, and serve warm.
Recipe Notes
To make mini baked brie with jam:
Add a dab of your favorite jam to the centres of each pocket before wrapping them in pastry.
Using a silicone muffin pan:
You can skip buttering the muffin pan if using a silicone pan.
If you like this recipe, you may also like:
That’s it! If you like this recipe, let me know in the comments – or tag me in your festive holiday meal photos on instagram @naomicakesofficial. I love to see that my recipes are being enjoyed!
Bye for now,
Naomi
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These look sooo delicious! You made me hungry for baked brie and crab rangoon all in the same post! I NEED to find a reason to make these!
I've made baked brie plenty of times as a large wheel or wedge as an appitizers but this is soo much better! I'll be trying it soon.
HA as soon as I saw the President's Choice name on the box, I knew I was in Canadian territory, lol. We discovered baked Brie this past weekend during a visit to The Keg, and I wanted to learn how to make it at home. A Pinterest search led me to your pin and blog – I can't wait to try this – thank you for the recipe and the great pics!
Awesome, hope it turns out! I'd love to hear of your success.
Totally easy. Totally delicious. It only took a few minutes to “throw” this together, and the 3 of us ate all 9 puffs before, during and after supper tonight, lol. I'm glad my trial run went so well – now I can make them for a lunch get-together on Sunday with hubby's family 🙂 Next up – learning how to bake it plain to serve with crackers and hot pepper jelly!
Can these be made ahead and stored? Zit so, how do you reheat?
Hi Mary!
You can make these ahead and then freeze them, unbaked. You would need to bake them fresh the day you plan to use them for best results.
Thanks for your comment!
–Naomi
Wow, these were amazing. I used mini bries, so there was no leakage 🙂
[…] it’s going to have to be on our Christmas Eve buffet table this year. You may remember my Miniature Baked Brie from a while ago, in which post I mentioned that I tend to prefer to NOT bake brie with fruit […]