Christmas Cranberry & Brie Sandwich
Cranberry sauce + torched brie + turkey = Christmas magic. This sandwich is perfect for the holiday season! It packs a huge flavor punch that makes you feel like you're eating all your favorite Christmas or Thanksgiving dishes, all in one perfect, fluffy bite. Plus, since its the only time of year when you’re likely to have any leftover turkey or cranberry sauce (thank you, thanksgiving), its the perfect opportunity to use all of that up, and turn it into something that might be even better than the real thing. Juuuustttt sayinnggggg.
Even better, this sandwich can be made in under 10 minutes, if you prep the dijonnaise in advance. You could even use your favorite store-bought version :)
I hope you’re having the best holiday season, and that you’re eating lots of yummy food.
As always, if you make this please DM me a pic on Instagram @vanillabeandiaries and let me know what you thought in the comments below! I’d love to see how it turns out. Xoxo <3
Christmas Cranberry & Brie Sandwich
*Makes 1 large sandwich
Ingredients
1 small, fresh ciabatta loaf (or half of a fresh baguette), sliced in half lengthwise
1/2 cup arugula
5-6 pieces of sliced turkey breast or turkey ham
1 small brie round, room temperature and cut into slices
2-3 sprigs of fresh thyme
2-3 tbsp of cranberry orange sauce/jam, or any favorite berry jam, such as raspberry
Salt & freshly cracked black pepper
Olive oil, for drizzling
For the roasted garlic dijonnaise:
1/2 cup mayo, preferably kewpie
2 bulbs of garlic, whole and unpeeled
1 1/2 tbsp dijon mustard
Salt & freshly cracked black pepper
Instructions
1) To make the roasted garlic dijonnaise: Preheat oven to 400 °F / 205 °C. Take your whole garlic bulbs and slice them in half horizontally, exposing the cloves on both sides. Place each bulb half on a foil square, drizzle the exposed garlic cloves with olive oil, and season each one with a pinch of salt. Wrap each bulb in the foil square, twisting it at the top. Place each wrapped bulb half (you should have four) on a small baking sheet and bake for 25-40 minutes, or until the garlic cloves exposed by the cut are soft and roasted. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool slightly before you handle them, about 10 mins.
2) Once the garlic has slightly cooled, squeeze the cloves from each of the garlic halves into a small bowl. You should squeeze from the bottom up, in other words, squeezing from the root or the stem of the garlic up to the end with the exposed, cut cloves. Don’t get any garlic skin/peel on the cloves. Once you got everything out, use a fork or the back of a spoon to mash the roasted cloves to your liking –it all depends on how chunky you want the sauce. Then, mix in the mayo, dijon, and a few generous grindings of black pepper. Taste and adjust the amount of salt to your liking. Set aside.
3) To assemble the sandwich, take the bottom half of your sliced ciabatta loaf and spread about 2-3 tbsp of dijonnaise onto the surface, using a spoon. Then, layer your arugula on top and drizzle it with a little bit of olive oil. Season the arugula with a few grindings of fresh black pepper and a small pinch of salt.
4) Nestle your sliced turkey onto the bed of arugula, followed by your slices of room temp brie. *It’s important for the brie to be room temperature, as it will be softer and meltier when assembling your sandwich! Plus, if you don’t wish to heat up the sandwich (next step), you’ll definitely want your brie to at least be able to reach its gooey and melty natural, room temp state. Using a blowtorch, lightly torch your brie so it melts even further. You could also pop it into a 350 °F / 180 °C oven for 3-5 minutes, just until the cheese has melted.
5) Once the brie has melted, grab one of your thyme sprigs and pinch it with your index and thumb at the top. Using your other hand, also in a pinching motion, pinch the stem below the hand that’s pinching the top, and slide your finger down to the bottom, pinching all the way down. This will help easily release the thyme leaves from the stem. Sprinkle however much you like onto your melted brie, I like to do about 1-2 tsp.
6) On the remaining top half of your ciabatta (which shouldn’t have anything on it at this point), spread your cranberry jam evenly over the surface with a spoon. Close your sandwich, and slice it in half, by gently pressing it down while you cut it with a serrated knife *A serrated knife is a knife that has a scalloped blade edge, that looks almost tooth-like, and allows for things such as bread to be cut easily, without being squished. Serve and enjoy with any extra dijonnaise or cranberry sauce on the side.
