As a unique take on Southern pecan pie tassies, these bourbon pecan brie bites are a delicious twist on a classic. These gooey little bites are filled with melted brie, crispy bacon, bourbon glazed pecans, and a topping of diced strawberries. It's the perfect balance of sweet, smoky, and savory all in one bite!
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📋 About the Recipe
- These bacon bourbon pecan brie bites are filled with crisp bacon, toasted pecans, creamy brie, and topped with freshly diced strawberries. It's a unique mix of ingredients with comforting and delicious flavors.
- The balance of sweet and savory ingredients is perfect in this seasonal dish. Serve it as an appetizer for the holidays or as a snack while watching a sporting event or football game. Pair with a delicious fig old fashioned cocktail!
- With seasonal fall ingredients, these bite-sized treats are filled with tons of flavor. They get sticky and caramelized in the oven with the best golden brown crunchy crust.
- Bourbon pecan brie bites are a delicious appetizer perfect for a crowd. Size this recipe up or down depending on how many people you plan on serving. This recipe makes 36 bites, so plan on about 3 to 4 per person.
- Check out other fall-inspired appetizer ideas, like these apple and brie sweet potato crostini or this apple cranberry salad.
🛒 Ingredients
A few notes about the ingredients:
- Bacon - bacon may seem like an unusual addition but it adds a smoky element that pairs perfectly with the robust bourbon. If you don't like bacon, you can simply leave it out.
- Pecans - the pecans become flavorful and fragrant when they are toasted in the oven, providing a nutty, crunchy flavor and texture to the bites.
- Unsalted butter - the butter brings everything together, adding flavor and richness.
- Brown sugar - brown sugar helps to sweeten both the creamy brie and the oaky bourbon.
- Bourbon - bourbon elevates the flavor of these bites with hints of oak, vanilla, and caramel. These flavors pair well with the savoriness of the bacon, the nuttiness of the pecans, the sweetness of the brown sugar, and the creaminess of the brie.
- Salt - salt helps in taming the sweetness and keeping this appetizer savory.
- Brie - brie is a very rich, creamy cheese that balances out the stronger flavors in these pecan brie bites. It melts in the oven as the bites cook and when served warm, the bites become melty and gooey.
- Phyllo dough - phyllo dough can be found in the freezer aisle of your grocery story. It is very thin dough that bakes up golden brown, flakey, and crispy. It is the perfect vessel for the heavier cheese, pecans, and bourbon.
- Strawberries - diced strawberries sprinkled over top add a subtle freshness. The flavor also pairs well with the rest of the ingredients, bringing a slightly sweet and tart element.
📓 Instructions
1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. Prepare two sheet pans (if using bacon, or only 1 sheet pan if not using bacon) by covering them with aluminum foil. Spray a mini muffin pan with nonstick spray and set it aside.
2. If using bacon, lay the strips flat on one of the sheet pans and bake them in the oven for 15 minutes, or until bacon is browned and crispy.
3. Remove the pan from the oven and move the bacon onto a paper towel-lined plate to absorb any excess grease. When the bacon is cool to touch, crumble it into small pieces. Set crumbled bacon aside.
4. Chop the pecans into small pieces. Then, add them to the other sheet pan. Toast pecans in the oven for about 5 minutes, watching carefully so they don't burn. Remove from the oven and set aside.
5. Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees F.
6. Add the butter to a large microwave-safe mixing bowl, microwave in 30 second intervals until completely melted.
7. Add the toasted pecans, crumbled bacon, brown sugar, bourbon, and salt to the melted butter. Stir to combine it all.
8. Cut brie into small cubes, just large enough to fit in a mini muffin pan. Set aside.
8. Lay out the phyllo dough and use a circular cookie cutter to cut the dough into circles a bit larger than the holes of the muffin pan. You should end up with 18 even-sized circles. (If you don't have a cookie cutter, you can also use a knife to cut the dough into squares instead. Or, see the note below on using pre-made phyllo cups.)
9. Once the dough is cut into circles, separate the sheets in half so that there are 9 sheets each, and carefully press them into each muffin cup.
10. Place a cube of brie into each phyllo shell. Then, top it with a mound of the pecan filling. You will end up with 36 bites total.
11. Place the muffin pan in the oven and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the phyllo is golden brown and the pecans are slightly caramelized.
12. To serve, remove the bites from the oven and place them on a large serving tray. Top them with diced strawberries and serve them warm for a bite of perfectly melty brie.
⁉️ Substitutions and Alterations
Instead of brown sugar: you can use cane sugar or maple syrup, but they may not turn out as sweet.
Instead of pecans: you can use toasted unsalted pecans, walnuts, or slivered almonds.
Instead of brie: you can leave out the brie or substitute it with French camembert cheese.
Instead of bacon: you can just leave out the bacon.
Instead of strawberries: you can leave them off or you can top these bacon brie bites with diced apples, pears, raspberries, cherries, plums, or peaches.
Instead of phyllo dough: you can try using puff pastry or see "one more tip" below.
❄️ How to Store
To store: These bourbon pecan brie bites are best when served fresh. However, if you have leftovers you can allow them to come to room temperature before putting them into an airtight container. Store in the refrigerator up to 3 days.
To freeze: Freezing is not recommended.
To reheat: You can eat leftover brie bites cold, room temperature, or quickly heated in the microwave for a few seconds. Though, don't overheat them, as they will become chewy and soggy the more they're heated.
🔍 FAQs
Tassies are mini pies or tarts. They are commonly made in the South, often made with pecan pie or lemon fillings.
They are typically eaten as a dessert, like a small deep-dish-style cookie.
These bacon bourbon pecan brie bites are a spin on Southern tassies, but with more savory flavors. They can be eaten as a dessert, but they are recommended to be served as an appetizer instead.
No, the rind is completely safe to eat. It actually protects the softer inside of the cheese from potentially unwanted microorganisms and mold.
The rind also adds a subtle earthy flavor to the creamy cheese, making the dishes it's paired with a bit more savory.
Yes, you can adjust and make this recipe in a larger muffin pan if you'd prefer.
You will need to cut the phyllo dough into larger pieces to fit the larger muffin holders. You will also end up with fewer "bites," unless you double the recipe to have extra filling.
💭 One More Tip
For this recipe, you can also use the pre-made phyllo cups found in the freezer section of your grocery store to save you a little time. However, I chose to use the whole sheets of phyllo dough instead because:
- It is more cost savvy. You get more sheets of phyllo dough for the price.
- Mini muffin pans can sometimes be different sizes. This way, you can cut circles of dough that fit your muffin pan perfectly.
- You get more in general. Cost aside, you get more out of the phyllo dough than the pre-made cups, so you don't need to purchase as much.
- You remain in control of how many layers of dough are in each cup. If you like a flakier crust, you can add more layers. If you like a thinner crust, you can add less. Whereas, the pre-made cups are already assembled for you.
If you do choose to use the pre-made phyllo cups: Fill them with the bourbon pecan mixture and bake them at 350 degrees F for only 10 minutes, or until the cups are lightly golden brown and the pecans are sticky and glazed.
🍴 Related Recipes
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📖 Recipe
Bacon Bourbon Pecan Brie Bites with Strawberries
Ingredients
- 3 strips of bacon uncured, natural, no nitrates or nitrites
- 2 cups raw unsalted pecan halves
- 4 tablespoon unsalted butter
- ⅓ to ½ cup brown sugar depending on how sweet you want
- 3 tablespoon bourbon
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ pound brie
- 1 roll phyllo dough *see notes for pre-made phyllo shells option defrosted and covered according to the box instructions so it doesn't dry out
- 5 medium strawberries diced
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. Prepare two sheet pans (if using bacon, or only 1 sheet pan if not using bacon) by covering them with aluminum foil. Spray a mini muffin pan with nonstick spray and set it aside.
- If using bacon, lay the strips flat on one of the sheet pans and bake them in the oven for 15 minutes, or until bacon is browned and crispy.
- Remove the pan from the oven and move the bacon onto a paper towel-lined plate to absorb any excess grease. When the bacon is cool to touch, crumble it into small pieces. Set crumbled bacon aside.
- Chop the pecans into small pieces. Then, add them to the other sheet pan. Toast pecans in the oven for about 5 minutes, watching carefully so they don't burn. Remove from the oven and set aside.
- Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees F.
- Add the butter to a large microwave-safe mixing bowl, microwave in 30 second intervals until completely melted.
- Add the toasted pecans, crumbled bacon, brown sugar, bourbon, and salt to the melted butter. Stir to combine it all.
- Cut brie into small cubes, just large enough to fit in a mini muffin pan. Set aside.
- Lay out the phyllo dough and use a circular cookie cutter to cut the dough into circles a bit larger than the holes of the muffin pan. You should end up with 18 even-sized circles. (If you don't have a cookie cutter, you can also use a knife to cut the dough into squares instead. Or, see the note below on using pre-made phyllo cups.)
- Once the dough is cut into circles, separate the sheets in half so that there are 9 sheets each, and carefully press them into each muffin cup.
- Place a cube of brie into each phyllo shell. Then, top it with a mound of the pecan filling. You will end up with 36 bites total.
- Place the muffin pan in the oven and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the phyllo is golden brown and the pecans are slightly caramelized.
- To serve, remove the bites from the oven and place them on a large serving tray. Top them with diced strawberries and serve them warm for a bite of perfectly melty brie.
Storage
- To store: These bourbon pecan brie bites are best when served fresh. However, if you have leftovers you can allow them to come to room temperature before putting them into an airtight container. Store in the refrigerator up to 3 days.To freeze: Freezing is not recommended.To reheat: You can eat leftover brie bites cold, room temperature, or quickly heated in the microwave for a few seconds. Though, don't overheat them, as they will become chewy and soggy the more they're heated.
Notes
- This recipe makes 36 bites total. Plan on about 3 to 4 per person.
-
For this recipe, you can also use the pre-made phyllo cups found in the freezer section of your grocery store to save you a little time. However, I chose to use the whole sheets of phyllo dough instead because:
- It is more cost savvy. You get more sheets of phyllo dough for the price.
- Mini muffin pans can sometimes be different sizes. This way, you can cut circles of dough that fit your muffin pan perfectly.
- You get more in general. Cost aside, you get more out of the phyllo dough than the pre-made cups, so you don't need to purchase as much.
- You remain in control of how many layers of dough are in each cup. If you like a flakier crust, you can add more layers. If you like a thinner crust, you can add less. Whereas, the pre-made cups are already assembled for you.
Nutrition
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Barb
These are so yummy! I left out the bacon and they were still just as good. My guests loved them too
Alana Lieberman
So happy to hear they were a hit!