Description
Savory cranberry brie bread bowl delights guests with its creamy cheese and tangy fruit nestled in a warm, crusty bread base. Cheese lovers and party hosts will appreciate this simple yet elegant appetizer that promises to impress at any gathering.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 round loaf of bread (sourdough or French boule)
- 1 wheel of brie cheese (8–12 oz / 226–340 g)
- ½ cup (120 ml) cranberry sauce (homemade or store-bought)
- 1 tbsp honey or maple syrup
- 1 tsp fresh rosemary or thyme, chopped
- ¼ cup (30 g) chopped pecans or walnuts (optional, for crunch)
- 1 tbsp olive oil or melted butter (for brushing)
- Crackers, apple slices, or toasted bread (for dipping)
Instructions
- Preparation: Select a sturdy round bread loaf with thick walls, ensuring sufficient space for a complete brie wheel.
- Bread Hollowing: Carefully carve out the bread’s interior, creating a smooth cavity for cheese placement, preserving extracted bread chunks for serving accompaniments.
- Interior Conditioning: Brush bread’s inner surfaces with olive oil to promote a golden, crispy texture during baking and enhance overall flavor profile.
- Cheese Placement: Position brie wheel securely within the bread cavity, ensuring precise fit and optimal melting potential.
- Flavor Layering: Spread cranberry sauce across cheese surface, creating a vibrant sweet-tangy foundation that complements the creamy brie.
- Moisture Enhancement: Drizzle honey over cranberry layer, allowing golden streams to interweave and provide additional depth of flavor.
- Textural Complexity: Sprinkle chopped nuts and finely minced fresh herbs to introduce aromatic intrigue and complementary crunch.
- Baking Process: Wrap bread in aluminum foil, protecting surfaces from excessive browning, and bake in preheated oven for 15-20 minutes until cheese becomes luxuriously molten.
- Final Browning: Remove foil during last 5-10 minutes to encourage bread’s exterior to develop a crisp, golden finish.
- Presentation: Garnish with additional fresh herbs and toasted nuts, then serve immediately alongside apple slices and artisan crackers, creating an interactive and indulgent appetizer experience.
Notes
- Select the Right Bread: Choose a sturdy, dense round loaf with thick walls to prevent leaking and provide structural integrity during baking.
- Prevent Soggy Texture: Brush olive oil generously inside the bread cavity to create a moisture barrier, ensuring a crisp and golden interior that won’t become mushy.
- Customize Flavor Profiles: Experiment with different cranberry sauce variations like spiced, orange-infused, or homemade to elevate the dish’s complexity and personal touch.
- Accommodate Dietary Needs: Swap regular brie with dairy-free alternatives or use goat cheese for lactose-sensitive guests, maintaining the recipe’s core essence while expanding its accessibility.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Appetizer, Snacks
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 9
- Calories: 320
- Sugar: 6 g
- Sodium: 450 mg
- Fat: 21 g
- Saturated Fat: 9 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 10 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 27 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 8 g
- Cholesterol: 30 mg