Main dish ideas featuring Brie?

[darklyglimmer]

My husband received a food basket for his birthday with a wedge of Brie in it. We both love it, but he's far too virtuous to sit down with a knife and a plate of crackers; I'm most definitely not, and if I can't incorporate it into a meal I'm going to end up eating the whole thing. If it was summertime I'd make the pasta salad from Silver Palate with basil, brie and grape tomatoes, but this time of year the basil is expensive and the the grape tomatoes are depressing. Anybody have any ideas other than the obvious -- grilled cheese, mac and cheese, mashed potatoes with cheese, etc? All of those are tasty and under consideration, but maybe somebody out there has a wonderful trick up their sleeve - thanks in advance!

[MazDee]

When I saw your request, I looked for a delicious recipe for chiles rellenos with brie I made many years ago. The chiles were served with a corn salsa. I believe the recipe was in Bon Appetit, possibly Gourmet. If anyone has the recipe, it is worth reviving!

[goodhealthgourmet]

you're killing me. i searched Epi. i searched the dedicated Gourmet & BA sites. i even tried Food & Wine *and* Saveur in case you mis-remembered the publication. i Googled every variation & combination of chile relleno, chiles rellenos, brie, corn relish, corn salsa...and just for kicks, i even checked jalapeno brie poppers with corn salsa or corn relish.

i got nothin'.

arghhh!! it's a rare and sad day when the Search Queen fails a search.

[MazDee]

I have searched my own recipes, paper and those stored in my computer, even my favorites in epi, no luck. I am sure I saved the recipe, guess it got lost. It was in one of those mags, probably between 1998 and 2000 or 2001. The chile was batter fried, don't recall what else was stuffed inside with the Brie. The corn salsa was a little different, too. Oh, darn. Maybe somebody has one of those magazine Annuals for one of those years.

[goodhealthgourmet]

i really hope one of our fellow Hounds comes through - unsolved mysteries like this drive me insane.

[HillJ]

you were stumped! it was bound to happen once a decade.

[magiesmom]

It must not really exist!

[darklyglimmer]

Just thought I'd let you all know the eventual fate of the food-basket Brie. Inspired by the current thread about non-tomato pasta sauces, which reminded me of both how much I like the green-thing/sausage pasta combination and how long it's been since I made it, I browned some chicken sausage in olive oil, added last night's leftover sauteed kale with garlic, a cup of chicken stock and a hit of golden balsamic, then let it all simmer. By the time the pasta was done, the liquid had mostly been absorbed/evaporated; I added the pasta to the kale/sausage, threw in a handful of toasted pine nuts, and then added the brie and stirred it all together until it was mostly, but not all, melted. It was quite good, although the brie would have been more distinctive had I not cut the rind off to please my rind-averse husband. Such is compromise. And I'm not sure if it was the simmer, or the cheese, or what, but the kale was vastly improved over its original incarnation.

The best part, though, was watching our toddler pore over each individual piece of penne trying to remove every speck of kale before she ate it. Eating with recent-vintage humans is often hilarious in unexpected ways.

[PoppiYYZ]

Thanks DJ,

I really enjoyed your thread and appreciate your brie "fate" update. I'm sure your family won't sigh when the next gift basket containing cheese arrives...

[danna]

This one has tomatoes as well, but you cook them a bit, so it's not so obvious that they are sad winter tomatoes. http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/foo...

I really like this recipe and have made it a number of times. Up the wine a bit and reduce the amount of pasta.

[WNYamateur]

Sliced Brie is delicious in quesadillas. We make "not your mother's quesadillas" for a party containing nothing but slices of grilled portabella and slices of Brie.

[PoppiYYZ]

Breakfast ? Apple Walnut Pancakes and Brie?

Use your favorite pancake recipe / mix. Seperately, cook sliced peeled cored granny smiths with a little brown sugar, honey, maple syrup, and pinch of cinnamon til slightly slightly softened and syrupy, add walnuts and serve over pancakes with 2 slices of brie. The combo really works.

[haiku.]

Also delicious on pizza was some caramelised onions and sesame seeds.

[chef chicklet]

thanks for your posting a small wheel that needs to be used as well. As a member for several years now, I sometimes look at flickr.com for ideas. Sometimes there are recipes and sometimes you need need to figure it out. Anyway, the smoked salmon pizza sounds interesting and looks beautiful. The other thing I saw was a brie en croute, with a light mango sauce served with haricot vert and sliced almonds over both. My own idea was to make a tart o thingly sliced potatoes and onions with prociutto and brie. Serve a slice on a bed of arugula, and a good tomato. I haven't figured out the dressing yet.... or if it would need it.

It's such a great appetizer wrapped in phyllo with a cranberry sauce and warm pears.

[mamachef]

You can pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts and stuff with a combo of chopped spinach, cubed brie, salt, pepper, a little minced garlic; roll, tie and dredge, then saute and finish in oven. Great over pilaf with a good squeeze of lemon.

[goodhealthgourmet]

the first thoughts i had when i saw the post title were risotto, polenta or mac & cheese (or other creamy pasta dish)...but here are a few alternative ideas:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/panini-with-chocolate-and-brie-recipe/index.html
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/bobby-flay/turkey-burgers-filled-with-brie-and-grilled-granny-smith-apples-recipe/index.html
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/chicken-salad-and-cranberry-brie-toast-recipe/index.html
http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=10000001886350
http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/rec...

[darklyglimmer]

Those are all great ideas, thank you! Wasn't there a thread recently about that brie-and-chocolate sandwich of Giada de Laurentiis's? I'm sort of intrigued, but I must admit that I can't quite imagine it . . .

[goodhealthgourmet]

this one?
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/491357

that's some memory you've got. the thread is from 2 years ago!

i totally get the combination - the idea of buttery brie with chocolate works for me as long as the chocolate is nice and dark/bittersweet...and since basil is in the mint family, it's not much of a stretch to pair that with chocolate either.

[darklyglimmer]

LOL, it must have popped up somewhere recently. I can barely remember which toothbrush is mine.

Maybe I'll give it a shot. I do love sweet and savory combined.

[mcf]

At my nephew's bar mitzvah, they had bare wheels of brie, top rind removed, under heat lamps and they drizzled it with honey when they served it to you on granny apple slices (my favorite way) or crackers. You know I won't be doing that again, but it's a very good memory.

I recall a very good chicken breast recipe with brie on a raspberry sauce, somewhere.

[Breezychow]

I just recently was e-mailed a recipe I haven't tried yet - "Creamy Rigatoni With Broccoli and Brie". Am not sure which website it came from, but had to be Martha Stewart, Real Simple, or Saveur. Anyway, do a search using the recipe title & I'm sure it will pop up somewhere. Looks delicious & perfect for this time of year.

[HillJ]

http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipe...

I just happen to have it in front of me.

[Breezychow]

Thanks!! I just received it the other day, copied & saved it, but couldn't recall the source.

I bought 2 small mini-wheels of imported Brie during igourmet's "buy one get one free" cheese sale recently, so this recipe is on my menu to try in the next week or so.

[darklyglimmer]

That looks great. I bet even the toddler would eat broccoli if it were covered in melted Brie.

[Harters]

Hopefully the Brie is not in prime eating condition as, otherwise, it's going to be a crime against cheese to cook with it.

But if you have to cook, how about this take on tartiflette from my usual supermarket's site:
http://www.waitrose.com/recipe/Tartif...

[darklyglimmer]

Thanks for the recipe - looks good.

It's garden-variety grocery store Brie, and in fact is from our local grocery store, label intact. I doubt the Cheese Propriety Police will be breaking down my door anytime soon. Nice of you to be concerned, though. :)

[Harters]

No, no. I think you misunderstand. When I referred to prime condition, I meant suitably matured - so ripe that you could almost pour it onto bread. You'd only want to eat that as is, not cook with it.

[darklyglimmer]

Nope, understood you perfectly - but I'm still determined to turn that brie into dinner, somehow. My joke about the Cheese Propriety Police was meant to convey that this particular Brie isn't really worth obsessing about, and never will be. (Which, of course, won't stop me from eating the entire thing on bread for breakfast; thus my quest for an alternate plan.)

[HillJ]

http://ellysaysopa.com/2009/04/26/sav...

Any chance you have a waffle iron? This recipe is delicious and the brie really makes the dish.

[darklyglimmer]

My heart just skipped a beat in every possible way. I do have a waffle iron, but am going to try my damnedest to resist using it for this recipe. Drool.

[HillJ]

lol, why resist? it's darn good!

[cheesecake17]

I make a spinach and artichoke tart that would be great with brie. No real measurements, I just go by sight of ingredients. I can write out the basic recipe if you want..

[darklyglimmer]

Sounds fantastic - I'd love to hear about it if you have time!

[cheesecake17]

Here goes.. you could also layer the ingredients in a pie shell if you don't mind the extra calories.

1 bag frozen spinach, defrosted
1 bag frozen artichoke hearts, defrosted
handful of mushrooms
carmelized onions (from 4 medium onions)
shredded cheese- a few handfuls (or your brie, chopped up)
2 or 3 eggs
about 1 cup of cottage cheese
salt, pepper, fresh thyme (can use dried)

To make the onions- slice into rings or half moons. On a very low flame, cook with a pinch of salt and splash of oil until very dark. Takes about 45 minutes. Drain the onions of excess oil. Can definitely do this in advance or even just saute the onions if you don't have time. Take out the onions and saute the mushrooms.

Chop the artichokes if they are too large. Mix spinach, artichokes, onions, mushrooms with eggs (I use whites only), cheese, cottage cheese, and seasonings. If it doesn't seem 'wet' enough, add another egg or more cottage cheese.

Bake in a pyrex or casserole dish- can do one large 8x8 or pie plate size. Or individual ramekin sizes. I bake at about 400 until it's set- 45 minutes- 1 hr.