I hope all of my U.S. friends had a wonderful Thanksgiving last week! We were down at the beach with my parents for the holiday and had the BEST time! (You’ll have seen a lot of it if you follow me on Instagram.) We played at the beach (our chocolate lab Dixie loves running around with the other dogs), took the boat out, watched the gorgeous sunsets, did a 5K turkey trot and cooked and ate ALL the food! I also got in some quiet reflection time, painted my fingernails (for the first time in probably a year) and watched as much of the Gilmore Girls reunion release as I possibly could. All good things. Today I’m bringing you another genius recipe from my Aunt Edith. She’s the one behind my slow roasted cherry tomatoes and my quickie crab dip. And more to come. Good eats indeed!
As is this easy microwave baked brie that takes just 1-2 minutes. A serious show-stopper that you can whip out for any holiday party or friendly get together. It’s got the creamy, melty, delicious brie cheese, topped with slightly sweet apricot jam, a sprinkling of earthy fresh thyme and served with crumbled, salty bacon pieces. So much flavor, so many textures, so completely irresistible. And it doesn’t get much faster than this for a hot, cheesy, delicious dip that will have everyone gathered around the table, vying for a turn.
Notes on making easy microwave baked brie:
The recipe below is for a 15 oz. wheel of brie cheese to serve a crowd, but you can use a smaller one if you have fewer people. These photos are of an 8 oz. wheel, which is what I use if we have just 4-6 adults eating it as an appetizer. (Same process but it only needs about a minute in the microwave.) You can skip the bacon if you want this to be vegetarian. It’s still delicious. You can also substitute store-bought bacon bits. (I don’t care for them, but that’s what my aunt’s original recipe calls for.) I like to sprinkle this with extra slivers of dried apricots, but that’s because we ALWAYS have those on hand for snacking. Nature’s candy You can absolutely pop this cheese back in the microwave to rewarm it as the party goes on. In fact, I sent some home with my mom one time and she re-used it days later and said it was fabulous. I love this combination of flavors and highly recommend you try it. But you can also use this method and change out the toppings for the “baked” brie.
You will want to have people pop over uninvited with this little trick in your back pocket. You’ll be that flawless hostess who can whip up a delicious and elegant appetizer at a moment’s notice. And if you think I am that hostess, I’ll nod and smile and hope you don’t wander upstairs to see the piles of clothes outside the laundry room that I washed days ago and haven’t put away yet. Or the pile of the kids shoes and jackets I tossed onto the downstairs closet floor from their normal resting place of ALL over the kitchen. Yup, just another real life person here.
But happy to share this trick so we can all enjoy more time with friends this holiday season and less time worrying about what to make or how to get a delicious appetizer together at the last minute. Enjoy! XO, Kathryn
The recipe below is for a 15 oz. wheel of brie cheese to serve a crowd, but you can use a smaller one if you have fewer people. These photos are of an 8 oz. wheel, which is what I use if we have just 4-6 adults eating it as an appetizer. (Same process but it only needs 50-60 seconds in the microwave.) You can pop this back in the microwave to rewarm it as the party goes on.
