Baked Camembert with Armagnac Prunes, Mushrooms and Thyme

By stancec44

From Taste and Technique, pg. 79.

Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp. butter
• 1 tsp. good olive oil
• 1/2 c. diced shalt
• 2 c. thinly sliced cremini or button mushrooms
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. pepper
• 2 tsp. thyme leaves
• 3/4 c. Armagnac Prunes, roughly chopped into 1/2 inch pieces
• 1 - 8-10 oz Wheel Camembert or other double-creme, French style cheese (Brie)
• Baguette for serving

Details

Servings 4

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 400.

In a large black steel pan, warm the buttered oil over med.high heat. Add the shall and cook just until translucent, 1-2 minutes. Add the mushrooms, salt and pepper and sauce, moving the mushrooms around, for 7-10 minutes, until they begin to color on their edges and the moisture they release evaporates. All of the mushrooms should be soft and tender, with no spongy quality or rawness to them. Turn the heat up at the end of cooking to evaporate any additional mushroom moisture and brown the edges very slightly. Add the thyme and prunes and sauce for an additional minute. Remove pan from thereat and all the mixture to cool slightly, about 5 minutes.

Unwrap the cheese and place in a small baking dish. Place the prune and mushroom mix all around and slightly on top of the cheese and bake for 5 - 10 minutes, until the cheese is warmed through, softened and beginning to melt; you will see some cheese oozing out. Serve immediately.