Baked Goat Brie with Spiced Rosemary-Scented Honey and Red Wine Cranberries is a fun play on the flavors in mulled spiced wine; it’s festive and unique and perfect for any holiday gathering!
Are you known for bringing a certain dish to parties? I had to laugh a couple weeks ago when a friend called me up to invite me to a holiday potluck she was hosting; she was planning the menu and had me down for some kind of cheese item because a) she knows me and my love for cheese well, and b) she wanted something a little bit outside the box.
Whether it’s a festive spin on a cheese ball, gorgeous veggie cheese stacks, or something as simple as a wheel of cheese that’s baked and served with buttery white wine onions, when it comes to cheese, I’m your girl. I guess my reputation as a cheese-lover precedes me!
I wanted to come up with something festive, and cranberries and rosemary immediately came to mind. This recipe is more unique than your typical baked brie topped with a regular cranberry sauce though; the topping is truly special! As a play on mulled spiced wine, I reconstituted whole dried cranberries in red wine, honey, and water with a hint of allspice. Walnuts add a nutty crunch and fresh rosemary adds a lovely piney Christmas-like aroma. If you want, you can even make the topping a couple days in advance and stash it in the fridge to reduce your prep work on the day of the party.
For the cheese, instead of going with a basic brie, I used Laura Chenel’s Goat Brie, which has a grassy, slightly nutty flavor with hints of lemon and a rich velvety texture. Laura Chenel’s is committed to the art of crafting the highest quality goat cheese. This cheese is made exclusively in California, and begins with fresh local goat milk that is turned into curd, gently cut, and then poured into molds, where it is drains naturally to retain as much moisture as possible. After aging for 9 to 14 days, it develops a thin bloomy rind and a velvety texture that quickly becomes oozy. It is absolutely perfect paired with fresh bread and fruit, or this cranberry topping.
This dish was a complete hit at the party. I made a triple batch to serve a crowd (using three wheels of cheese) and it was barely enough because everyone loved it so much.
Do you have a go-to dish you bring to holiday potlucks?
- ½ cup (60 g) whole dried cranberries
- ½ cup (120 ml) water
- ¼ cup (60 ml) dry red wine
- 2 tablespoons honey
- ⅛ teaspoon allspice
- 3 tablespoons walnuts, coarsely chopped
- 1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary, plus more for garnish
- 1 (5 oz/142 g) wheel of Laura Chenel’s Goat Brie
- Crackers or sliced baguette, for serving
- For the topping, add the cranberries, water, wine, honey, and allspice to a small pot. Bring to a boil and then turn the heat down and simmer until the liquid is reduced by about ⅔, about 6 to 10 minutes. Turn the heat off, cover the pot, and let the cranberries steep for 15 minutes. After steeping, bring the cranberries back up to a boil and cook until the liquid is syrupy, about 2 to 3 minutes. Turn off the heat and stir in the walnuts and rosemary.
- For the brie, preheat the oven to 350F. Once the oven is preheated, unwrap the brie and place it onto an oven-safe baking dish. Bake 12 minutes.
- Serve the brie warm with the cranberry mixture spooned on top along with bread or crackers.
Disclosure: I received the Laura Chenel’s goat cheese that I used in this recipe for free, and I also received compensation for this post. I am happy for the opportunity to share brands that I believe in with my readers, and I hope you enjoy my recipe. As always, opinions stated are my own.
I’m Faith Gorsky, the writer, cook, and photographer behind An Edible Mosaic. My goal is to inspire you to get in the kitchen and try something new! Feel free to 
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