Introducing the world’s easiest party starter – Baked Brie! This is how how you transform a good value brie into a spectacular brie. It’s like the best cheese dip you will ever have!! An excellent option for a shared entree or party food that’s super quick and easy to prepare that has wow factor.
Serve with crostini or crackers (try these homemade fruit & nut crackers!).
Baked Brie
Baked Brie is, quite simply, the best melted cheese in the world. When you cut through the rind and the inside comes pouring out like lava, you’ll forget all your troubles. It’s like cheese-aholic heaven!
But cheese addiction aside, here’s the practical reason why Baked Brie needs to be on your radar:
It’s the world’s easiest appetiser / party starter!
Just pop a brie in the oven for 15 minutes, or microwave it for 2 minutes. Plonk on a platter, add a mound of crispy crackers and watch the hands dive in to do THIS:
And keep pulling up and up….. LOOK AT THIS CHEESE PULL!!!
How to make Baked Brie
I wasn’t exaggerating when I said you just plonk a brie in the oven. But here’s a practical visual for how to make it.
What to bake it in – use a round, shallow oven proof dish that’s a bit larger than the brie for baking and serving if you have one. It needs to be shallow, otherwise it’s hard to dip/scoop without touching the hot dish; OR
Place the brie on crumpled paper – this is what I do.This serves 2 purposes:
safest way to transfer – Baked Brie is wobbly and delicate, and it would be a tragedy if that Baked Brie burst open mid transfer……
the crumpled paper helps stop the brie from oozing out all over the table. Melted brie just needs a little bit of coaxing to stop it from running everywhere!
Baked Brie Practical Tips!
Best Brie for Baked Brie – Use an economical brie or camembert! Expensive brie would be wasted on this recipe, in my opinion, though it does work just as well with top end as it does budget brie.
How long it stays gooey – in a ceramic dish, it will stay scoopable for a good 15 minutes or so. On paper, around 10 minutes, then for another 10 minutes or so you can smear it on with a knife.
How to reheat – seconds in the microwave! A whole brie takes 2 minutes in the microwave, so use that as a baseline for leftover brie.
Leftovers – AMAZING! The honey / maple syrup will be mixed through when the cheese hardens and it just makes it all the more delicious. Who cares if you have to scrape up the dregs and pop into a small ramekin? OR pile it onto toast and grill! *She swoons at the thought*
Baked Brie is how you get gourmet flavour using a good value brie!
What goes with Baked Brie
Baked Brie is best served with sturdy crackers for scooping up the molten cheese – avoid chips and those wafer thin crackers for serving with cheese as they aren’t strong enough.
And while brie is rich enough and the cheese itself is flavoured enough so that even a plain Baked Brie is amazing, a simple (generous!) drizzle of honey or maple syrup certainly wouldn’t go astray. Sweet honey and the rich, savoury brie goes brilliantly and adds another dimension that takes it from OMG this is sooooo goooood!
Add a a simple bunch of grapes to the serving platter (fruit + cheese is classic, plus just looks good!), and your impressive easy appetiser is complete and ready to wow your family and friends!
“When you cut through the rind, the inside comes pouring out like lava. It’s like the best cheese fondue you will ever have.”
What did that take? All of 2 minutes effort on your part. Unwrap the brie, bake or microwave it. Open packet of crispy toasted bread (or make your own), plonk a bunch of grapes on the side. And voila! Your party starter is ready to impress your family and friends.
Make this once, then come join me at Cheese-aholics Anonymous! – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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Baked Brie
Ingredients
- 250 – 500g / 8 – 16 oz round brie or camembert (good value is fine! Note 1)
- 2 tbsp honey or maple syrup (optional)
- 1 thyme sprig (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F (all oven types).
- Unwrap brie and place in a small, shallow ovenproof dish slightly larger than the brie (to be used for serving) OR a piece of crumbled baking / parchment paper (for transference). (Note 2)
- Oven: Bake for 15 to 20 minutes (for 250g/80z), or until melted through. For 500g/1lb brie, increase to 25 minutes. To check, gently touch the centre of the brie – it should feel very soft, like it is about to collapse if you press any harder.
- Microwave option: 2 minutes on high (no one will know!) in 30 second increments.
- Carefully transfer to serving plate / board – it's delicate (transfer on paper if you used paper).
- Drizzle with honey, top with sprig of thyme (if using).
- Serve immediately with crostini on the side for scooping. Provide a knife to cut through the rind and a cheese or pate knife (or similar) to scoop cheese up onto crostini or crackers (plain or fruit/nut flavoured).
Recipe Notes:
- very shallow bowl or curved plate – the shape of which will hold the cheese in (ovenproof if baking, microwave proof if microwaving ie most normal dinner plates fine); OR
- bake on crumbled paper per recipe directions – the paper makes it easy to transfer the Brie to a serving platter (Baked Brie is delicate and wobbly like jelly, and if it bursts you will cry). Plus by crumpling it, it actually (mostly) stops the cheese from oozing out onto the table (but really, you won’t be short of willing participants to dash forward and scoop up brie that’s oozing dangerously close to the edge of the serving platter!)
Nutrition Information:
Originally published November 2014, updated with new photos and recipe video in October 2019, refreshed again in 2021. No change to recipe!
Life of Dozer
When the treat jar is so close…yet so far… (and so empty…?)
Looks so delicious and very “cheesy” 🙂 I love this baked brie and will definitely try it! What a coincidence I’m making a different kind of brie appetizer for Thanksgiving tomorrow, if it turned out ok, I’ll share the recipe! Pinning these beautiful pictures 🙂
Oh cool Mira! Looking forward to seeing how you do brie!! 🙂
Oh my, that looks fabulous! I love the buttery, sweet and herbal combination!
Thanks Marissa! You know, even without any extra flavourings at all, baked brie is still AMAZING!