Baked Brie and Cherries in Puff Pastry

I had a wheel of Brie cheese left over after Christmas (how is that possible?) that inspired me for a recipe idea for Valentines, and did it ever come out good.  Its hard to decide if this should go into the Appetizer, Main Dish or Dessert category in the recipe section, so perhaps you should try it for yourself and let me know what you think, ha ha. There is something very addicting about the sweet, tangy, cheesy, melty, gooey, crispy combination in this recipe, and it is making me hungry to make it again, even as I write this post..... Anyhow, I thought it would make a lovely, romantic treat for Valentines, with the pretty red cherries, and heart cut out, but of course it could be adapted for any special occasion.

Baked Brie and Cherries in Puff Pastry

Ingredients:

1 large Brie
1-2 Sheets of Puff Pastry ( the extra is for decorating,  and is optional... I actually used 1 1/2 sheets for this).
1 Can of Cherry Pie Filling (You will need about 1/2  -3/4 cup)


Instructions:

Note: These instructions are adapted to make the pastry and the heart that will best display the pretty red cherries through the heart as a special decoration for Valentines Day. You can of course,  wrap the pastry up and around the cheese in any variety of ways that seems good to you.

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Prepare pastry, by thawing approximately 30-60 minutes before needed (or follow the package instructions).
3. Unfold the thawed puff pastry on a lightly floured surface.  Using a lightly floured rolling pin, roll the pastry into  a 11 or 12 in rectangle
4. Place Brie wheel onto a corner of the pastry and cut around Brie to make a circle of pastry underneath.  
5. Place Brie with the pastry still on the bottom onto a cookie sheet lined with Parchment paper.
6. Roll out and cut remaining pastry in to a large square/rectangle (enough to drape over the top and sides of the Brie).
7. Using a cookie cutter, cut a heart out of the pastry square and set the heart and the square to the side
8. Spoon and spread cherry pie filling over the top of the Brie.
9. Drape the heart cut square of pastry over the top of the cherry topped Brie.
10. Gently tuck the bottom edge of the pastry slightly under the Brie and pastry circle.
11. Cut a strip of pastry that is the length of the circumference of the Brie. 
12. Wrap it around the outer edge of the Brie and Pastry. Use a little water to help adhere the pastry edges to each other. ( This is optional, but I did it to make a tidier presentation.
13. Place the cut heart on top for decoration.
14. Brush the Brie with melted butter, or with a combination of 1 egg whisked together with 1 Tablespoon of water).
15. Bake 20 - 25 minutes, or until golden brown.
16. Serve with fresh fruit, toasted Baguette or crackers.

Enjoy!

Make a Simple Felt Rose

You can make a pretty little felt rose in less than five minutes. Use them to make magnets, headbands, or to embellish crafts or home decor.  You only need a few supplies.

 

Supplies

1. 1 sheet of felt for the rose  (any color you like).
2. 1 sheet of green felt for the leaves.
3. A circle to use as a pattern, such as a Stencil, Cardboard Ribbon Cover, Jar Lid, or Old CD,  any size will work.
4. Scissors
5. Glue Gun with glue stick (a small one with an extra small nozzle is best when making these, to minimize excess glue and limit burns).

Instructions

1.     Lay your circle pattern on top of the felt.

2.     Trace the circle onto the felt using a pencil.

3. Cut out the circle.

4.  Cut a spiral into the circle. A small pair of scissors works best for this.

5.  Cut slowly, keeping an even, narrow pattern.

6.  Finish in the middle, leaving a small circle at the end.

7. Trim any uneven edges.

  8.  It should look like this, but if its a little wobbly at first, it will get better the more you practice cutting it out.

9.  Begin your rose, by curling the outer end into itself, as shown.

10.  Continue to roll.

11.    When you have finished rolling, hold your rose together, allowing the end to drape around the edge, and then down under the bottom.

12.  Put a dot of hot glue on the edge to hold it together

.......as seen here.

13.     You will have the small circle remaining, that you can glue down over the bottom of the rose.

14.     Put some hot glue over the base, enough to touch all the layers.

15.     Put the circle down over the glue, and press together.

16. You can trim off any uneven edges at this point, if you have any.

17.  You now have a nice simple little rose flower.

 18. Cut out an oval or tear drop shape for a leaf, from the green felt.

 19.     Squeeze a drop or two of glue onto the leaf.

 20.     Place the leaf, glue side down, to the bottom of the rose.

21.  Press the leaf into the bottom of the rose so the glue will be well distributed and adheres nicely on both pieces.

22. All done... now create something fun with it.

I love to put magnets on my flowers, and then decorate buckets, cans, frames or any metal item.
Its also fun to glue them to wall hangings, or little wooden plaques etc.

Have fun!

Crab Rangoon Dip with Baked Wonton Chips

One of my favorite appetizers, is Crab Rangoon and it is almost always on my order  when we go out to eat Chinese food.  This dip is amazing, and a perfect way to satisfy the "Crab Rangoon Cravings" ha ha, but it is right from your own kitchen.  It is a quick and easy recipe, with no frying at all, because the Won Tons are baked instead of fried, and they take only 5 minutes to bake.  The dip is loaded with crab meat, cream cheese, Mozzarella, and is topped with Chili sauce and green onions, and let me tell you, that Chili sauce on the top is so good, you'll be going back for more.

Ingredients:
2  8oz packages of Cream Cheese, softened
1 12 oz package Crab Meat (canned crab meat or imitation crab meat can be used as well).
1 cup shredded Mozzarella Cheese
1/2 cup Sour Cream
1 small stick Celery minced
3 Green Onions, finely chopped (reserve 2 tablespoons)
1 teaspoon Soy Sauce
1 teaspoon dried Minced Onion
Chili Sauce
Baked Wontons



For Baked Wontons:
Ingredients:
1 Package Wonton Wrappers
Cooking Spray
Salt

Instructions for Dip

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. In a medium mixing bowl, combine cream cheese, crab meat, Mozzarella, sour cream, minced celery, all but 2 tablespoons of chopped green onions, soy sauce and dried onion.
3. Mix together until well combined.
4. Spray a medium/small baking dish with cooking spray.
5. Spread mixture into the baking dish.
6. Bake 25-30 minutes, until bubbly and lightly brown.
7. Remove from oven.
8. Drizzle liberally with Chili Sauce and sprinkle with remaining green onions.
9. Serve hot with baked Wonton Chips, and a side of extra Chili Sauce.

Instructions for Baked Wonton Crackers

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Cover baking sheets with parchment paper and spray with cooking spray.
3. Place wonton onto a cutting board and cut diagonally.
4. Place each diagonal onto the cookie sheet, leaving a slight amount of space between them. 
5. Spray the top of them with cooking spray and sprinkle with salt.
6. Bake for 4-5 minutes, keeping a close eye on them, because they can burn quickly.

In a medium mixing bowl, combine cream cheese, crab meat, Mozzarella, minced celery, all but 2 tablespoons of chopped green onions, soy sauce and dried onion.

Mix together until well combined. 
Spread  into a prepared baking dish and bake 25 -30 minutes.

In the meantime, make the Wonton Chips as follows: 
Cut Wontons in half diagonally.

Place on a prepared cookie sheet, spray with cooking spray and sprinkle with salt.

Bake for 4-5 minutes in 375 degree oven, watching carefully, because they burn quickly.

Remove Crab Rangoon Dip from oven, after it has cooked 25 -30 minutes, and is golden brown on top and bubbly.

Drizzle it liberally with Chili Sauce and sprinkle the remaining green onions over the top.

.... and try to stay out of it before you serve it up.... because that is hard to do.

Yum

Yum

Yum

Yum!

Enjoy!