Phyllo Dough Appetizers
Using store-bought phyllo cups and a 5-ingredient filling with cheese, apples and bacon, these phyllo cup appetizers are ready in less than 30 minutes.
These Phyllo Cups make the perfect appetizer
My favorite shortcut to the easiest appetizers that also seem the fanciest are store-bought phyllo cups.
You can find these in the freezer section of the grocery store (although sometimes they are sold at room temperature around the holidays), and all you do is open the box up and fill the cups to your liking.
But because they are so dainty and pretty looking with their fluted edges, any appetizer made with these cups automatically ends up feeling super fancy.
These Phyllo Cup Appetizers have a filling made with salty bacon, sweet apple, tangy goat cheese and melty Gouda cheese. They’re so good that a batch will disappear quickly, so you might want to make a double batch!
What are Phyllo Shells? Why make Phyllo Appetizers?
Phyllo shells are small edible cups made with layers of phyllo dough, which is a light and flaky unleavened dough used in Greek and Middle Eastern cuisines.
People are most often familiar with phyllo dough in baklava and flaky spinach pie.
Phyllo shells are a favorite of mine for appetizer cups because they are SO adaptable. They can be filled with any variety of filling to make phyllo cup appetizers, from sweet to savory or somewhere in between.
I use them to make my mini baklava bites phyllo cup recipe, and just about every flavor of appetizer under the sun. Food Network has a roundup of Phyllo Shells 15 Ways that has a ton more great ideas.
The savory little bites I’ve made here are also terrific as one of a few brunch ideas for a crowd.
Ingredients for Phyllo Dough Cups
- phyllo shells – 1 box of phyllo shells (15 pieces) will provide the delicate, flaky base for these appetizers.
- bacon – you’ll need 2 slices of cooked bacon for this recipe. See my Cooking Bacon In Oven post or How To Cook Bacon In The Air Fryer to make sure it’s perfectly cooked.
- apple – you’ll need 1/2 of a small Gala apple, so you can eat the other half for a snack while you prepare these phyllo cup appetizers.
- goat cheese – a bit of softened goat cheese will help bind the filling and give it a tangy taste.
- Gouda cheese – adds a nutty flavor, and melts like a dream.
- hot sauce – just a dash will elevate the flavor complexity.
- chives – adds a pop of color as a garnish.
Where do you find phyllo cups in the grocery store?
These little edible cups that I use for phyllo cup appetizers (usually called “phyllo shells” or “mini fillo shells” on their box) are most often found in the freezer section of any grocery store (look near the puff pastry and other frozen pastry items).
I’ve also occasionally seen stores keep them at room temperature during the holiday season when they sell quickly, since phyllo cup recipes are popular that time of year.
If you can’t find them at your store, be sure to ask, because some stores keep them in truly oddball locations.
How to Store Phyllo Shells for Phyllo Cup Appetizers
You can store unfilled phyllo cups at room temperature for a few days once you bring them home, or freeze them for longer freshness if you’re not ready to make a phyllo cup recipe yet.
If you’ve stored your phyllo cups in the freezer after purchasing them, simply put them on your counter as you are cooking bacon in the oven (or turkey bacon in the oven or turkey bacon air fryer) and prepping your filling for these appetizer cups, and they’ll be at room temperature and ready to eat by the time you’re ready to fill them.
Phyllo cups can be served straight from the box, or baked if you want. Like I said, SO easy. You can practically make these phyllo cup appetizers with an apple cider bourbon drink in one hand.
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How to Make Phyllo Appetizers
These cheese, apple and bacon phyllo cup appetizer cups are my modern take on a cheeseball and crackers. In fact, all of the elements of a really fancy cheeseball are included – bacon, goat cheese, and gouda cheese. And the crunchy phyllo shells mimic crackers.
- To make these phyllo cup appetizers, grab a bowl and simply stir together some cooked and crumbled bacon, goat cheese, gouda cheese (also my fav cheese for vegetarian quiche and mushroom tacos), a dash of hot sauce, and some chopped Gala apple (also my apple of choice for baked apples in the oven and Instant Pot apple butter).
- Scoop the mixture into phyllo cups, and if you’re really in a time crunch, you CAN serve these bites at room temperature. But, I like to pop them into the oven so the cheese gets all golden brown and melty.
The warm, gooey cheese is a big payoff for just 15 minutes in the oven for these phyllo shell appetizers.
Phyllo Dough Appetizers FAQs
Phyllo cups can become soggy if you fill them with wet ingredients too far in advance, so be sure to fill them just before baking.
Store phyllo cups in an airtight container at room temperature to maintain their crispness.
We are using pre-made phyllo cups for this recipe, but if you wanted to make your own, you’d need three to four layers of phyllo dough.
This shouldn’t be an issue with phyllo cups, but if you use phyllo dough and it becomes dry, cover it with a damp kitchen towel to prevent it from drying out further.
While both are flaky doughs, phyllo is paper-thin and doesn’t contain butter. Puff pastry is known for it’s very buttery, flaky layers, and the layers are thicker than phyllo layers.
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Phyllo Cup Appetizers
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Ingredients
- 1 box phyllo shells (15 pieces) 1.9 oz
- 2 slices Oven Baked Bacon very finely chopped
- ½ small Gala apple very finely chopped
- 2 ounces goat cheese softened
- 2 ounces Gouda cheese shredded
- Dash hot sauce
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. If phyllo shells are in freezer, place on counter to bring to room temperature while you prepare the filling.
- In medium bowl, stir bacon, apple, goat cheese, Gouda and hot sauce until well combined.
- Place phyllo shells on rimmed baking pan. Divide cheese mixture between phyllo shells. Transfer to oven and bake 15 minutes or until light golden brown.
- Garnish with chives and serve immediately.
I’ve never been a fan of cheese balls, but these little pastries sound wonderful. I don’t have any excuse to make them, but am definitely saving the recipe, for just in case.
I wonder if you could make a small batch just as a snack for you and your husband? The leftover phyllo shells could be kept in the freezer and you could maybe make a half batch of filling (or a full batch, and just eat it over a few days).
Anyway, I hope you have a lovely Thanksgiving, Susan. Thanks so much for being such a loyal reader. It means a lot to me.
Thank you Lori. I wish a wonderful Thanksgiving also. A small batch for snack sounds like an excellent idea.