Baked Brie with Grape Balsamic Compote
Today I bring you guys the last of my purple food posts. It took a couple weeks, but we made it! This is another recipe that I’m pretty proud of. I rarely make up my own recipes and this is one of those rare exceptions. For whatever reason, the idea of using grapes to make purple food didn’t cross my mind until the day before the party.
I had put baked brie on the menu and had planned to make a blueberry compote to put on top. But then it hit me – use grapes (duh!) So I used this blueberry sauce as an inspiration for the compote. I wanted it to be thicker, so I bumped up the amount of cornstarch.
I was a bit concerned that it would be too sweet, and I know balsamic pairs well with strawberries, so I decided to make the cornstarch slurry using balsamic vinegar instead of water. It worked like a charm. This grape balsamic compote was nice and thick and had a subtle savory tone from the balsamic. I added some toasted almond slivers to give it some texture and voila – I had created an AMAZING appetizer that was also purple.
The Baked Brie with Grape Balsamic Compote was a huge hit. And I’ve made it twice since the party. I used a goat milk brie wheel so that I could enjoy this appetizer. The goat milk wheels are 6 oz. I believe cow’s milk brie wheels come in 8 oz containers, but you should have enough compote using the recipe below.
I also wanted to share this trick about baking brie with you guys. I can’t remember where I learned this but Hubby was shocked when he saw me pop the “lid” off the brie after it had baked. Prior to baking your brie, use a sharp knife to cut around the top of the rind. You don’t want to cut it completely off, just cut about a 1/4 inch into the brie right under the top all the way around. While the brie is in the oven, the cheese will get all melty and gooey. Then when you take it out of the oven, you can just remove the top of the rind like so:
Hope you guys have enjoyed all the purple food. As a reminder, here are the other foods I serves at my 1000th Post Party:
- Caramelized Red Onion Tart
- Purple Potato, Tomato, and Goat Cheese Bruschetta served in Endive Leaves
- Pulled Pork Sliders with Red Cabbage Slaw
- Radicchio, Strawberry, and Walnut Salad (provided by Fiona)
- Baked Brie with Balsamic Grape Compote
- Purple Ombre Layer Cake (and Video Tutorial on How to Pipe a Rose)
- Blackberry Cheesecake Swirl Brownies
- Roasted Blueberry Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
- Two-Berry Coconut Macaroons
Two Years Ago: Homemade Oreos (again)
Three Years Ago: Coconut Lime Cupcakes
Four Years Ago: Dairy Free Mac and Cheese with Broccoli and Cauliflower
Baked Brie with Grape Balsamic Compote
Fruit and cheese are such a classic combination. I used a 6 oz wheel of brie because I use goat milk brie. If you use an 8 oz wheel, bump up the ingredients of the compote a bit as well.
Yield: Serves 8
Ingredients:
For the Compote
1 cup black seedless grapes
1 1/2 Tbsp sugar
1/2 Tbsp cornstarch
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
For the Brie
6 oz wheel of brie
1/4 cup slivered almonds, toasted
crackers and/or toasted baguette for serving
Directions:
For the Compote
Poke 2-3 holes in each of the grapes and place in a medium pan. Add the sugar and cook over medium heat. Use a potato masher to encourage the grapes to release their juices.
Combine the cornstarch and balsamic vinegar in a small bowl.
Once the grapes have released most of their juices, stir in the slurry and boil for one minute. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
For the Brie
Preheat oven to 350.
Place brie round in a small oven-safe dish. Using a sharp knife, cut into the rind about 1/4" all the way around, just under the top of the brie. You don't want to cut the top completely off.
Bake 10 minutes.
Place dish onto a larger platter. Lift the top of the brie with a knife and remove. Spoon grape compote on top of brie. Sprinkle with toasted almonds.
Serve with baguette slices and crackers.
I am Jen the Beantown Baker. Engineer by day and baking maven by night. Hubby serves as my #1 fan and official taste tester. We got hitched back in 2006. Barefoot. In the sand. With the waves crashing behind us. It was one of the best decisions we’ve ever made. 
it looks delicious!
Beautiful cake! I can’t get over the ending either, too soon!
beantownbaker — December 26th, 2013 @ 10:56 am
Right! It happens every year, but I feel like this year flew by especially quickly.
Wow – super gorgeous!! I’m so glad you love this cake as much as I do! Happy Christmas and almost New Years, doll!!
beantownbaker — December 26th, 2013 @ 10:58 am
Happy Holidays to you too!
This cake looks so beautiful and I bet it tastes divine 🙂 can’t wait to try it!
definitely perfect for new years! i can’t believe this year is almost over, either- crazy!
this is perfect for our holiday-the Florida strawberries have been so sweet – thank you
beantownbaker — January 2nd, 2014 @ 1:31 pm
I wish I lived somewhere where the strawberry season was longer than a few weeks…
I was just thinking, what if we made this w/pink champagne?
beantownbaker — January 2nd, 2014 @ 1:30 pm
I think it would be great with pink champagne!
I know what you mean we grew up and lived in Michigan all our lives. When our kids were little I would take them to the farms to pick blueberries, raspberries and apples. The strawberry season was always short or not at all due to the wet springs we so often had. But we did get farm fresh ones at our local farm market. I now live in Central Florida where I’m learning so much about fresh grown foods. We live a few blocks from Oviedo where DUDA farms are. They are known especially for their celery but so many other fresh veggies. We have a few local farms where you can pick strawberries and blueberries. The gulf coast really has a lot of strawberry farms. On Tuesday our local Publix store had Florida fresh strawberries on sale. I just cleaned them last night (I think my husband took about 1/2 of them to work) We are fortunate, but I still miss Michigan and all the farming communities in our area.
beantownbaker — January 4th, 2014 @ 10:38 am
Wow – I bet things in FL are very different than Michigan! We can usually get strawberries at the farmers market as well. But again, it’s SUCH a short season. Last year we missed it completely. I’m still adjusting to the different seasonal timing in Ohio vs what it was in Boston. We always make a point to pick strawberries, blueberries, peaches, and apples. Peaches and strawberries are two of my favorite summertime fruits.
Woah, thanks a bunch for sharing!
I made this cake for my girlfriend’s surprise birthday party, and it was freaking delicious. Granted this was my first cake I have ever baked, but there wasn’t enough frosting to cover the whole thing and keep part of the actual cake from showing through. I don’t even like cake, and this was bomb!
This CAKE IS THE BOMB!!!!, I found this online in 2014. I showed it to my twin sister, I said, I won’t this for our B-Day, but we didn’t have it until September 2015, and again this year. So delicious, my son Loves it as well, we’re making it tomorrow December 28th 2015 for his birthday. Yummmmy!