Phyllo Brie Cups

First off, lemme just say, this appetizer totally wasn't worth the effort and didn't come out exactly as I had hoped, but I'll share it with you anyway.

I've since seen some recipes that put a slice of brie on a cracker with some sugar or fruit compote and nuts. Why didn't I run across those or think of it myself before I went to all this trouble? Sheesh! Next time, I'm going with that method instead for sure!

Anyway, this was inspired by baked brie wrapped in puff pastry. For that appetizer, however, you need the whole wheel of brie, but I wanted to use some of it for our cheese plate as well, so I thought I'd try making individually-sized baked brie. It didn't quite turn out the way I had hoped, but at least the cheese plate looked nice =)

My version wasn't quite as melty and the phyllo cups were too delicate to make them a good finger food, plus making the cups was pretty time-consuming. The flavor was good though, so I definitely think I'll be trying the puff pastry or cracker versions in the future.

Ingredients:

• phyllo dough
• brie
• melted butter or oil
• brown sugar or fruit compote of some sort
• nuts (I used walnuts)

Method:

• Cut the phyllo dough into 2x2 inch squares. Layer them on top of each other in a spiral shape in a cupcake mold, brushing each layer with the butter/oil to create a cup. Put them into a 350 degree oven for about 15 minutes until slightly crispy and browned.
  
• Take the phyllo cups out and add some brie to the bottom, sprinkle with brown sugar or fruit compote and top with a few nuts. Put them back into the oven until the cheese is melted and declicious.