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As the self-proclaimed brie queen, I have done brie every way you can think of. I’ve baked it, boarded it, drizzled it with honey, wrapped it…you get the point. When I came up with the idea for a brie cake, I had no idea how much I would fall in love with it. Then you guys made it go viral and I knew I wasn’t the only one! Now 8 versions and counting, I feel like it’s time for a brie cake series where you guys can see them all in one place. Without further ado, enjoy browsing.
What Is A Brie Cake?
A whole brie wheel, sliced in half, filled with flavored whipped brie, stacked back together, and frosted on the outside like a bare layer cake, and that is it! Served cold, just like a real cake. You can slice it into wedges or cut straight across, whatever you prefer. There’s no wrong way to do it. And the layers? Gorgeous. That’s where you get to see the filling (and the personality) of each brie cake.
Table of contents
Watch the Full Brie Cake Series
Same technique, completely different directions.
Browse all seven and find your flavor.
The Brie Cake Collection
Whipped Orange, Honey and Pistachios
Fig and orange spread whipped into the brie for the filling, topped with dried mandarin slices, a piece of honeycomb, chopped pistachios, and a sprig of rosemary. Everything on this one is dried or pantry stable, so nothing on it is seasonal and nothing wilts in a gift box.
- Best for: Holiday gifting, Thanksgiving, Christmas, hostess gifts.
- Gifting: Yes, one of the cleanest shippers in the series.
- Season: Year-round. Dried mandarins and fig jam mean no seasonal limitations.
- Make-ahead: Assemble up to 24 hours ahead. Add toppings right before serving or boxing.
Fresh Figs and Pistachios
The first one I made. Fig jam whipped into the brie inside the wheel, topped with fresh figs, pistachios, chives, and honey. It is the easiest of the group to put together, so start here if you have never made one. The fig jam filling works all year and the fresh figs on top swap out for caramelized pears, blackberries, raspberries, or roasted grapes when figs are gone.
- Best for: First-timers, dinner party appetizers, any occasion.
- Gifting: Yes, assembles cleanly and holds well boxed.
- Season: Year-round. Fresh figs for the topping are best late summer through fall – swap in caramelized pears, blackberries, raspberries, even roasted grapes.
- Make-ahead: Assemble up to 24 hours ahead. Add all toppings right before serving.
Dirty Martini (Blue Cheese and Olive)
Blue cheese, chopped Castelvetrano olives, and chives folded into the whipped brie, with a splash of vodka if you want it. Blue cheese stuffed olives go on skewers across the top. Fully savory, nothing sweet in it, and it belongs on a cocktail hour spread.
- Best for: Cocktail parties, holiday entertaining, savory-leaning crowds.
- Gifting: Yes, holds and transports well.
- Season: Year-round.
- Make-ahead: Assemble up to 24 hours ahead. Add olive topping right before serving.
Baklava Brie Cake
We take a classic stuffed brie and layer it with sweet dates, sticky honey, and toasted nuts mixed right into the whipped cheese. We top it with crispy phyllo strands and serve it with homemade honey butter phyllo crisps so you can scoop it all up.
- Best for: Dinner parties, same-day entertaining.
- Gifting: Not ideal. The cake transports fine, but the phyllo strands go soft in the fridge.
- Season: Year-round.
- Make-ahead: Cake and crisps can be prepped ahead. Bake the phyllo strands the day of, as close to serving as you can.
Bada Bing Cherry
Cherry jam whipped into the brie for the center, frosted with more whipped brie and topped with crushed pistachios and whole bada bing cherries. Fresh cherries are late spring through summer. Outside that, good jarred cherries or Luxardo work.
- Best for: Gifting, spring and summer entertaining, Mother’s Day, bridal showers.
- Gifting: Yes – assembles and boxes cleanly.
- Season: The cherry jam filling is year-round. Fresh bada bing cherries for the topping are in season late spring through summer. Outside that window, good-quality jarred or Luxardo cherries work as a substitute.
- Make-ahead: Assemble up to 24 hours ahead. Add cherry topping right before serving.
Fresh Truffle
Triple cream brie whipped with fresh black truffle, then finished with truffle shaved by hand and laid out into a flower on top. Fresh black truffle is at its best December through March, and the flavor swings depending on what you buy. Read The Fresh Truffle Buyer’s Guide before you shop.
- Best for: Special occasions, formal dinner parties, high-impact gifting.
- Gifting: Yes, one of the top gifting picks in the series.
- Season: Fresh black truffle is at its best December through March. There are some substitution alternatives. See the recipe page for details.
- Make-ahead: Assemble up to 24 hours ahead. Add truffle topping right before serving.
Classic French Radish
My favorite one. It uses a Saint Angel brie, which is square instead of round, filled with whipped radish and chive butter and frosted in triple cream. Mini radishes, edible flowers, and honeycomb go on top. Crisp radishes with cold butter and flaky salt is a classic French pairing and this turns it into a centerpiece.
- Best for: Spring entertaining, tea parties, savory birthday cakes, dinner party centerpieces.
- Gifting: Yes, assemble and pipe up to a day ahead; pull the edible flowers and honeycomb before refrigerating and add fresh before serving.
- Season: Year-round, with spring as the sweet spot when radishes are at their best and edible flowers are easy to source.
- Make-ahead: Assemble and pipe up to 24 hours ahead. Hold all toppings and add right before serving.
Roasted Grape Brie Cake
Candied walnuts, crispy pancetta, and chives whipped into the brie, topped with grapes roasted on the vine, more walnuts and pancetta, and a honey drizzle. The second savory one in the series and the only one with cured meat in it.
- Best for: Fall and holiday entertaining, cocktail hour, savory-leaning crowds.
- Gifting: Yes.
- Season: Year-round, with fall and winter as the sweet spot.
- Make-ahead: Components a day ahead. Cut the wheel and assemble the day of.
You’ll be the Favorite Guest
An Edible Gift
Seven of the eight box and transport well. The exception is the baklava, since the phyllo has to be baked the day you serve it. For the rest, cut and assemble the wheel the day you are gifting it, then add the toppings right before it gets boxed. I use specific gift boxes from Amazon that fit a standard brie wheel perfectly.
Not Sure What Flavor To Gift?
The orange fig or the cherry are the safest picks and universally loved. If you aren’t sure what they would like, or they aren’t into the stronger flavors of the other ones, go with one of those.
The truffle is the right call if you know the person will appreciate it. The flavor varies depending on the fresh truffles you pick, and it is very savory and umami. People either love it or they hate it.
The dirty martini is for the friend who dives into the blue cheese on a charcuterie board or orders their martini dirty when you go out. If that is your person, this one is the winner.
The roasted grape is the other savory option. Roasted grapes, candied walnuts, and pancetta read like a cheese board, so it works for someone who wants savory without blue cheese.
If you want something that looks like it took far more effort than it did, the radish butter is the one. The square brie and the piped frosting make it look so unique. Just make sure they like radishes.
The baklava is a little more last minute and a little more complicated, but it is still a great gift. Assemble the cake the day you are gifting it and leave the toppings off. There are prep tips on the recipe page. Add the phyllo on your way out the door, and don’t put it back in the fridge once it’s on or the phyllo will lose its crunch.
Frequently Asked Questions
A brie cake is a sliced brie wheel filled with a flavored whipped brie center, reassembled, and frosted on the outside with more whipped brie – like a bare layer cake, but made entirely from cheese. It is served cold, holds its shape when sliced, and can be made a day ahead. Every version in this series follows the same base technique with a different filling and topping.
No. The brie wheel itself is never heated. Some versions in this series include components that bake separately – the baklava version has phyllo crisps that go in the oven on their own – but the cheese stays cold throughout. Every brie cake here is a no-bake recipe at its core.
Yes, and in most cases it is actually the better approach. The assembled cake needs time in the fridge to set before the toppings go on, so building it the evening before gives you a cleaner result and nothing to do at serving time except finish the top. Each recipe page covers the specific timing and what holds versus what needs to be added last minute.
My favorite way to serve it is with toasted baguette or ciabatta slices. Crackers are also a good option.
