Cheddar pecan cheese ball
Sharp cheddar and cream cheese shaped into a ball and rolled in pecans, a little retro, very good, and made days ahead.
- 100 min total
- 15 min hands-on
- Anyone can make this
- Serves 12
- About $0.82 a serving
- 300 calories
- Good the next day
- Vegetarian
Dolly says: Make the full amount. Whatever’s left keeps for tomorrow.
Ingredients
For 12 servings.
- 8 oz cream cheese, softened
- 8 oz cheddar cheese, sharp
- 3 green onions
- ½ tsp hot sauce (optional)
- 1 cup pecans, finely chopped
- 2 tbsp chives, chopped (optional)
- 8 oz butter crackers, for serving
From your pantry
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp smoked paprika
Each serving has about 300 calories, 8 g protein, 15 g carbs and 25 g fat, and costs about $0.82 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No cheddar cheese? Shredded cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese or Mexican blend cheese works.
- No hot sauce? Sriracha works.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
Set the cream cheese on the counter for 30 minutes to .
Softened. For vegetables it means cooked until they bend and lose their crunch; for butter, left out until it dents easily. Soft onions taste sweet, and soft butter mixes in smoothly.
How you’ll know: Onions squash easily against the pan with your spoon, and butter dents under a finger without looking greasy.
Timer: 30 min
the cheddar on the small holes of a box grater and the green onions.
Grate. Grating means rubbing food across the holes of a grater to make fine shreds or flakes. It spreads cheese, garlic or ginger evenly through a dish so it melts right in.
How you’ll know: Even shreds fall off the back of the grater, and you stop while the piece is still big enough to hold.
Finely chop. Finely chopping means cutting food into small pieces, a little bigger than minced, about the size of a lentil. Small pieces spread their flavor through the dish and cook quickly.
How you’ll know: Nothing is bigger than a lentil, and the pile looks like confetti rather than paste.
Dolly’s tip: Grate it yourself if you can. Bagged shredded cheese is coated in starch and makes the ball crumbly.the cream cheese, cheddar, green onions, garlic powder, smoked paprika and hot sauce together until evenly mixed.
Stir. Stirring means moving food around with a spoon or spatula so it cooks evenly and doesn’t stick. Unless the recipe says constantly, every so often is plenty, and it gives food time to brown.
How you’ll know: When you drag the spoon across the bottom, nothing is sticking or scorching.
Scrape it onto a large sheet of plastic wrap, gather the wrap up around it, and twist to press it into a ball.
Chill at least 1 hour, until firm.
Timer: 60 min
Dolly’s tip: Wrapped well, it keeps 3 days in the fridge.Mix the pecans and chives on a plate, unwrap the ball, and roll it around, pressing the nuts on until it’s coated all over.
Serve with the crackers and a small knife for spreading.
Dolly’s tip: It can sit out up to 2 hours. Wrap what’s left and it keeps for days.Food safety: Food with mayonnaise, dairy, eggs, cooked meat or cream, like dips, salads and cream desserts, can sit out for 2 hours at most, or 1 hour above 90°F. Keep cold food in the fridge or on ice until serving, and hot food at 140°F or hotter.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
When you host a dinner, Dollop builds the menu around your guests’ allergies, works out a cooking timeline back from when everyone sits down, and puts it all on one grocery list.
