Maple Bourbon Cranberry Brie Bites

Puff Pastry – You can find this in most grocery stores in the freezer section, usually in the same area they sell frozen pie crusts. It is usually sold with two sheets, so if you want to double the recipe, you’ll have a second sheet available.

Brie – Brie cheese is typically sold in 8oz or 16oz containers. Look for it in the store where they sell the fancier cheeses near the deli, since it’s not usually sold where sliced and shredded cheeses are. I use about half of the 8oz container, so again if you double the recipe, you’ll have enough in one container.

Cranberry Sauce – This recipe uses my maple bourbon cranberry sauce. Feel free to use your own favorite cranberry sauce instead, or if you’re not making sauce for the holiday, you can make a half batch of my recipe or jarred cranberry sauce from the store. You’ll need about ½ - ¾ cup for the bites.

Salt – I add just a pinch of sea salt to each brie bite. You can also use kosher salt.

Pecans – I make maple bourbon candied pecans here for more of the maple and bourbon flavor. They’re easy to make and can be made a day or two ahead of time. If you’d rather skip candying them, I suggest at least toasting them for a few minutes in a dry skillet over medium heat. You can also omit them altogether if you wish. I like the added crunchy texture, but usually only add pecans to half of the bites in case someone can’t have nuts.

Rosemary – Two sprigs of fresh rosemary add a nice garnish and color to the brie bites, but you can omit these as well if you wish.  If used as a garnish, I wouldn’t eat the raw rosemary, but you can also add it while cooking for an edible version.

Maple Bourbon Candied Pecans

In a medium saucepan over medium heat add maple syrup, bourbon, ground cinnamon, a pinch of cayenne, and pecan halves. Stir to coat all the pecans and continue stirring occasionally.

The whole process will take around 15-20 minutes. Increase how often you stir them as they cook. The pecans will go from glazed, to very sticky, to covered in powder. The maple syrup and other ingredients will eventually crystallize as you continue to heat and stir. Once you reach this point, remove from the heat and place on a baking sheet to cool completely.

Maple Bourbon Cranberry Sauce

If you make my whole recipe for maple bourbon cranberry sauce, you can use some of that here. You can also doctor up your own cranberry sauce or a store-bought sauce with a bit of maple syrup and bourbon. Otherwise, make a half recipe of the sauce by doing the following.

In a saucepan over medium-high heat, add some maple syrup, bourbon, a bit of freshly squeezed orange juice and zest, a pinch of cinnamon and salt, and some vanilla extract. Once the mixture comes to a strong simmer, add half a bag of cranberries and lower the heat to a gentle simmer.

Continue cooking at a simmer, stirring occasionally. As the cranberries start to pop and break apart, smash them against the sides of the pan. Keep cooking and smashing until you have a thick cranberry sauce, about 12-15 minutes. Set aside to cool.

Make the Brie Bites

While the pecans and cranberry sauce cool, set a sheet of puff pastry out at room temperature for 30-40 minutes to soften and place the brie cheese in the freezer for about 20 minutes. This will make the cheese easier to slice. Once cooled, gently crush enough of the candied pecans into smaller pieces to give you ¼ cup or so.

Preheat the oven to 375°F / 190°C and spray 1 24-count mini-muffin pan or 2 12-count mini-muffin pans with baking spray and set aside (also known as tassie pans).

Cut the circle of brie in half and save one half for another use (or use it all for a double batch). You can leave the rind on or cut it off. Not everyone cares for the rind, so I usually trim it off. Slice the brie into 24 pieces roughly a ½” large and set aside.

Once the puff pastry is warmed enough to work with easily, lightly flour your work surface and gently roll into a rectangle about 10” x 15”. Once rolled out, slice the short side into 4 equal strips and again on the longer side into 6 equal strips. You should have 24 squares roughly 2.5” x 2.5”.

Place each square over the hole in the mini muffin pan and press down gently to fill the hole. Use a fork to make a few small holes and continue until all the puff pastry squares are used.

Place a piece of brie into each puff pastry, then top with a small spoonful of cranberry sauce. Add a pinch of salt and some of the crushed pecans. You can now top it with a small piece of rosemary or reserve it for a garnish later.

Place the mini-muffin pans on a baking sheet and place in the middle of the oven. Bake for 18-20 minutes, until the puff pastry is lightly browned and puffed, and remove from the oven to cool. If you didn’t cook with the rosemary, add small pieces now.

Once cool enough to handle, remove from the pan and serve warm.

Crescent Roll Dough – One of the biggest differences in various recipes for brie bites is using crescent roll dough instead of puff pastry. This can be a slightly cheaper option as well. The only real difference here is to use a can of refrigerated crescent roll dough instead of the frozen puff pastry ones. When you roll it out, if it is pre-perforated for splitting, be sure to pinch the seams together first.

No Cranberries – If you’re making this outside of cranberry season, or just don’t care for cranberry sauce, you have options. Other great choices include blueberry, blackberry, raspberry, or strawberry jam. Other tasty fillings include orange marmalade and apricot jam.

Nuts – If you prefer, omit the maple bourbon candied pecans, or just toast some in a dry skillet. I like to cover just half of the ones I make in case some people prefer not to have or can’t have nuts. Other options include walnuts or macadamia nuts.

No Brie – While brie is the most popular and common cheese for bites like these, you can switch things up with other soft cheeses. The closest cheese would be Camembert, but other options include goat cheese, ricotta, mascarpone, Manchego, or cream cheese. Feel free to experiment here.

🍽 Recommended Equipment

You don’t need any special equipment here, but you do need the right size muffin pan.

Mini Muffin Pan – Whether you call them mini-muffin pans or tassie pans, you’ll need these smaller style pans for making maple bourbon cranberry brie bites. Regular muffin pans are simply way too large for these 1-2 bite appetizers. The ones seen in my photos are handed down from my grandmother and have probably made 10s of thousands of desserts, appetizers, and cookies. These are the mini muffin pans I would recommend, however.

❄️ How to Store Cranberry Brie Bites

Once cooled completely, you can store maple bourbon cranberry brie bites in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. You can either wrap the whole muffin tin in plastic wrap, or transfer leftovers into an airtight bag for storage. To reheat, you can place bites in the microwave or a 350°F oven until warmed. I recommend reheating in the oven though, as microwaving will soften the puff pastry a lot.

For longer storage, you can transfer completely cooled brie bites to an airtight freezer bag and store for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge and reheat in the oven until warm throughout.

If you would like to make these cranberry brie bites ahead of time, you have two options. You can bake as normal and let cool completely. Wrap the muffin tin in plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve and reheat in a 350°F oven until warmed. Otherwise, you can prep them completely up until the point of baking and store as above. When ready to make, bake as normal, adding a few minutes to the bake time.