In the summer, fresh lemons overflow from my fridge. I squeeze wedges into water, onto salads and into all kinds of cocktails.
But in cooler months, I don’t use lemons as frequently and so I don’t always have them on hand.
Use Fresh Or Bottled Lemon Juice
To make sure that I always have lemon juice, even if I don’t have lemons, I’ve started keeping some bottled juice in the fridge. I particularly like the little lemon-shaped squeeze bottles. They don’t take up much space and are easy to spot when I need them.
Also, the lemon-shaped bottle is what my Baba used to use. Whenever I take the bottle out of the fridge, I get to spend a second remembering her and her kitchen, which always brightens my day.
The first time that I tested today’s oozey brie recipe, I happened to have a fresh lemon on hand and so I used it. For my second test, I didn’t have a fresh lemon and so I used lemon juice from my yellow squeeze bottle. I was delighted to discover that I couldn’t tell the difference. The bottled lemon juice offered just as much sour tang and brightness to the brie as the fresh lemon juice had.
So, when making this recipe, go ahead and squeeze in some lemon juice from a bottle if that’s what you have. It will work perfectly. I promise.
Making Cranberry-Basil Baked Brie
This recipe uses cranberry sauce. I love to make it when I happen to have leftover cranberry sauce in the fridge. This always happens after Thanksgiving, making this brie a perfect recipe for the Holiday season. If you have leftover cranberry sauce, try out this recipe or have a look at my ideas for what to do with leftover cranberry sauce. There are tips and recipes too.
For more fun variations on cranberry Brie try Cranberry Pistachio Baked Brie by Gimme Some Oven or Cranberry Maple Baked Brie by Will Cook for Smiles. Enjoy!
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Cranberry-Basil Baked Brie
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Appetizer
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: American
DESCRIPTION
This is a super-simple but super delicious baked brie recipe. If you don’t have a 7 oz. wheel of brie, you can use a wedge. Put the wedge in a small casserole dish that is only a bit bigger than your brie. Serve straight from the oven in the casserole dish.
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup whole berry cranberry sauce (canned or homemade)
- 1 Tbsp. roughly chopped fresh basil, plus some whole leaves for garnish
- 1 tsp. lemon juice
- 7 oz. wheel of brie
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
- In a small bowl combine the cranberry sauce, basil, and lemon juice.
- Put the brie on a baking sheet. Top with the cranberry mixture.
- Bake until the sides of the brie are starting to bulge outwards (this is the creamy cheese inside the rind aching to ooze out), about 20-25 minutes.
- Top with a few whole basil leaves as garnish. Serve on the baking sheet, warning your guests that it will be hot.
Disclosure: I was compensated monetarily by Concord Foods (via BlogHer) to write about their reconstituted lemon juice. I was also sent samples to try. All opinions are my own.
This post originally appeared in December 2013 and was revised and republished in October 2021.
Tania says
Christine, this recipe looks fantastic. I love eating cranberries in winter. They add bright flavour and beautiful colour to any recipe. Plus, they are a great source of vitamin C – full of antioxidants, and have antibacterial effects in the body.
Kerry Ann says
Yum. Forget as an appetizer—add a loaf of warm French bread and I could eat that for dinner!