I was making a super fast run to the grocery store between work and a staff meeting last night. I was grabbing a dinner request from the hubby and thought I'd surprise him with a fun "new" dessert. I'd seen this baked brie pin on Pinterest just recently and thought, "Hey! He loves fancy cheeses...and even though this isn't fancy fancy, he'll love it!". I wish.
The Original Pin
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| http://shewearsmanyhats.com/2009/10/another-brie-recipe-baked-brie/ |
Of course, since this was a last minute decision, I didn't have the pin with me (no smart phone or iDevice here), so I went off of memory. I knew I needed Brie so I started there. I found it easy enough, and it even had a similar recipe printed on the package. Perfect! The package called for puff pastry, but I couldn't find any (and I wasn't going to hit another store just for puff pastry). I thought I remembered the pin showing Crescent Roll dough, so I just grabbed the cheap store brand and threw it in the basket. I had everything else at home luckily.
So I get home and excitedly pull out my awesome purchase and I saw the "Oh crap" face hidden behind the smile. I learned he does like fancy cheeses, but he does not like Brie. So much for a fun surprise. Oh well. I tried (luckily I had some cookie dough for him too...so it wasn't a complete flop). I've had Brie before and I liked it, so I decided to just go ahead and give it a try anyway.
I popped open the crescent roll can and the dough a mess. No nice clean cut wedges here. That's what I get for buying the cheapo version. Oh well. So I smushed it all together and rolled it out into a flat circle. I spread our black raspberry jam on it and then I opened up the Brie. I didn't know Brie had a rind/casing on it. We didn't know if we should cut it off or keep it, so we turned to our handy knowledgeable friend, Google. We read that you could do either one and that many think the casing is the best part. So we kept the casing on, plopped it in the middle of the dough, and sealed it up. The directions on the Brie package then had you flip the whole thing over and brush it with whipped egg yolk. So we did.
We slid it into the oven, set the timer for 20 minutes and opened up our new game to pass the time. Finally the timer screeched at us (ours doesn't ding...it yells) and I pulled it out. Not as pretty as the picture...the jam oozed out of both sides...but hey, I sorta expected that.
We let it cool for the recommended 30 minutes and then eagerly cut into it.
The Pinstrosity
It was oozy and it looked like slugs, but it was sure to taste good, right? Not so much. It tasted like mold. I guess we're not Brie casing fans. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't worth eating a whole wheel of. I just can't get past the mold taste. And it wasn't really as pretty as I had hoped it would be (a food that looks like squeezed slugs just isn't my kind of thing).
So I want to experiment with this. First, I want to try baking a smaller one with Brie that we've cut the casing off of. Second, I want to try this with some other cheeses. Cream cheese? Goat Cheese? There's got to be one that won't taste like mold and look like slugs...right?
So that was a flop...but I can say I tried a recipe from Pinterest. That's always a happy thing.
Hmm yeah I would have tried brie prior to doing this because Brie can be pretty darn expensive. It's my favorite kind of cheese though. When I eat it chilled I eat the rind but if I plan to warm it I do so with the rind but scoop the cheese out of it because I'm not fond of the rind heated personally. It think I'll stick with my guilty pleasure of hiding in a closet with a wedge of brie and a box of ritz crackers though. LOL.
ReplyDeleteBe careful cutting the rind off. In my experience the rind is essentially the success of this because holds the melted cheese in and prevents it from oozing out of every opening it can find in the pastry and making a *colossal* mess. I've made this loads of times and it always comes out great. You can add nuts or dried fruit on top of the jam, or use brown sugar and walnuts, yum. If you don't like brie, though, I can't see why you would like this recipe.
ReplyDeleteI actually have better luck with the cheaper crescent dough over the Pillsbury as far as good cuts. Pillsbury has let me down many times. I guess I am just good and grabbing "that" can.
ReplyDeleteI don't think cream cheese would be good. It will melt much easier than the brie and wont set back up. I don't like brie or goat cheese either so I just look at the picture and say it sure Looks yummy, lol
My boyfriend makes this all the time, so I can make a few suggestions...
ReplyDelete- The flavor depends on the brand of the brie!!! Some we've liked, some we haven't. We tried to go fancy the last time and I thought the more expensive cheese tasted awful! I don't know much about cheese, so I think this will probably be to your tastes, but don't give up on brie altogether yet!! I've also never tried taking the rind off, and I wonder if maybe the rind was the problem with our recent attempt with the fancy cheese.
- We've used the store brand of rolls before without a problem, but it's probably a different brand than what you used. I've had issues when the can was too cold and the dough got more... rip prone and less stretchy? Every once in a while we find a can of flat crescent dough (Pilsbury brand) that is made specifically for this kind of thing, and that saves the next step because there aren't any holes.
- When we do use the crescent rolls we rip as suggested by the lines, and then lay them out in sort of a windmill shape with the center pretty solid (press with fingers as needed), plop the brie down in the center, and then wrap the dangly corners around the brie. This gives a pretty flower shape on top.
- We don't spread the jelly directly on the dough! I think this is the big difference. Instead, we slice the brie in half (like a layer cake) and spread the jam in the center. This keeps it contained better I think and mixes with the cheesy goo.
- We've tried all sorts of flavors in the brie. Jam, pesto, homemade bacon jam! It is always the first thing to go at parties and it's SO quick and easy once you get the hang of it.
Hopefully these tips will help!
I've made a similar recipe but with gouda, and using about half as much cheese. I bought the wheel of gouda, and cut it in half horizontally (like a layer cake) then wrapped it with the pastry and baked it. Now I want to try it with brie though!
ReplyDeleteThis is one of my all-time favourite appetizers and is usually a hit with guests. What I do is stick the brie in the freezer so it firms up a bit, cut it in half and spread the apricot preserves over one half, sprinkle chopped walnuts on and put the other half of the cheese on top, then wrap everything in the crescent roll dough. I usually bake it in a brie baker or a round cake pan so the pan catches all of the overflow. It's never been particularly pretty but still yummy!
ReplyDeleteI've never noticed that brie tastes like mold though...
My friends and I JUST made this same thing on Sunday for our book club and it came out great! I've also made it in the past. I think you either got a bad wheel of brie or maybe you just don't like the rind! If you wanted to try brie again all warm and melty, try this tip from Beantown Baker (down the page a bit):
ReplyDeletehttp://www.beantownbaker.com/2012/05/baked-brie-with-grape-balsamic-compote.html
Like someone else suggested, I would pick up a different brand next time! Good luck!
I cut off the casing and fine that helps a ton. I also use frozen puff pastry instead of crescent roll dough. In general, use frozen puff pastry dough (thawed) instead of the crescent roll dough for any of these types of things. Tastes sooooooo much better and it's just as easy to find.
ReplyDeleteI've made this before with Dill havarti - tasty! I use the crescent dough (I usually buy the name brand, but it doesn't matter), put a little 4-6 oz block of the havarti in the middle, and otherwise the recipe is identical. The cheese is a little less of a standout, but it is a fantastic flavor. And I'm a dill fiend, so I coat the dough with dill (dried or fresh) before plopping the dilly cheese into the middle. It does get pretty gooey, but is so tasty.
ReplyDeleteThis is my go-to app for any dinner party! A few tips to make this SPECTACULAR:
ReplyDelete- Cut the brie in half and add some dried fruit and crushed almonds/nuts in the middle. Then mash the two halves back together. :)
- Use sweet raspberry jam. It's just awesome.
- On the outside, brush with butter and then drizzle maple syrup over the whole thing.
- Top it of by sprinkling brown sugar and crushed nuts or oatmeal on the outside
The fruit, nuts, and sugar additions make this a decadent app that is always a hit!
Try using Camembert instead of Brie. The rind is much milder in taste. But, the same as people said before, if you don't like the cheese to being with, you probably won't like the dessert.
ReplyDeleteEveryone is giving you sweet suggestions, so here's my savory one.
ReplyDeleteDEFINITELY cut off the rind! I've used the canned pizza dough with success. I use a little rosemary, and just a pinch of garlic powder sprinkled over the cheese, sometimes garlic salt, but the Lawrys, not store brand. Put a wide straw standing up smack dab in the center of the cheese, and wrap the dough with as tight a seal as you can, then pull out the straw, it gives the cheese a place to breathe. Good luck!
Mmm. goat cheese..
ReplyDeleteBefore I gave up cow dairy (stupid intolerances) I loved doing something similar. I only bought brie when it was "reduced to clear" -meaning a day before the bestbefore date at the supermarket, because then it's ripe and stronger flavoured, I live in Australia so I have idea what a crescent roll is, but Puff pastry comes in biggish frozen squares here, one sheet being the perfect size for wrapping a brie wheel, I would cut my cheese up (casing and all) and mix in "cranberry sauce"(which has a almost jammy texture)and shreds of leftover turkey breastmeat before making the puff pastry case(the case is really just to stop the cheese from ruining the oven tray). bake for 20 minutes and eat with toast. Best Christmas leftovers- I think so.
ReplyDeletebrie is also good left out of the fridge for 15minutes and served with honey, thinly sliced pears, and thinly sliced prosciutto. (my friends would argue Camembert is better for this but I disagree)
Try it with a mild goats cheese and fig jam. Brie and any other washed rind cheese should always have a slight mould smell and taste because that is pretty much the point behind them. I don't think you can get unpasteurised cheese in the US so at least you weren't wasting the real stuff.
ReplyDeleteI agree with foodycat. If you don't like that moldy taste, you won't like brie or camembert with or without the rind. It's an acquired taste, so you might try it more and see if you can get used to it. I have and I love it now!
ReplyDeleteokay, I just made this using the exact same website you did and it was a total pin-win! My oven must cook differently than yours does. My brie stayed nice in it's little crescent roll pouch but it didn't turn out as dark as the original pin. My brie did not ooze out either when I cut it. Maybe 350 was not hot enough? I did cut the casing off and it is delicious! I will definitely be making this again!
ReplyDeleteYeah, I find the casing gross. You should give brie pizza a try sometime. It's my absolute favorite of my mom's recipes. You start with a dough, then add jam and chunks of brie, some fruit and nuts and bake it. It gets all gooey and I think it's amazing.
ReplyDeleteI have made this twice. Actually, the first time, I thought it was going to be a pinstrosity! (Jam oozing out all over, but it was saved once I put it on the plate and disguised it in crackers. The first time I cut the casing off - delicious! The next time I didn't because I was being lazy and it was not so delicious and super chewy. Though I still had problems with the jam oozing out even though I very diligently smooshed the perforated parts of the crescent roll together.
ReplyDeleteTry it with Raclette or Juusta cheese. Raclette is an austrian cheese that's baked with veggies, meats, etc. Juusta is a Danish (I think?) cheese that's usually pan fried or baked with fruit jam. Trader Joe's usually has at least one. They're both stringy, stretchy, gooey melty cheese with a mild flavor that I think would go well with the buttery crescent roll dough. Juusta with pecans, honey and cinnamon is heavenly!
ReplyDeleteI would use cream cheese. I made a cream cheese/crescent roll dessert with nutella based on a pin one time and it's totally on my top 10 list of Best Things I've Ever Put in My Mouth. It set back up just fine and was completely amazing. Although, to be fair, I pretty much worship cream cheese lol
ReplyDeleteI make this all the time and mine comes looking like the picture. The jam does tend to ooze out and burn but otherwise it retains the shape. I use puff pastry sheets though. I think the cheapo crescent rolls probably made a big difference. I didn't even know you could take off the rind part.
ReplyDeletehttp://craft-a-spell.blogspot.com/2013/01/holiday-brie-en-croute.html
Just found your blog, by the way. It's awesome!
I love Bree but HATE the moldy rind so I suggest you try this again but remember Shave the bree.
ReplyDelete