On this first day of December, I am bringing you a very merry and festive cranberry and brie Christmas appetizer recipe. Easy Cranberry Brie Bites, which only has 3 ingredients, will take you less than 15 minutes to prepare.
Utilizing leftover tart cranberry sauce from Thanksgiving, a wheel of creamy brie cheese, and light, crispy mini fillo shells, these elegant and delicious cranberry brie appetizers will wow your family and friends and they will never guess how easy they are to make. My best advice, make twice as many of these cranberry brie tartlets as you think you will need because they will go fast!
The Christmas season is a magical time of year and instead of a partridge in a pear tree, what better to kick it off than with a new holiday-themed recipe every day for the next 12 days to help with your holiday entertaining. Similar to The 12 Days of Christmas, the famous English Christmas carol, starting today I’ll be posting a new easy Christmas recipe every day for 12 days for The 12 Days of Easy Christmas Recipes!
Unlike the song, however, my 12 Days of Easy Christmas Recipes starts on December 1. The official 12 days of Christmas, a Christian tradition, which shares its name with The 12 Days of Christmas carol, marks the period between the birth of Christ on December 25 and the arrival of the three wise men on January 6, the Epiphany.
Instead of two turtle doves, look for my Easy Red Velvet Cake Trifle recipe tomorrow; and instead of three French hens, I’ll be posting a decadent Pralines and Cream Ice Cream recipe the day after, which will knock your socks off!
If you would like even more Christmas themed recipes, check out these roundups of quick and easy recipes from top bloggers around the country: 25 Best Christmas Breakfast/Brunch Recipes, 25 Best Christmas Dessert Recipes, and 31 Easy Homemade Edible Christmas Gifts.
I know you are crazy busy right now, so let’s get right to this simple recipe for Easy Cranberry Brie Bites!
How to make 3-Ingredient Easy Cranberry Brie Bites
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Place the fillo shells on a small parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
Carefully remove the rind from the brie with a sharp bread knife.
Cut the brie into 1/2 inch squares.
Place a square of brie in each of the fillo shells.
Top the brie with 1/4 teaspoon of the cranberry sauce.
Bake for 7-8 minutes and serve immediately.
Sharon’s Expert Tips:
- To make 3-Ingredient Easy Cranberry Bites ahead, make them according to the directions, but do not bake. Place the filled fillo shells back in the tray they came in and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Place the tray back in the box and freeze for up to 2-3 months. Allow the bites to thaw before baking and bake as directed.
- Pepper jelly, fig preserves, honey, or your favorite jam or preserves can be substituted for the cranberry sauce.
- If you don’t have leftover cranberry sauce, you can also use purchased whole berry cranberry sauce, and probably the jelled sauce would work too, but I would only use that in a pinch.
- You can make a delicious homemade cranberry sauce by combining 1 cup of water, 1 cup of sugar, and a 12 oz bag of fresh cranberries in a saucepan over high heat. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to medium, and cook for 10 minutes. Cool and store covered in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks, or in the freezer for 2-3 months.
- You can also substitute puff pastry for the mini fillo shells. Simply cut the puff pastry into small squares, place into mini muffin cups and follow the rest of the recipe.
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3-Ingredient Easy Cranberry Brie Bites Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 oz Brie cheese 1/2 of an 8 oz wheel of brie
- 1/2 cup cranberry sauce purchased or homemade
- 1.9 oz pkg frozen mini fillo shells 15 shells
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Place the fillo shells on a small parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
- Carefully remove the rind from the brie with a sharp bread knife and cut the brie into 1/2 inch squares.
- Place a square of brie in each of the fillo shells.
- Top the brie with 1/4 teaspoon of the cranberry sauce.
- Bake for 7-8 minutes and serve immediately.
Notes
- To make 3-Ingredient Easy Cranberry Bites ahead, make them according to the directions, but do not bake. Place the filled fillo shells back in the tray they came in and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Place the tray back in the box and freeze for up to 2-3 months. Allow the bites to thaw before baking and bake as directed.
- Pepper jelly, fig preserves, honey, or your favorite jam or preserves can be substituted for the cranberry sauce. If you don't have leftover cranberry sauce, you can also use purchased whole berry cranberry sauce, and probably the jelled sauce would work too, but I would only use that in a pinch.
- You can make a delicious homemade cranberry sauce by combining 1 cup of water, 1 cup of sugar, and a 12 oz bag of fresh cranberries in a saucepan over high heat. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to medium, and cook for 10 minutes. Cool and store covered in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks, or in the freezer for 2-3 months.
- You can also substitute puff pastry for the mini fillo shells. Simply cut the puff pastry into small squares, place into mini muffin cups and follow the rest of the recipe.
I’ve made these before with havarti and a 1/2 tsp of a mixture of seedless raspberry and jalapeño pepper jams….SO GOOD!
Wow! That does sound delicious!
These appetizers were so easy and tasty! I need to quadruple the recipe next time! NOTE: we added a sprikle of fresh rosemary and a pomegranate seed on top of each one that added a little additional savory and sweet.
Hi Geri, thanks so much for leaving such a nice comment and I love your idea of adding the rosemary and pomegranate seeds.Happy New Year!
Sharon
Do frozen shells need to be thawed before adding cheese & cranberry to bake?
No!
Thanks, these were a big hit with my Thanksgiving guests!
Hi Sue, I am so glad your guests enjoyed them! It’s impossible to eat just one!
All my best,
Sharon
I couldn’t find filo cups anywhere near me so I’m using puff pastry. Would you suggest 1.5″ squares? Since I’m using the puff pastry, does that need to be cooked first? Thanks!
Hi Jessica, if you are using a mini muffin pan, I would experiment with a piece of paper cut in different sizes first to see what works best. Cut in a circle and you don’t want the dough to extend too far outside of the pan. Yes, I would definitely bake them first. Because it’s puff pastry, it will puff up more so you might have to mash it down to add the filling. Good luck and Happy Thanksgiving!
PS: be sure to bake it again once you add the Brie and cranberry sauce.
Approximately how long does it take to thaw from frozen if you are making them ahead?
Not long, maybe 30-45 minutes. I hope you enjoy them!
Thanks for sharing! Can you keep them warm in the oven while waiting or would be they go bad?
Hi Vanessa, these bites are so small, they are almost impossible to keep hot. But they are still delicious at room temperature. I would just wait until the last minute to bake them and serve as soon as possible.
All my best,
Sharon
Can these be frozen and re warmed?
Hi Jennifer, I’ve never frozen them baked so I don’t know if that would work or not. I usually make them, put them back in the box the frozen shells came in and then freeze them. Then I just bake them before I want to serve them. I hope this helps! Sharon
Do you bake the shells before adding the Brie, and then bake again?
Hi Kalen, no you do not need to bake the shells first. They will crisp up and get brown when you cook them with the brie.
I hope you enjoy the cranberry bites and Happy Thanksgiving.
Sharon
Can this be done with cream cheese instead of Brie and for what amount of time??
Hi Cindy, I have never tried this with cream cheese, but I think it would probably be good. The taste and texture would be different too. Goat cheese might also be good as well! Again because I’ve never made them with cream cheese I’m not sure on the baking time, but I would suspect it would be the same as the brie. You just want the cheese to melt. If you decide to try cream cheese, be sure to let me know how they turn out.
All my best,
Sharon
Are the Cranberry Brie Bites served warm or do you let them cool befor serving?
You can serve them warm or at room temperature.
All my best!
Sharon