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These honey, walnut, and goat cheese phyllo cups are an easy appetizer recipe that requires minimal cooking, so it comes together in very little time. Perfect for your next holiday party!
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I love a great phyllo cup recipe. They're perfect for this busy time of the year. These flakey little cups are made with layers of phyllo dough and come pre-baked, so all you do is crisp them up, fill and serve. You can add fresh fruit and whipped cream for a quick bite-sized dessert, or fill them with savory ingredients for a delicious bite.
Honey, walnut, and goat cheese phyllo cups are a simple but delicious appetizer that's made with easy to find ingredients. The savory goat cheese filling and sweet walnut topping makes this simple appetizer the perfect addition to a snack spread for your party guests. You can prep them a couple days ahead of time, then assemble them in the hours before company arrives so you can be focused on your guests while snacking on something tasty.
Ingredients
- Mini phyllo cups
- Goat cheese
- Whole milk or heavy cream
- Fresh thyme
- Salt
- Walnuts
- Honey
- An orange
How to Make Honey, Walnut, and Goat Cheese Phyllo Cup Appetizers
Crisp mini phyllo shells according to package directions. Allow to cool to room temperature. Set aside.
Toast walnuts in a small skillet over medium-low heat. Toss walnuts as they toast, being careful not to burn them. Remove from heat as soon as you start smelling the nuts. Cool them to room temperature.
Finely chop walnuts. In a small bowl, combine chopped walnuts with honey and orange zest. Set mixture aside.
In a medium bowl, combine the soft goat cheese, cream, thyme and salt. Beat with a hand mixer for 1-2 minutes until mixture is light and fluffy.
To Assemble:
Place ½ teaspoon of goat cheese mixture into a phyllo cup.
Top with ½ teaspoon of nut mixture.
Top with a few leaves of fresh thyme. Repeat with remaining phyllo cups.
Serve at room temperature.
Recipe Tips
- This is a great make ahead recipe for holiday entertaining. Make the walnut and honey topping and store it in a covered container at room temperature for up to 3 days. Mix well before using. Make the goat cheese filling and store it in a covered container in the refrigerator.
The morning you want to serve these, crisp the phyllo cups, bring the goat cheese mixture to room temperature, and stir the walnut and honey topping. Assemble the phyllo cups up to 2 hours before guests arrive. Cover and leave at room temperature until ready to serve. - Phyllo dough and puff pastry are NOT the same thing. Phyllo dough cups come already baked and ready to fill. You just have to warm them up in the oven. Puff pastry is raw and needs to be fully baked. Like its name suggests, it puffs up when baked, leaving little room for filling.
- Phyllo dough shells are found in the freezer section of the grocery store, usually by the puff pastry and frozen pie crusts.
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FAQs and Substitutions
If you don’t like walnuts, pecans are also delicious in this recipe. Do not substitute peanuts. If you have a tree nut allergy, find a different recipe.
Hate goat cheese? You can use plain cream cheese in this recipe instead.
Yes. The texture of dried thyme doesn’t work with this recipe. Buy fresh thyme.
If your grocery store doesn’t carry - or is out of - phyllo cups, use water crackers instead. Spread the crackers with the goat cheese mixture, then top with the walnut mixture and fresh thyme.
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PrintHoney, Walnut, and Goat Cheese Phyllo Cups
These honey, walnut, and goat cheese phyllo cups are an easy appetizer recipe that requires minimal cooking, so it comes together in very little time.
- Prep Time: 15 min
- Cook Time: 5 min
- Total Time: 20 min
- Yield: 15 pieces 1x
- Category: Appetizers
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 15 phyllo cups (1 package)
- 4 oz goat cheese, softened
- 1 tsp whole milk or heavy cream
- 1 tsp fresh thyme
- ¼ tsp salt
- ½ cup walnuts
- ¼ cup honey
- Zest from 1 medium orange (about 1 tsp)
- Fresh thyme sprigs (garnish)
Instructions
Crisp phyllo cups according to package directions. Allow to cool to room temperature. Set aside.
Toast walnuts in a small skillet over medium-low heat. Toss walnuts as they toast, being careful not to burn them. Remove from heat as soon as you start smelling the nuts. Cool them to room temperature.
Finely chop walnuts. In a small bowl, combine chopped walnuts with honey and orange zest. Set mixture aside.
In a medium bowl, combine softened goat cheese, cream, thyme and salt. Beat with a hand mixer for 1-2 minutes until mixture is light and fluffy.
To Assemble:
Place ½ teaspoon of goat cheese mixture into a phyllo cup.
Top with ½ teaspoon of nut mixture. Top with a few leaves of fresh thyme. Repeat with remaining phyllo cups.
Serve at room temperature.
Keywords: holiday appetizers, phyllo cup appetizers, make ahead appetizers, easy snacks, easy appetizers, cold appetizers, vegetarian recipe
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