This classic cheese ball recipe is made with cream cheese, green onions, and sharp cheddar cheese. A must have appetizer for the holidays!
This is the best cheese ball recipe!
This is my go to recipe for an easy and tasty cheese ball that only uses simple ingredients and comes together in just a few minutes.A classic favorite that is always a hit for the holidays!
A cheese ball is a delicious addition to any holiday party, and a tradition that I grew up with, like many others did.
This delicious appetizer is so flavorful and has that perfect contrast of crunch in the pecans. Fresh green onions, cream cheese, and a few simple spices add just the right amount of flavor for every bite.
It is so good we made a Pimento Cheese Ball and Pumpkin Cheese Ball version too!
Step 1: First, allow your cream cheese to soften for a few minutes. You will need two blocks of cream cheese.
Step 2: Once softened, beat together the cream cheese, sour cream, garlic powder, fresh chopped green onions, salt, and pepper until combined with a hand mixer.
Step 3: Grate 8 oz of sharp cheddar cheese and beat that in.I always recommend that you take the extra few minutes to grate your cheese fresh. It really makes all the difference in flavor.
Step 4: Cover and chill the filling mixture in the fridge for around an hour or so to firm it up. This will help make it easier to form the cheese ball.
If you want to make this ahead, you can leave the batter overnight in the fridge, then just finish rolling and shaping it right before serving.
Step 5: Once you are ready to make the cheese ball, use greased hands and a spatula to form the mixture into a ball shape.
I first shaped the ball roughly with a spatula then sprayed my hands with olive oil spray to finish shaping it and that worked perfectly.Oiling your hands will help keep the cheese from sticking too much to you.
Step 6: Next, roll the cheese ball in the pecan pieces until it is coated on all sides. You need about a cup of chopped up pecans.
Step 7: Just place the chopped pecans in a bowl and roll the cheese ball until it is totally covered in chopped nuts on all sides. Your cheese ball is now ready to serve!
Grate the cheese yourself: Don’t skip grating the cheese yourself! The extra flavor and texture are just right for this recipe.I used sharp cheddar cheese, but medium cheddar would work just as well.
Buy pecan pieces: To save time, buy your pecans in pieces so you don’t have to spend time chopping them up.
Use a butter knife to serve this cheese ball
Refrigerate until ready to serve: do not leave this out at room temperature for longer than 2 hours.
What crackers to serve with this Cheese Ball Recipe
Personally, ritz crackers are my favorite cracker to serve with a cheese ball, but pretty much any cracker is going to be delicious!
triscuits
pita chips
wheat thins
pretzel chips
other crackers
How to store a Cheese Ball
Leftover cheese ball can be kept in the fridge in an airtight container for 3-5 days. I doubt they will last that long though. In our house any leftovers are quickly devoured!
More Appetizers You’ll Love
Chocolate Chip Cheese Ball
Creamy Spinach Dip
Cream Cheese Fruit Dip
Homemade Veggie Dip
Pimento Cheese Spread
Sour Cream Potato Chip Dip
Slow Cooker Spinach Artichoke Dip
Crock Pot Bean Dip
Crock Pot Queso Dip
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Yield: 1 cheese ball
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Additional Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour15 minutes
This classic cheese ball recipe is always a favorite appetizer for the holidays!
Ingredients
16 oz cream cheese, softened
½ cup sour cream
8 oz sharp cheddar cheese, freshly grated
½ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ cup fresh green onions, minced or finely diced
¼ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
1 cup pecan pieces**
Instructions
Beat together the softened cream cheese, sour cream, garlic powder, green onions, salt, and pepper until combined
Grate the cheddar cheese block fresh
Beat in the sharp cheddar cheese
Cover and chill the cheese ball mixture for around an hour, until it begins to firm
Use a spatula and greased hands to form the cheese ball shape, then roll it in the pecans until it is coated on all sides
Serve with your favorite crackers and enjoy!
Notes
Start with one cup of pecan pieces for rolling, and add more if necessary.
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 - 5 days
Your cheese ball is too runny: Once you have added all the extras, and it's all mixed in well, if the texture is more salad dressing-like than something you might spread on a bagel, you can tighten it up easily by adding unsalted butter, one tablespoon at a time, mixing before you add more.
Storing in Fridge: If you start with fresh ingredients, you can store the cheese ball in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. Cover any leftovers with plastic wrap and store in an airtight container. How to Freeze: I prefer a freshly made cheese ball, BUT you can freeze cheese balls.
Cheese balls are traditionally made with two kinds of cheese – cream cheese (or another soft cheese like quark cheese, mascarpone or ricotta) and a grated semi-soft or semi-firm cheese like cheddar, colby cheese, monterey jack cheese, or muenster.
From there, they are baked in an oven to remove any excess moisture. The tasty cheese flavor is a seasoning that starts with vegetable oil and an all-natural cheddar cheese powder, which are mixed together and sprayed over the cheese balls in a tumbling seasoning barrel until they are completely coated.
Not giving the cheese ball time to chill in the fridge.
Follow this tip: After forming the cheese ball, plan to chill it in the fridge for at least several hours (up to six days). This will give it plenty of time to firm up so it's guaranteed to hold its shape.
Cover the cheeseball in cling wrap and refrigerate for about 1 hour to allow it to firm up. Take it out of the refrigerator about 20 minutes before serving to allow it to soften just slightly. Serve with crackers, pretzels, vegetables or anything else you'd love to dip in cheese!
What to Serve with Cheese Ball. That's an important question and I obviously have a strong opinion. Here are some options: Crackers – Ritz Crackers, Wheat Thins, Multi-Grain, Milton's.
Cheese balls are healthy? Beyond delicious, the cheese balls have a good balance of nutrients, with high-quality carbs and fat, rich in proteins, minerals, and vitamins. So, we can certainly say it's a healthy and nutritious snack.
Cheese balls freeze quite well. Again, it's best to wrap the cheese ball in one layer of plastic wrap, then one layer of aluminum foil. Freeze for up to four weeks. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight.
They're sort of retro, they're easy to make, and let's face it: They're fun. "According to legend," writes Michelle Buffardi, author of Great Balls of Cheese, "the first cheese ball in recorded history was made in 1801 by Elisha Brown, Jr. on his farm and presented to President Thomas Jefferson" at the White House.
In many areas where fried cheese curds are common, the term "cheese curds", or simply "curds", refers to the fried variety; non-fried curds are distinguished by calling them "raw" or "plain" cheese curds. In some areas, deep-fried cheese curds are also known as cheeseballs.
Cheese puffs, cheese curls, cheese balls, cheese ball puffs, cheesy puffs, or corn curls are a puffed corn snack, coated with a mixture of cheese or cheese-flavored powders. They are manufactured by extruding heated corn dough through a die that forms the particular shape.
Data says that there's usually around 1,100 cheese balls per barrel, which means you're getting each individual cheese ball for less than a cent apiece.
While certainly similar, Cheese Balls have a few distinct characteristics that put them ahead of Cheetos Puffs in my bowl. For one, while Puffs and Balls are equally airy during the first bite, Cheese Balls maintain their delightful crunch throughout the chewing process.
Your cheese ball may become runny or wet if you add too many mix-ins. Keep it simple with dried herbs, and make sure to pat dry any fresh herbs before mixing them in.
For a cheese dip or sauce, the addition of cornstarch serves a similar function: Starch molecules absorb water and expand, not only thickening the liquid phase of the sauce, but also physically preventing the proteins from binding into long, tangled strands and the fats from separating out and pooling.
The ratio could not be simpler. For every cup of grated cheese (about 3 ounces) you will need a quarter cup of water and a half-teaspoon of sodium citrate. Heat the water to a simmer, add the sodium citrate to dissolve, then whisk in the cheese of your choice a bit at a time until you get a smooth and creamy mixture.
The basic building blocks of cheese are milk protein (casein), water, fat, and salt. When heated, the protein molecules break apart from that structure, freeing the other parts to become fluid.
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