Every time I type “thyme” I think of the truly countless high school students who, over the semesters, would come to my counters saying they forgot to get them “thime”. Ok this app is what’s UP if you want easy, delicious, “real” and crowd pleasing. Hopefully you’re nodding your head “yes” by now. The crux of this dish is those deeply sauteed mushrooms. Just a general cooking tip – always cook mushrooms well before using on anything – pizza, stromboli, pastas, pilafs, etc. Nobody wants a mushroom that is spongy and tastes like dirt. The method involves cooking down the mushrooms until they release their water and then the water evaporates. Next, the mushrooms will caramelize in the hot pan until they’re golden brown and delicious.
That’s when you add herbs like rosemary or thyme and my favorite addition, dry sherry. If serving them as is you could add some butter at this point, but since we are adding them to brie the butter becomes redundant. I have made brie en croute which entails wrapping your brie up in puff pastry before baking it, which adds a bit to the presentation. Later I made it for my husband and some friends and decided to forgo the pastry for gluten reasons. The result was a dip of sorts, a perfect accompaniment for a thinly sliced french baguette (or gluten free crackers). For parties I’ve made this at my house, covered with foil, and driven short distance (10-15 minutes). It made the trip quite nicely! PS you don’t have to go to the wine store for sherry – I bought sherry cooking wine at Giant and it served it’s purpose.
Baked Brie with Thyme Mushrooms
Serves 8-10
1 tbsp. olive oil
16 oz. white button mushrooms, stems removed and thinly sliced
1 tbsp. dry sherry
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. fresh thyme leaves
1 (16 oz) wheel brie
1 crusty french baguette, or gluten free crackers
1. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat and add olive oil. Once hot, add mushrooms.
2. Stir occasionally as mushrooms cook. Cook until mushrooms release liquid and then the liquid evaporates. Reduce heat to medium low and cook further until mushrooms turn golden brown throughout.
3. Add sherry, salt, pepper and thyme and stir, cooking, for about 1 minute or until liquid evaporates. Mushrooms can be cooled and refrigerated in tupperware for several days.Â
4. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Spray an ovenproof skillet with nonstick spray. Sprinkle some mushrooms on the bottom of the pan and place brie on top. Spread the rest of the mushrooms on top of the cheese and around the sides.
5. Place in preheated oven for 25-30 minutes or until brie is melted through and beginning to bubble/brown. Remove from oven and serve within 30 minutes.
