The ExperiencePlus! US office staff celebrated the close of 2022 with a night of fine food that we prepared as teams of two at The Cooking Studio in Fort Collins. Our expert chef, Malini, and her assistant, Elizabeth, guided us through a fun night of baking, roasting, flambéing, and searing. There was wine, butter, brandy, and fire! We started the evening with the task of simultaneously preparing our dessert – a chocolate ganache tarte that had to bake and chill, alongside this super yummy appetizer that we devoured with crackers. Thanks to The Cooking Studio team for sharing the recipe! This can be easily scaled up.
Ingredients
Chutney
3 ounces dried cranberries, chopped
1 TBL red onion, minced
1/4 C water
1/6 C cider vinegar
1/6 C brown sugar
2 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
zest from 1/2 a lemon
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp Cayenne Pepper
1/8 C walnuts, pecans or hazelnuts – toasted and coarsely chopped
1/2 medium wheel of brie
2 sheets phyllo dough (thawed in refrigerator)
1 ounce butter, melted
Directions
Chutney – 1. Combine all ingredients except nuts in heavy large saucepan. bring to boil over medium-high heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. 2. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until most liquid has evaporated and chutney is thick – about 25 minutes. Add water if pan gets too dry. 3. Mix in nuts and remove from heat.
Cheese/Phyllo assembly – 1. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper. Preheat over to 400 F. and place rack in center of oven. 2. Unroll phyllo and 2 sheets. Brush one layer with butter, wrap around cheese, and then butter the next layer and wrap around cheese. Butter the top if you have some left. Place on sheet pan seam side down. 3. Bake cheese until pastry is deep golden grown, about 5-7 minutes. You can cover loosely with foil if browning too quickly.
Assembly – Remove from sheet pan, place chutney on top and eat with crackers. Enjoy while hot!