Warm, gooey, and oh so delicious – is there really anything better than baked cheese?! In this article, we give you a step-by-step guide on how to bake your camembert to perfection, as well as our favourite camembert topping ideas…
How do you bake camembert? Start by scoring the cheese and adding your favourite toppings. Add to a deep round dish on a baking tray. Bake your camembert at 180ºC for 20-25 minutes until gooey and bubbling. Serve alongside bread, crudités, and dried meats for the most delicious appetiser!
Read on for our favourite camembert toppings, plus ideas on what to dip into your cheese!
Method
Follow these steps to make our Baked Camembert + Baked Camembert Toppings
Camembert is a French cheese, so if you can, choose one that bears an AOC (appellation d’origine contrôlée) stamp – this means that the cheese is traditionally made in their region of origin.
Alternatively, pick up a camembert at your local supermarket. Ensure your camembert is unpasteurised to prevent curdling in the oven. Our favourites include Camembert De Normandie from the Fine Cheese Co. or Camembert from Le Rustique.
Top tip: gently squeeze the side of your cheese – a ripe cheese should feel soft but still hold its shape.
If you’re feeding more than 4 people, we’d recommend choosing a large camembert wheel (i.e. more than 250g), or baking multiple.
Remove any outer packaging from your cheese and place it in a dish. Round cheese bakers or small cast iron pans work brilliantly for baked camembert, but any oven-proof container will work fine.
It is so important that you bake camembert in something with sides, not just on a tray – unless you want cheese going everywhere! Keep in mind that if you are baking your cheese with toppings, choose a baking dish that has high enough sides to prevent any overflow!
Before you add any toppings, score your cheese with a sharp knife. If you aren’t keen on the camembert rind, you could cut off the top layer, although this isn’t necessary.
Add the toppings of choice (keep reading for some ideas!). Keep it simple with honey and rosemary, or add a festive touch with port-infused cranberry sauce. The options are endless!
Place your cheese baking dish on a tray and add to a preheated oven at 180ºC. For a standard-sized camembert (around 250g) this should take around 20 minutes.
If you need to bake your cheese for slightly longer, that is fine to do. However, we wouldn’t recommend baking your cheese for more than half an hour as this could result in hard and bitter cheese.
Once your cheese is baked to perfection, take it out of the oven carefully. Don’t attempt to move it to another container, as it is likely your camembert will break and spill.
Finish your camembert with a sprinkle of salt and fresh herbs before digging in! Serve alongside warm bread, crackers, or breadsticks. For more accompaniment ideas, keep reading.
If you are looking for more festive recipes for your next dinner party, why not try our Brie & Cranberry Sausage Rolls, Festive Nuts, or our Creamy Butternut Squash Soup?
Our Favourite Baked Camembert Toppings
Camembert is a delicious cheese, but it is mild in flavour, so we’d always recommend adding a topping if you are serving it for date night, at a party, or at a festive get-together! Find our tastiest baked camembert toppings below:
Fresh Herbs & Sea Salt
If you are short on time, or you are using a particularly flavoursome item to dip into your baked camembert (such as garlic bread), stick with a simple topping. To let the creamy flavour profile shine, simply finish your cheese with sea salt flakes and small sprigs of seasonal herbs. Our favourites for camembert include:
- Thyme
- Rosemary
- Oregano
- Chives
- Bay leaves
Jam & Fruit Spread
Fruit and cheese are one of the most elegant grazing combinations, and jam works perfectly for baking on top of your camembert. Ideas include:
- Marmalade
- Blackberry jam
- Cranberry jam
- Fig jam
- Strawberry jam
To serve, garnish with wedges of fresh fruit and a drizzle of honey right before serving. If you like to play with bold flavours, opt for a spread like Fruits For Cheese as these are often thicker and richer than jam. The fig spread is our absolute favourite!
Top tip: the saltiness of prosciutto ham pairs perfectly with this combination. Crisp up in the oven at the same time and serve alongside crackers.
Camembert With Honey & Garlic
This is one of the most simple combinations, but it is bound to impress almost all of your guests. Thinly slice two garlic cloves and stuff them into premade slices on top of your cheese. Simply finish with a generous drizzle of honey before popping into the oven.
You could substitute fresh garlic for a drizzle of homemade garlic oil. Learn how to make it in our popular wild garlic oil recipe. For a truly impressive appetizer, add a generous slice of locally-sourced honeycomb to the top of your cheese once it has come out of the oven.
Cranberry & Thyme
Perfect at Christmas time, this festive combo is a twist on the popular cheese and jam pairings that we mentioned earlier. The tanginess of the cranberries works well to cut through the creaminess of the camembert.
Simply spread a generous layer of cranberry sauce on top of your cheese wheel and garnish with sprigs of fresh thyme before popping it into the oven. If you have any on hand, garnish your cooked cheese with fresh cranberries.
This dreamy combo results in sticky, sweet, ooey gooey goodness which will be the talk of any festive gathering!
Chilli Jam
This might sound like a peculiar combination, but trust us, it is fantastic! What’s more, it literally couldn’t get simpler. Like you would with jam, spread a generous layer of chili jam on your cheese before baking.
If you don’t have sweet chilli jam on hand, feel free to use a drizzle of sweet chilli sauce instead. For an extra kick, sprinkle on some chilli flakes before popping your cheese in the oven.
Love sweet chilli jam as much as we do? Try our sticky Sweet Chilli Sausage Roll recipe!
Wholegrain Mustard & Truffle Oil
Thinly slice two garlic cloves and bury these in your cheese before adding your tangy mustard on top, before finishing with your truffle oil. Remember, a little goes a long way with this topping, so just add a thin spread of mustard to your cheese so you don’t overpower the other flavours at play.
If you truly want to impress your guests, finish your camembert with fresh truffle shavings.
What Should You Dip in Baked Camembert?
If you’ve added a topping to your camembert, we’d recommend keeping the vessels for your melted cheese pretty simple. Our go-tos include:
- Freshly baked bread
- Crackers, crispbreads, or melba toast
- Breadsticks, pretzels, or pastry twists
- Potato wedges
- Deli meat such as salami or prosciutto ham
- Pickles & cornichons
- Crudités
- Fresh fruit
If you want to learn more about crudites & dips, and how to make a beautiful veggie platter of your own, read one of our recent blogs – ‘What Is a Crudités Platter & How Do You Keep One Fresh?’
Camembert Grazing Boxes From Savery Grazing
Got you in the mood for camembert yet?! If you’re in the Sheffield or Peak District area, why not place an order for one of our delicious grazing boxes? We stock everything from crudités to charcuterie, to desert platters, and everything in between!
If you’d like a quote for our bespoke grazing options or you’d like to place an order, reach out to our friendly team via phone or email.
Related Questions
Do You Bake Camembert With a Lid On?
Baking your cheese with a lid on isn’t essential, and in fact, it’s something we wouldn’t recommend. Instead, use your lid to keep the cheese warm and gooey between taking out the oven and serving it to your guests.
Why is My Baked Camembert Not Running?
There may be a few reasons that your baked camembert isn’t runny, which could include:
- Not baking your cheese for long enough
- Baking your cheese for too long, which hardens the cheese up again
- Choosing a cheese that wasn’t ripe enough
Can You Overcook Baked Camembert?
Yes, you can! Cooking your cheese for more than half an hour, for a standard-sized camembert, will likely take it past the gooey stage. Unfortunately, once you have overcooked your camembert there is nothing you can do to fix it. The hardened cheese will still be delicious on crackers, so certainly don’t throw it away!
Are There Any Baked Camembert Alternatives?
If we don’t have camembert in the house, we love baking brie instead. You can use all of the same delicious toppings, however, it may take slightly longer to cook. Any milk, creamy, unpasteurised cheese would work well as a camembert alternative.
To find out more about the similarities and differences between the two cheeses, read our recent blog: Camembert VS Brie: What’s the Difference?
What Wine Pairs Best With Camembert?
The rich & creamy profile of cheeses like brie and camembert pair beautifully with a light white wine. Be careful not to overpower the delicate flavours of the cheese by choosing a Rosé, Pinot Noir, or Sauvignon Blanc. Prosecco is also a great choice if you are hosting a festive get-together! If you are keen to learn more about the best wine and cheese pairings, read one of our recent blogs for our favourite combinations, as well as simple pairing tips!
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