Holiday Cheese Ball

After the success I've had serving Amy Sedaris' L'il Smoky Cheese Ball, I decided to make another one to bring home for the holidays. Since my sister is a vegetarian and would therefore not enjoy a cheese ball that was reminiscent of bacon, I set out to create one with a different flavour.

I found a forgotten jar of gourmet mango chutney in my pantry, and added a few tablespoons of it to the base recipe of cream cheese and butter, substituting aged cheddar for the smoked gouda in Amy's recipe. Inspired by the pink grocery store cheese ball that my parents usually have on hand, I added a generous glug of port to the mixture. Then, for extra flavour, colour, and texture, I folded in a handful of chopped dried cranberries. Finally, I rolled the cheese ball in a mixture of chopped toasted pecans and walnuts.

This cheese ball couldn't be more different from the earlier version, but it was a fantastic and festive appetizer. The mango chutney and port brought a lot of sweetness to the mixture, which was balanced nicely with the tartness of the cranberries and the sharpness of the aged cheddar. Once again, the toasted nuts brought the taste and texture of the cheese ball to the next level.

I enjoyed this cheese ball as part of a finger food buffet dinner, spread on rice crackers and crostini, and as breakfast the following morning on 7-grain crackers with a big mug of coffee (over the holidays, I will eat absolutely any leftover for my first meal of the day. I think it's a big part of what makes Christmas special).

I'm excited to try even more cheese ball variations. With a great base recipe and tasty additions, how could it go wrong? How about, in 2010, we all live on the wild side, and experiment with our recipes? Try something new, share your results with your loved ones, and feel warm and fuzzy as you stuff yourself silly. Cheers!

Holiday Cheeseball: The Recipe

Ingredients

2 sticks cream cheese, room temperature

1 stick (1/2 cup) butter, room temperature

2 cups grated aged cheddar cheese (I used 4 yr old Canadian)

2 tbsp mango chutney

1/4 cup port

1 cup dried cranberries, chopped

2 cups toasted pecans and/or walnuts, chopped

Directions

To toast nuts, spread on a cookie sheet and into a 350F oven for 8-10 minutes. Cool, then chop.

Using an electric mixer, mix cream cheese, butter, and grated cheese. Stir in mango chutney and port. Fold in cranberries. Let mixture chill overnight.

Form mixture into two balls. Roll into chopped nuts, pressing them into the cheeseball. Serve with crostini and/or crackers.

Enjoy!

Amy Sedaris' Cheese Ball

I attended a party last night, to which guests were asked to contribute an hors d'oeuvre. Scrambling for ideas at the last minute, and inspired by a store-bought cheese ball I tasted at a BBQ the night before, I decided to try my hand at this classic party dish.

Over Christmas, I read funny lady Amy Sedaris' book on entertaining, I like you. It was a hilarious yet practical book, throughout which she mentioned several times that her cheese ball recipe has made her famous among her friends. I decided to use her recipe, "L'il Smoky Cheese Ball," as inspiration for my own.

The smoky flavours in this cheese ball come from plenty of smoked Gouda cheese, and a little bit of steak sauce (although I used some bold barbecue sauce, since it's what I had on hand). The recipe couldn't be easier, but the results are outstanding. Aside from the flavour in the cheese, what really makes this cheese ball is the outside layer of toasted walnuts. It is to die for; in fact, I think a nice way to present this dish would be to make many individual cheese balls that could each be spread on a crostini, which would increase the walnut-to-cheese ratio.

The cheese ball was a hit at the party, and I received a few requests for the recipe. As I was hoping, the smokiness of this appetizer is really appealing; a friend of mine even thought there was bacon in it. If you ask me, it's never a bad thing for a dish to taste like bacon!

I think I've found my go-to appetizer for entertaining, and for potluck-style parties. It's great to have a recipe that you can count on, that is easy, and always pleases; so, I'm happy to add this one to my collection. I must warn you, however, that the word "l'il" in the name of this dish is very misleading (although, duh, the two packs of cream cheese listed in the recipe should have tipped me off to its size.) This cheese ball is gargantuan! Halve the recipe for small gatherings, and you'll still have leftovers.

Oh, leftovers. Sigh. If only I had hosted the party, and had been privileged to keep L'il Smoky's remaining deliciousness...

I would have had a wonderful breakfast today.

Amy Sedaris' L'il Smoky Cheese Ball: The recipe

Amanda's notes: I don't have a mixer with paddle attachment, so I used my regular hand-held mixer to blend the butter and cheese together, and then mixed everything else in by hand.

I used salted butter and added in freshly cracked pepper. I substituted an equivalent amount of smoky barbecue sauce for steak sauce, and threw in some basil and oregano for a little extra colour.

Since I decided to make this cheese ball at the last minute, after forming the mixture into a ball, I put it on a cookie sheet and froze it for about 45 minutes to get it firm enough to coat with the walnuts. After coating, I sat it in the freezer for a couple of hours, and then let it thaw to room temperature before serving. I served this with crostini, but it would also be good on your favourite cracker.

To toast walnuts: spread 2 cups walnuts on a cookie sheet, and toast at 350C for 8-10 minutes, shaking the pan halfway through, until nuts are lightly browned and fragrant. Set aside to cool, then chop. You can't skip this step! It makes the cheese ball.

"2 cups shredded smoked Gouda cheese, room temperature

2 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, room temperature

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature

2 tablespoons milk

2 teaspoons steak sauce

1 cup toasted chopped walnuts or pecans

Crackers, for serving

Place Gouda, cream cheese, butter, milk and steak sauce in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix until well combined. Transfer mixture to refrigerator. Let chill overnight. Roll cheese mixture into a ball. Place nuts in a shallow dish. Roll cheese in nuts to fully coat. Serve with crackers."

Enjoy!