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Happy holiday season! Today I’m sharing with you a Cranberry, Thyme, Brie, & Apple Crostini – the perfect appetizer for any feast this holiday season. Plus, I’m sharing my favorite wine pairing trick to thoughtfully elevate your holiday feasts. The holidays are all about the art of easy, and this appetizer is the perfect example of easy but elegant and impressive.
Let’s talk wine and wine pairing. Served alone, or to accompany your impressive holiday feasts, your wine choices this holiday season should elevate your holiday recipes, not fight them. My favorite way to do that is to have the wine progress with the evening. Start with your lightest wines, and progressively move towards your full bodied, heavier wines. This simple trick works perfectly because appetizers tend to be lighter, and then you move through the meal to the main course which tends to be heavier. By matching the wine progression to the food, your palette allows you to taste and savor each flavor.
This doesn’t always mean you have to start with light wine and move to dark. This Thanksgiving, I’m planning to start everyone off with these Cranberry, Thyme, Brie, & Apple Crostini and a Please-All Mezze Platter. I’ll be serving this course with Clos du Bois Chardonnay, Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc, and Meiomi Pinot Noir. All beautiful options for simple, light appetizers. Right after you assemble these beauties, you’ve earned yourself a well deserved break with the Clos du Bois Chardonnay. With a crack of the cap of the Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc, the moment is transformed – it consistently shows up with boldness and self-assurance. And my personal favorite is the Meiomi Pinot Noir – with toasty oak notes, flavors of jammy fruit, mocha, and vanilla – and it’s a wine well worth sharing with those you love.
If you stick to wine worth sharing, you can’t go wrong. And if you’re still planning your Thanksgiving feast, check out my eBook, Thanksgiving Sides & Sweets: Everything but the Bird, which includes a categorized grocery list & prep ahead tips for easy entertaining this holiday.
Cranberry, Thyme, Brie, & Apple Crostini
Ingredients
- 8-12 oz. fresh cranberries
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp honey
- 1 baguette sliced and toasted
- 2 McIntosh apples thinly sliced
- 8 oz. goat milk brie sliced
- 1 bunch fresh thyme stemmed
Instructions
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Preheat your oven to 400°F.
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Add your cranberries to a baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and honey. Cook for 15 minutes.
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Layer each slice of baguette with the sliced apple, brie, a tablespoon of the roasted cranberries, and a sprinkle of thyme leaves. Drizzle with more honey if desired.
