Serve with slices of fresh baguette, and apple, like Honeycrisp or Braeburn. Take a trip through the fancy olive bar at your local grocery store, and you’ve got yourself the perfect appetizer snacks for a party! Hope you enjoy…
Baked Brie with Caramelized Onions
1 large sweet onion, sliced into 1/4" thick rings
1 T Olive Oil
1/4 cup pecans, roughly chopped
2-3 T dried cranberries
2-3 T dried apricots, roughly chopped
Frozen Phyllo Dough, thawed (about 5-7 sheets)
1-2 T Butter, melted
1 largish wheel of Brie Cheese
1. Make the filling: Caramelize the onions by heating the oil in a large pan over medium high heat, then add the onions. Cook, stirring somewhat frequently, until very soft and golden brown, about 20-30 minutes. Add the nuts and dried fruit and cook for another 10 minutes until mixture is toasty, and fully caramelized. You may season with some salt and pepper, but I find it tastes wonderful as is. You might like adding a tad bit of balsamic vinegar.
2. Prepare the dough: Slice the wheel of brie horizontally in half; set aside. Carefully unroll the sheets of phyllo dough, set one sheet on your work surface and immediately cover the rest with a damp tea towel to prevent it from drying out. Lightly brush the sheet with melted butter, then lay another sheet on top, angled clockwise from the first sheet. Smooth together with your hand, then brush with more melted butter. Keep adding layers, at an angle, with melted butter inbetween, so you have 5-7 layers of dough loosely making a circle.
3. Assemble the cheese: Lay the bottom round of cheese in the center of the dough, rind side down. Generously pile on some of the filling on top of the cheese. Lay the remaining half of cheese on top, cut side down, then generously pile on more filling on top. (You’ll have some filling leftover, good to eat with cooked chicken, pork, or beef!) Bring a corner of the dough up over the cheese, and brush with some melted butter. Keep bringing up more of the dough, all the way around, brushing with butter, until the cheese is completely and nicely covered with the dough.
4. Set cheese on a baking sheet, and bake on the middle rack in the oven preheated to 350 for about 25-30 minutes, or until golden and fragrant. Soooooooo yummy!