These Cranberry brie Mini Tarts are the perfect appetizer for Thanksgiving or Christmas! They are also a great way to use up leftover cranberry sauce!
How was everyone’s weekend? Mr. Briar and I had a pretty great one. Friday night we experimented with burger recipes (those will be coming to the blog in the future!), Saturday we went to Discovery Park, which if you live in Seattle or are planning on visiting, you should make an effort to visit – it is gorgeous! I posted a few pictures on snapchat of fallen leaves that were twice the size of my hand. After our rainy walk in the park, we finally got to check out Un Bien, the new incarnation of the famous sandwich shop Paseo. It has been about five years since I ate at Paseo, and the new place did not disappoint. We also had dinner with friends both Saturday AND Sunday – we were extra social. I ended up bringing these quick cranberry brie tarts to one of the dinners.
How was everyone’s weekend? Mr. Briar and I had a pretty great one. Friday night we experimented with burger recipes (those will be coming to the blog in the future!), Saturday we went to Discovery Park, which if you live in Seattle or are planning on visiting, you should make an effort to visit – it is gorgeous! I posted a few pictures on snapchat of fallen leaves that were twice the size of my hand. After our rainy walk in the park, we finally got to check out 
I have a thing for happy hour. And by happy hour I mostly mean appetizers and drinks in any setting, it doesn’t have to be at a bar. In fact, my husband and I are so fond of having happy hour at home that for our wedding instead of serving a large dinner we served about 20 heavy appetizers that people could pick and choose to make their meal. Because of my love of happy hour, I have a love for easy appetizers. I especially like it when a few of them together (along side a nice cheese plate) makes an impressive spread, but without working in the kitchen for hours.
With the holidays coming up, I am guessing that most of you are going to be going to a few get-togethers, and maybe hosting some as well. It is always good to have a few quick appetizers up your sleeve, either for bringing to a party or for hosting one. This one is so simple, it only takes three ingredients! I used the leftover cranberry sauce from Friday’s post here. I’m sure many of you are going to have some leftover cranberry sauce laying around after Thanksgiving, and even though Turkey Cranberry sandwiches are delicious, it’s good to have some other options for using it up.
For these simple mini tarts, I just used mini phyllo cups which are available at most grocery stores in the freezer section. If you can’t find them, you can use regular phyllo dough cut into squares and pressed into the mini muffin tin. Buying the cups already made just saves some time. Into each cup I placed a dollop of creamy brie – triple cream. If you use double cream it won’t melt as well, so try to use triple cream. I baked them for 10 minutes, then took them out of the oven and spooned a little cranberry sauce in each cup. You can also bake them with the cranberry sauce, but I preferred the fresher flavor that the cranberries had when I did not bake them. I finished these with a little fresh cracked pepper, which I think rounds out the flavor nicely. You can leave it out if you want, but it really adds an extra layer of flavor, so at least try it before you decide!
The crunch of the phyllo cup combined with the buttery flavor of the brie and the sweet tart flavor of the cranberry sauce all compliment each other and make the perfect two bite appetizer. Serve these next to a nice cheese plate and some bacon wrapped dates and you have a nice little cocktail party spread with hardly any effort. These would also be great to serve as Thanksgiving day appetizers. I like to have a few small plates out for guests to nibble on throughout the day so that people don’t get hangry when the turkey inevitably takes longer than scheduled.
Cranberry Brie Mini Tarts
Ingredients
- 12 frozen mini phyllo cups
- 6 teaspoons triple cream brie
- 6 teaspoons homemade cranberry sauce
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F
- Place the phyllo cups in a mini muffin tin.
- Fill each cup with about 1/2 teaspoon of brie.
- Bake for 10 minutes, until cups are golden and cheese is melted.
- Remove from oven and top each cup with 1/2 teaspoon cranberry sauce. Finish with by lightly seasoning with fresh ground pepper (one turn of the grinder per cup was perfect for me)
Notes
Be sure to use triple cream brie if you can. Double cream will not melt nicely.
Nutrition
If you love these, you will LOVE my Baked Cranberry Brie Bread Bowl and my Pomegranate Goat Cheese Bites!
Are you getting ready for holiday entertaining? What kinds of things do you like to serve at your gatherings?
Thanksgiving Leftover Sliders
Baked Cranberry Brie Bread Bowl (VIDEO!)
Leftover Cranberry Sauce Crumble Bars
Sue says
Do you have to cook the preformed shells in a mini muffin tin or can you bake them with the brie on cookie sheet?
Meghan says
Hi Sue – you can use a cookie sheet 🙂
Laure says
Hi Meghan!
I’m planing on making these for this Thanksgiving. Do you bake the cups first and the bake again with the Brie? I noticed that the empty cups looked baked already in pictures you posted.
Meghan says
Hi Laure – No, I didn’t bake them before hand. The pre-made phyllo cups are already a little browned when you get them. I think they bake them before packaging. I hope you love the recipe!
Elizabeth says
Does the cranberry sauce have to be homemade?
Meghan says
Hi Elizabeth – no, it doesn’t have to be homemade, store bought is fine. I would use whole berry cranberry sauce if you can though!
Dianna says
these sound delicious. do they travel well? We have a two hour drive to attend a party.
Meghan says
Hi Dianna,
I brought them to a party and I put them in a glass container with a lid. So that way they wouldn’t get crushed. I think they will be fine out of the fridge for a few hours, but if you can, maybe bring the cranberry sauce in a separate container and put it on the tarts after you get to the party. That way they won’t get soggy. Hope that helps!
rOBIN says
Loved these – served them at tHANKSGIVING DINNER FOR APPETIZERS. the addition of pepper brought them over the top from good to delicious. mADE 50 OF THEM FOR THE ENTIRE PARTY GUEST LIST, BROUGHT ONLY 40 OF THEM FOR FAMILY TO ENJOY. oOPS! i AM GOING TO MAKE THEM AGAIN BUT THIS TIME WITH A CRANBERRY SALSA.
Meghan says
Yay! So happy to hear that Robin! I’m glad they were a hit!
Jeasica says
I would like to bring these to Thanksgiving at our family’s house. Should I cook hem ahead and apply cranberry sauce and take to the gathering and possibly heat for a couple mins or just put cold Brie in cups and heat entirely at the gathering and apply cranberry sauce there? The oven is a popular and usually occupied place on this holiday, so trying to figure out the best option. Thanks!
Meghan says
Hi Jessica – You can make them ahead by baking them with just the brie, and then just put the cranberry sauce on top before you serve them. They can be served at room temperature. If you make them more than a few hours ahead I would suggest popping them in the oven if you can for a few minutes right before serving, just because they may lose some of their crispness. Hope that helps and that you and your family love them!
Jessica says
awesome, I will do that. thanks for the quick reply! cant wait to try these!
Sue says
how many “mini-tarts” can be made from one sheet of standard phyllo dough?
Meghan says
Hi Sue – I always use the preformed shells so I’m not sure!
suzanne says
These look amazing. Can they be made in advance and then frozen?
Meghan says
Hi Suzanne – I have never frozen them so I’m not sure. To be honest I don’t really think it would be a huge time saver since they are so quick and easy. They really take just a few minutes to assemble. If you are making the cranberry sauce, it can be made up to two days ahead and stored in the refrigerator. Let me know how they turn out!
Cookin Canuck says
Did someone say Brie? Those little phyllo cups are my favorites for easy appetizers. These would be great for New Year’s Eve.
Meghan says
Yes, can’t go wrong with brie, right!?!
Deirdre says
Can these be eaten cold? Thinking I would like to bring to a work party but no way of heating.
Meghan says
Hi Deirdre, yes, they can be eaten cold or at room temp. I hope you enjoy them!
Kathy Allensworth says
Hi Megan..i made these yesterday for our thanksgiving celebration. They were simple to make, delicious to eat, and enjoyed by all! Thank you so much for sharing your recipe!!!
Meghan says
Yay Kathy! I’m so happy that you made them and loved them!
Kathy @ Beyond the Chicken Coop says
These are so beautiful! I love the festive color, but even more importantly, I love the combination of everything! I too love happy hour….or maybe it’s just appetizers I love at any time of day. They are just perfect little bites of food that are easy to eat! Well done!!!
Meghan says
Thanks so much Kathy! I agree, appetizers are good any time of day!
Linda | The Baker Who Kerns says
These are so cute! And so easy to make! I love the sweet and savory mix in this, can’t wait to try these this Thanksgiving.
Meghan says
Thank you so much Linda! Sweet/savory and easy are my favorite foods 🙂
Cheyanne @ No Spoon Necessary says
First of all, my weekend sucked. Thank you for asking. lol 🙂 I kid. Well, not really, but you know. I’m alive soooo… theres that. Second, I LOVE your version of happy hour, and honestly my version is the exact same. Hand me 5-20 small plates and a few cocktails or glasses of wine and forget “dinner”. These little tarts are perfection, Meghan! I have to admit, whenever I see brie in a recipe I laugh, because that is my sisters name… so naturally I want to eat everything that involves brie. I’m weird like that. Plus there is the ability to tell her that I demolished her in .5 seconds – I find that appealing. 😀 These are perfect for Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years or a Happy Hour night in! Pinning! Cheers, girlfriend! <3
Meghan says
Agh, sorry for the crappy weekend Cheyanne! That is the worst. But the good news is that we are almost to a NEW weekend, so, do-over! And I’m so glad you share my love of happy hour, it is on the regular rotation in our house. I actually love the name Brie, so pretty, but I bet she got more than a few jokes about the cheese in her life 🙂 Thank you so much for your sweet comment and for pinning!
My Dish is Bomb says
Hi, can we be best friends? The end.
Except, P.S., this looks seriously amazing and totally my kind of meal. Three ingredients and brie?? Say no more.
Meghan says
Heck yes, especially if that means I get some of those nutella cupcakes! 🙂 Thanks Katy!
Jess @ Sweetest Menu says
Wow, just wow. These are absolutely gorgeous little tarts! So perfect for the holiday season! I really love your beautiful photography.
Meghan says
Wow, thank you for the sweet compliment Jess!
annie says
Love how easy they are! Fruit and brie is always a good idea. Heck, brie is always a good idea. What a good idea for a party.
Meghan says
You really can’t go wrong with brie! Thanks so much Annie!
Ashley | Spoonful of Flavor says
I love these little tarts! I am always looking for fun holiday appetizers that are quick and easy.
Meghan says
Thank you Ashley! These are the easiest! 🙂
Nicole @ Young, Broke and Hungry says
I’m so envious you got to try Un Bien! I have been meaning to go but never seem to make it out of Capitol Hill..haha
Love these savory tartlets! They are a great appetizer to munch on while I’m preparing the Thanksgiving meal.
Meghan says
Thank you Nicole! I know Ballard can be a PITA, but it was worth it! We grabbed our sandwiches then drove to Golden Gardens to eat them.
Kelly says
These tarts are so so pretty!!! I love cranberry desserts especially around this time of year! The brie sounds perfect in here!
Meghan says
Thank you so much Kelly! The buttery brie and the tart cranberries makes a good pair!
Abida says
These pictures are so beautiful! Really great for this time of year. I have really been wanting to try out recipes with cranberries recently as I have never really cooked with it, this looks so great, thanks for sharing!
Meghan says
Thank you for your sweet comment Abida! The cranberry sauce is a snap, so this comes together so fast.
Abida says
You’re welcome, I liked your recipe so much, I featured it in my weekly round up here! http://www.theredlychee.com/the-weekly-round-up-9-2/
Meghan says
Wow! Thank you so much Abida
Jenny says
These look so good! I’m going to try to make them for an up coming dinner party:)
Meghan says
Thank you Jenny! I would love to hear how they turn out!
E.A. says
OM!! I can’t wait to try these!! Look SO yummy & you make it sound like just a snap to toss it all together…..what a great idea~❤️
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Meghan says
Thank you! Can’t wait to hear about how they turn out!