Cooking with Brie

Warm it, gently(!), and serve with any assortment of fruits. I like sliced pears and a smear of lingonberries or raspberry coulis (glorified raspberry jelly... kind of).
Also try dredging it in flour, egg wash and then almonds and bake until oooey-goooey. Or omit the almonds and use fresh bread crumbs and pan fry it.
When I had chunks left over from catered events that had cheese boards, I would remove the skin from the brie and melt it into a maccaronni 'n cheese sauce. Yum!
For parties, buy a whole wheel and wrap it (with care) in phyllo and bake, tucking some fruit preserves between the layers of dough. Serve with crisps or other hard cracker. Swedish flatbreads are great with brie... look for them in a high-end groccery store or ethnic market.
Most importantly, I can't think of any time when you want to serve brie cooler than room temperature. Most cheeses, if not all, develop their flavors at room temperature and slightly above.
Hope this helps!

Not exactly low cal but...

...Wrap it in phyllo dough after studding it with walnuts and cinnamon. Bake. Let it rest at least 20 minutes or the cheese will still be liquid and come oozing out of the pastry casing.

I love brie on a great sandwich like smoked turkey, sun dried tomatoes, lettuce and brie on a real semolina roll.

Luscious suggestions. Hip builders all.

Shawtycat, Just remember if you intend to just use it on crackers it should be ripe to be really good. If you're limited to supermarkets you may not be able to find it. A good cheesemonger would have it. It should be at room temperature when serving

I tend to buy it a few days early and sometimes leave it out overnight (my house is cool) to hasten the ripening. I like it a bit oozy.

That is a unique way to describe it. I am wondering, however, about that "blue" you speak of. Did you pick up Brie or saga blue? I can't recall brie with anything blue in/on it. It should be creamy white/off white with a fuzzy 'skin'.

Geez Jim,

Is that the brie that ate manhatten?

IMHO,

Like Alexia said...go to a cheese house, buy the best you can, be sure to buy it ripe, let it rest an hour or more at room temp.

Relax, slice some pears, maybe some procuitto...some good olives and quality bread.

A glass (or more) of a nice herbal, softed oaked white wine and thats all you need.

Shawty cat, try to enjoy a fine brie as it was intended to be enjoyed. with very little fuss
cc

Dear Shawty Cat:

Relax. (We don't want that new little one to pop out too soon.) Cheese is just another food, and should be enjoyed, not cause for alarm.

What gets sold in the supermarket as "brie" can range from the real thing (food for the gods) down to, yes, pencil-erasers. the hallmarks of a good brie are just as Jim and everyone else said:
-- Ripe, which means on the soft side, maybe a little oozy, but not totally liquid. It also means having a slightly pungent smell, but definitely NOT smelling like ammonia!
-- Pale to light golden yellow on the inside, with a white slightly (only slightly!) fuzzy skin on the outside. That skin is edible. If it is grayish, the inside is probably over-ripe (ammonia alert!) and you don't want to eat it. Period.
-- NOT blue! As mentioned, Saga is a lot like brie, but with mold injected. If it was called "brie" but it's blue, something is wrong! Well, probably, not anything that will hurt you, but just pass it along to your hubby to eat (actually, it would be good melted on some portabello caps as a mushroom-cheese burger).

The main thing is, to paraphrase Duke Ellington, "If it tastes good, it IS good." My favorite way to eat brie is to let it come to room temperature and get kind of soft, then slather it on some good French or Italian bread and eat it with a cut-up pear. It's that simple. (I'm assuming you're skipping the wine these days.) If it tastes too strange to you, or smells really ugly, it will not be a sin to dump it.

As for a "cheesemonger" -- look around your area for a supermarket like Whole Foods, or a fancy specialty store. The prices won't actually be that much higher, but more important, there will be people there who KNOW SOMETHING about what cheese should and should not be. It always helps to buy from somebody who knows what they're selling!

Cheese is just another of life's great pleasures to be enjoyed (in moderation, of course; and in spite of what Markdchef might say!);)

(Sorry to run on so long, but it's after dinner and we split a bottle of Sangiovese from the Finger Lakes. hic :blush: )

Here is a tasty way to use that brie of yours. If you are ever up for creating some yummy "california" style pizza one great recipe is brie, asperugus, shallots and a little white wine butter. These flavors work very well with one another and make a different but very yummy pizza. I have also seen this pizza done with a bit of smoked salmon

As mentioned by some of the other chef's, brie is a soft cheese and very sutiable for a cheese tray complimented by crackers, a crusty loaf of French Bread and some fruit such as grapes, strawberries and apples.

Good luck with your brie ;-)

Grilled turkey burger with brie and grilled apple (granny smith) slices.


A note: Pregnant women should consult their M.D.'s about the consumption of soft cheeses.

Jim, that's a hefty wheel of brie...:)

With regard to soft cheeses during pregnancy, the general rule is, if it is imported, and made from unpasteurized milk, soft cheeses are definitely out. That, unfortunately, leaves out many wonderful cheeses...:(

(They advise that women stay away from all blue cheeses, feta, brie, and camembert when pregnant. )

I accidentally (;) ) consumed some forbidden cheeses, and my little fetus is just fine. Definitely discuss it with your OB though.

How about a brie truffle? :lips:

Brie truffle?

Isa, please define!!!!!

A truffle made with brie and dark chocolate. :lips:

For summertime, when you can get absolutely gorgeous ripe tomatoes!

Slice tomatoes into 1/4 inch slices and put on a baking sheet. Place under broiler for 2-3 minutes, then remove and put a dollop of pesto on the tomato, cover with a slice of brie, and run under broiler again til the cheese melts.

Marmalady, all the Italians just went yuk! Must of run out of the mozz.LOL
Dumb, I know, but what are the momies avoiding? bacteria?

Good day, Panini-

You've got it right. The Campylobateriosis pathogen is found in unpasturized milk products as well as some staph and salmonella strains. The problem is that the unborn child and mother share a common blood supply and the child's immune system is not developed. Adults can often ingest some of these pathogens and through years of expsure to small amounts, build up a resistance.

The soft cheeses have a higher moisture content which makes them a fairly ideal breeding ground for potential hazardous bacteria.

Anyhow- I guess I'm glad I took those notes in Sanitation class!

One of my favorite desserts-
Cut into thin cunks, layer on top of baguette slices, drizzle with honey and a sprinkling of almonds. Bake in the oven until cheese starts to melt and bread is thoroughly warmed.
Easy peasey!
-Andrew

Thanks Mombochef,
I have known this somewhere along the line and spaced. Raspberries come to mind, my wife had a stem cell transplant a couple of years ago and we were told to avoid blue cheese and raspberries. I'm sure they were refering to the unpasturization of the cheese but the rasp? moist? always moldy? hum?

I whip my bie! :lips:

Hmmm why does this sounds so familiar?

The recipe is in....

Thomas Keller's -- The French Laundry. Click here for a link.

Panini - Actually got that little tomato/brie tidbit from a Provencal book!!!

My first experience with brie was from a little deli in Charleston, who was way ahead of its time. They served a sandwich at lunch that was a chunk of brie on a yeasty, crunchy roll that had been slathered with fresh butter! You might as well just paste it on your hips, but OMG, was it heavenly!

Brie with fig marmalade on a water cracker. Sweet, salty, creamy, crunchy - yum!

Brie is a wonderful cheese!! so many things you can do with it.* If it is a whole incased piece, you can wrap it in puff pastry or roll out cresent rolls to form a circle and wrap it around the cheese, then bake it till its brown.* I like it plain warmed up in the oven with honey on top, then i toast some crusty bread, a glass of wine and you are all set!!! give it a try.*** mslynnie

ah, brie..let me count the ways!

for parties i make a brie en croute.. cut a kilo wheel in half, like a layer cake and smear it with apricot preserves and toasted coarsely ground pecans..put the top layer on and top with more preserves and pecans, then wrap it in puff pastry..egg wash and bake til golden brown, oozing a bit and puffy..heaven! or dredge a wedge in egg and panko and saute til lightly browned, turn over and saute for another minute or so and finish in the oven(5 minutes or so)..i have also made brie 'truffles' as well, but may be a bit too fussy or your needs...combine softened brie with cream cheese, butter, cognac(after baby arrives), hot pepper sauce and pepper..roll in dense pumpernickel breadcrumbs...maybe your brie was an herbed brie, hence the specks..generally herbed brie has green specks,not blue..just a thought..also, i have made a brie soup with sherry and cream..omg, now i can die happy!
joey

The CDC says that the problem with Brie for pregnant women is Listeria.

Disease Listing: Listeriosis General Information | CDC DFBMD

There's a long list of Listeria stuff to not eat when one is pregnant. The list made me hungry.

The original post was over 6 years ago so she could probably eat whatever she wants by now.

Phil