Cranberry And Pecan Brie En Croute Recipes

Steps:

• Put the cheese in the freezer for 10 to 15 minutes to chill.
• Bring the cranberry juice and brown sugar to a boil in a small saucepan and add the cranberries. Turn off the heat and let the cranberries plump for about 10 minutes. Transfer them with a slotted spoon to a bowl, add the pecans, honey and cinnamon and mix together.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Roll one of the sheets of puff pastry thinner with a rolling pin. Place the cheese on the center of the pastry. Top the cheese with the cranberry-nut mixture. Bring the edges of the pastry to the center and press together; brush the edges with the egg wash so they adhere.
• Cut three 1-inch-thick strips from the remaining puff pastry sheet. Cross the first 2 strips on top on the cheese so they intersect in the center like a ribbon wrapping a present. Seal the edges with egg wash. Bring the ends of the third strip of puff pastry up and over to create a bow shape, with the ends hanging down. Place in the center of the cheese and secure with egg wash. Brush the remaining pastry with egg wash.
• Bake until the pastry is light golden brown, tenting it if it begins to brown too much, about 40 minutes. Let rest briefly. Serve with crackers.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Soak dried cranberries in a small bowl of water for one minute so that they are not hard. Lay thawed puff pastry sheet on a cookie sheet. In a small saucepan, melt butter. Stir in pecans and cinnamon and toast for about 3 minutes. Place Brie in the middle of the puff pastry. Place pecan mixture on top of Brie. Place brown sugar on top of pecan mixture. The heat of the pecan mixture will help melt the brown sugar. Drain cranberries. Place them on top of brown sugar. Bring the edges of the puff pastry up and press them together making sure to seal the dough. If you have excess dough you can cut a leaf or decoration to add to the top of the Brie. Using a pastry brush, brush the entire pastry with the beaten egg. Bake for 15-20 minutes in the oven or until the pastry is a golden brown. Serve with crackers or just by the slice.

Steps:

• Score the side of a wheel of brie all the way around with a sharp paring knife. Cut directly on the "equator" through the rind. Using a long piece of string or dental floss, wrap the string around the brie on the newly made cut. Loop one end of the string over the other (a half knot). Then pulling the ends of the string in opposite directions, cut the brie in half.
• Press the dried cranberries on one cut side of the brie, and the walnuts on the other. Quickly put the 2 sides back together with the cranberries on top of the walnuts. Press together and stuff back in any cranberries or walnuts that fell out.
• Roll out a thawed sheet of puff pastry on a floured surface to about 1/8-inch thickness. Place brie in center of pastry. Gently pull up edges to ensure you have enough dough to entirely wrap the brie. You can trim off the corners if there is too much dough. Brush the dough with the egg wash. Fold one edge of the dough over the brie and then the opposite side. Fold over the remaining edges and complexly encase the brie. You can trim off excess pieces of dough, if necessary. Flip the brie over so the seam is at the bottom; gently press in the sides to snug the dough against the brie. Brush the top and sides of the wrapped brie with egg wash.
• If you choose to decorate the brie with cut-out shapes of additional puff pastry, use very cold (almost still frozen) dough to ensure sharp lines. Lightly brush the decorative pieces with egg wash. Place the brie in the freezer for one hour (this is a crucial step; see note below).
• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Place the brie on the prepared baking sheet. Bake on the center rack in preheated oven until it is browned and leaking cheese, about 20 minutes. (Only rarely does the brie not leak through, but 20 to 25 minutes is about how long it takes to melt the cheese and brown the pastry.)