Cranberry Brie Bites

Why You’ll Love This Cranberry Brie Bites Recipe

• Perfect for the holidays: If you are looking for a fun and festive holiday appetizer, these Cranberry Brie Bites are one of my favorites that we make every year for a Christmas appetizer. They are extra festive with the bright red cranberry sauce and pop of green from the rosemary.
• Tart and savory: I love the combination of flavors in these brie bites with cranberries – you have the tart homemade cranberry sauce, creamy brie, and earthy rosemary wrapped in the buttery puff pastry.
• Easy! These cranberry brie bites come together in a few steps and if you want to make it even easier, you can prepare the cranberry sauce ahead of time. They’re one of my favorite low-fuss holiday appetizers.

Looking for more brie appetizers? If you love these Cranberry Brie Bites, you will also probably love my fresh Strawberry Brie Crostini!

Recipe Ingredients

Ready for the best Christmas appetizer experience of your life? If so, round up the following ingredients. Scroll down to the recipe card below for measurements.

• Fresh Cranberries: you can also use frozen whole cranberries.
• Dixie Crystals Granulated Sugar: my favorite brand of sugar!
• Orange Zest: or lemon zest will also work in a pinch!
• Water: or orange juice or an orange liquor, like grand mariner or cointreau, are also good.
• Seasonings: Salt and Pepper.
• Puff Pastry: thawed and ready to use.
• Brie Cheese: you could use any cheese you like, but a rich and creamy brie is perfect in this appetizer.
• Rosemary: adds flavor as well as the pop of green color!
• Flaky Sea Salt: an optional addition that adds a ton of flavor. Unlike traditional salt, flaky sea salt is a finishing salt in larger crystals. It gives food a beautiful look and a crunchy, salty finish.

How To Make Homemade Cranberry Sauce

Homemade cranberry sauce really adds a ton more flavor to your Cranberry Brie Bites! Here’s what you need to do to make your own cranberry sauce:

• Simmer: Combine cranberries, sugar, orange zest and water in a sauce pan. Simmer, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes, until cranberries soften.
• Pop: Increase the heat to medium, stirring constantly, and cook until cranberries begin to pop.
• Season: Reduce the heat to low and then add the remaining cranberries along with a pinch of kosher salt, black pepper, and stir until combined.
• Finish and Cool: Cook on low for another 2 minutes, then remove from heat and set aside to allow to cool down. At this point, you can refrigerate your cranberry sauce until you are ready to use it.

How To Make Cranberry Brie Bites

After you make your homemade cranberry sauce, the rest of this recipe is a breeze. You just have to fill each puff pastry square with your fillings and bake them! You can find the printable version of the instructions in the recipe card below.

• Prepare Puff Pastry: Lightly flour a working surface and spread one thawed puff pasty sheet out. (Store second piece of pastry in the fridge until ready for use.) Lightly roll out puff pastry until it is an even thickness. This will help achieve a more even and thorough bake.
• Cut Into Squares: Next, cut sheet of puff pasty into 12 even pieces. Press dough firmly into each mini cupcake tin. Poke a few holes into bottom of each piece of dough.

• Fill: Cut brie into 24 roughly even pieces. Place a piece of brie into center of each piece of dough. Top with a small spoonful of cranberry sauce and a piece or two of fresh rosemary on top. Repeat steps with second sheet of puff pastry.
• Bake: Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, until flaky and golden brown. I recommend turning the pan about half way through baking to ensure even cooking and browning.
• Finish: Remove from oven and allow to cool for a few minutes. If any cheese or cranberry sauce has oozed out of tin, use a small spoon to scoop it back into puff pastry. Sprinkle with flaky sea salt.

Tips & Variations

Here are some tips on making these Cranberry Brie Bites that may be helpful to you:

• Can I use store bought cranberry sauce?: Yes, you can use store bought cranberry sauce if you want. I do recommend looking for the freshly made one in the deli, but even canned will work in a pinch!
• Brie Substitutions: You can use any soft cheese you like, goat cheese would also go very well in this little bite.
• Rosemary: If you don’t love rosemary, you can skip it completely. If you would like another herb to give you that festive look, you can also try fresh parsley or thyme. Both parsley and thyme are milder herbs and would pair just fine with the other flavors.
• Puff Pastry: Puff pastry is perfect for these little bites, but if you can’t find it, you can also use crescent dough cut into little squares.
• Don’t Over Bake: Everything inside each little bite of puff pastry is already cooked, the cheese just needs to get warm enough to melt a little. So make sure you remove these bites from the oven as soon as the puff pastry is cooked through and golden brown.

Can I Prepare Them Ahead?

Yes, to a point! You can pre-make the cranberry sauce up to 5 days before, just store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator. You can also pre slice the brie and the puff pastry into squares and then store them in the fridge the day of.

About 30 minutes before your guests arrive, preheat your oven and finish prepping the Cranberry Brie Bites by assembling them in the muffin tins. Pop them into the oven and they will be ready as guests arrive!

More Holiday Recipes

• The Best Coquito (Puerto Rican Coconut Eggnog)
• Peanut Butter Pretzel Crockpot Candy
• Buttery Spritz Cookies
• Easy Homemade Eggnog
• Crockpot Ham