Thank you to Maille for partnering on today's post. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Have you noticed?

I’ve got a bit of a theme going on this holiday season. Entertaining with ease. Because here’s the thing, the holidays can be pretty darn stressful. But food and entertaining should not be.

I’ve got a few tricks up my sleeve that I use to keep things simple and easy when hosting a celebration. One of them is to always make sure I have at least one jar of Maille on hand. A little dijon mustard goes a long way in transforming a dish, or creating a super simple recipe. You’ll be seeing a few of my easy holiday appetizers popping up on Maille’s channels over the holiday season, but to kick things off, let’s start with this one, pear + dijon baked brie. It only requires a handful of ingredients, takes less than 10 minutes to make, and, let’s be honest, who doesn’t love warm, melty cheese?! Add some crostini or crackers, pour a glass of wine and you’re good to go.

WHAT ARE YOUR GO-TO EASY HOLIDAY APPETIZERS?

INGREDIENTS

• A 9 1/2 ounce wheel of brie cheese

• 1 1/2 tablespoons Maille Old Style Dijon Mustard

• 1/2 a pear, very thinly sliced (you can also use apple or persimmon)

• 1 tablespoon of walnuts, chopped

• 1/2 tablespoon maple syrup

• Fresh rosemary

• Toasted baguette or crackers, for serving

DIRECTIONS 

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and place the wheel of Brie in the center. Spread the Maille on top, then layer on the pear slices, sprinkle with walnuts, drizzle with the maple syrup and finish with a sprinkle of fresh rosemary. Bake for 5-7 minutes, or just until the cheese starts to ooze out of the rind.

3. Serve immediately with baguette or crackers, and extra Maille on the side!