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Prep Time: 0 Minutes Cook Time: 2 Minutes |
Ready In: 2 Minutes Servings: 24 |
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One of my favorite appetizers for the holidays are mini cheese balls. As much as I can enjoy a large cheese ball, the balls lose their appeal after a group of people have dipped their crackers into the cheese. Imagine rolling smaller balls of cheese which your guests and family can put on to their own plate with a few crackers or chips. Read more . These would make great holiday gifts on decorative trays and will stand out amongst the other appetizers that you might have out for that special gathering during the holidays. The recipes comes directly from Kraft Foods. The additions following the recipe are some of the recipes that I use to make the cheese truffles. Ingredients:
2 pkg. (8 oz. each) philadelphia cream cheese, softened |
1 pkg. (8 oz.) kraft shredded sharp cheddar cheese |
1 tsp. garlic powder |
dash ground red pepper (cayenne) |
1/4 cup chopped roasted red peppers |
2 green onions, sliced |
1-2/3 cups planters chopped pecans |
sociables savory crackers |
Directions:
1. BEAT cream cheese, Cheddar cheese, garlic powder and ground red pepper with electric mixer until blended.
2. Divide in half.
3. Add roasted peppers to half and onions to other half; mix each until blended.
4. REFRIGERATE several hours or until chilled.
5. SHAPE into 24 (1-inch) balls.
6. Roll in pecans.
7. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
8. ADDITIONS!
9. Cranberry Cheese Truffles
10. 2, 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
11. 1 cup of Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
12. 1 cup of chopped dried cranberries
13. 1 1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts
14. Mix all ingredients well except for the walnuts. Roll in walnuts after making balls. Chill 2 hours or more and serve with crackers
15. Peanut Butter Cheese Truffles
16. 2, 8 oz cream cheese, softened
17. 1 cup of peanut butter, creamy or chunky
18. 1 cup chopped peanuts
19. 1 1/2 cups finely chopped peanuts
20. Mix all ingredients except for the 1 1/2 cup of chopped peanuts. Make the balls and roll in the peanuts. (These go great with Ritz Crackers and make a great after school snack!)
21. Chocolate Cheese Truffles
22. 2, 8oz cream cheese, softened
23. 1 cup of chocolate chips, semi sweet perferred
24. 1 cup chopped walnuts
25. 1 bag of mini chocolate chips OR 1 1/2 cups of finely chopped walnuts
26. Mix the cheeses and the cup of chocolate chips. Make the balls. Roll in either the mini chocolate chips or in the finely chopped walnuts.
27. (These are great rolled in 2 cups of toasted coconut!)
28. Italian Salami Cheese Truffles
29. 2, 8oz cream cheese, softened
30. 1 cup of Mozarella cheese, shredded
31. 1 1/2 cups finely chopped Italian salami
32. 1 1/2 cup dried parsley
33. Mix cheeses, roll balls in dried parsley and chill.
34. Mexican Cheese Truffles
35. 2, 8oz cream cheese, softened
36. 1 cup of Mexican Blend shredded cheese
37. 1/2 cup of Salsa
38. 2 TB taco sauce of your choice or hot sauce of your choice
39. 2 cups crushed tortilla chips
40. Mix cheeses, roll balls in tortilla chips and chill in a cool place for an hour. If you put these into the fridge, the chips might get soggy. You can chill the balls and then roll them in the chips right before serving for optimum crunchiness!
41. These are great served with homemade tortilla chips or toasted pita bread chips.
42. Killer Onion Cheese Truffles
43. 2, 8oz. packs of Neufchatel Cheese (Yes, you can use cream cheese), softened
44. 1 bag of Lipton Onion Soup Mix, sifted, separating the dry onions from the soup mix
45. 1 cup of cheddar, Swiss or Monterey Jack cheese
46. 2 TB Worchester Sauce
47. 1/2 cup finely chopped white or yellow onions
48. 1/2 cup finely chopped red onions OR scallions
49. 1 cup of dried onion bits
50. Mix cheeses with LIpton soup mix, mixing well.
51. Add Worchester sauce and all chopped onions
52. Roll into balls and roll into dry onion bits OR save 1/2 of your favorite chopped onions and mix with the dry onion bits and roll the balls in that. Either way, you come out with a great onion-flavored truffle.
53. Blue Cheese Macadamia Truffles
54. 2, 8 oz cream cheese, softened
55. 1 cup of crumbled blue cheese
56. 2 cups chopped salted macadamia nuts
57. Roll the two cheeses after mixing in the nuts. These are so good!
58. Macadamia Pineapple Cheese Truffles (New as of 7/12/09)
59. 2, 8 oz cream cheese softened
60. 1/2 cup of crushed pineapple, drained
61. 2 cups chopped salted macadamia nuts or chopped toasted pecans
62. (These are great with a 1/2 of cup of finely chopped ham, too!)
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