These fun, festive and fabulous mini cheese balls are perfect appetizer to make ahead. Best of all, the single-serve portions make it super easy to serve!
When hosting a party, big or small, you want to enjoy the company of your friends and family, instead of sweating in the kitchen, yes? Here is my #1 advise for relaxing and enjoyable party: prepare as much as you can in advance. And that includes the menu as well. Simple enough? I know it’s easier said than done, when you’re are scrambling for ideas.
Well, here is an absolutely fun and delicious appetizer for you to have as a backup. When in doubt, serve these cheeseballs!
These little cheese balls are incredibly customizable, fun and elegant. All for very little effort. You can coat the cheese balls in whatever your creative heart desires. Here, I used paprika, scallion, walnuts and sesame seeds.
Hungry for more ideas?
How about crushed red pepper for some kick, finely chopped pistachios (my favorite!), or dried cranberries. The world is your pickle, my friend!
And guess what? It’s so simple to whip up these gems, which makes it perfect last minute appetizer as well! Now, that’s a win-win in my book!
I strongly suggest you use high-quality cheese here. No pre-grated stuff here, please. Start with a nice block of cheese (I love Cabot’s seriously sharp cheddar), freeze it for 15-30 minutes and then grate away. Freezing helps to keep the cheese firm and makes the grating much easier. Mix the grated cheese with cream cheese and seasonings and divide the mixture into small single-serve balls. Roll them in whatever coating you prefer, and serve! With lots of crackers and wine. Yep, wine is a must. 🙂
Oh one more tip, do label the appetizer when serving at the party, because your guests might not realize that they are meant to be eaten on crackers. Quick funny story for ya. I brought these little guys to the ranch, and before I got to explain what they were, my mother-in-law had popped the entire ball into her mouth. After a minute, she is like “This is rich! But it’s good!” Oh did we have a good laugh!
What other fun coating ideas can you come up with? I’m all ears. 🙂
Thanks for stopping by. And have a fabulous day!
Mini Cheese Balls
Ingredients
- 4 oz 115gr extra sharp cheddar cheese (frozen for 15-30min)*
- 2 scallions
- 8 oz 225gr cream cheese, softened
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Crackers for serving
Coating options:
- Paprika
- Chopped scallions
- Finely chopped walnuts
- Black and white toasted sesame seed
Instructions
- Grate the sharp cheddar cheese on medium side of the box grater. Chop the scallions.
- In a mixing bowl with paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese until fluffy. Add the freshly grated cheese, chopped scallions, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, and Worcestershire sauce. Mix until well combined. Salt and pepper to taste.
- Using a medium cookie scoop, form the mixture into small balls.
- Place the coatings into separate small dishes. Roll the cheese balls in the coating. Serve at room temperature with savory crackers.
Tips & Notes
Store in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 3 days.
I do these with some ground up ham, finely chopped green onion, garlic pepper, mustard & worcestershire..
family loves them ❤️
Hi, Sandy. Ground ham sounds great! I;ll be trying that for our Christmas dinner. Thank you for sharing!
Hello, I love cheese balls, they are easy to make and YUM with lots of variety (a little change of cheese or extra and can be rolled in different coatings to make them look pretty and different!! They make great gifts and Christmas is coming, they are nice wrapped in some pretty wrapping with a ribbon. Thank you for sharing your tasty recipes.
Hi, Teresa. I agree, cheese balls are yum!! And what a great idea to gift as a Christmas gift! I love that idea! Thanks for sharing!
Love, love, love these!! So cute and party friendly! 🙂
Totally agree. Thank you!
Ooo, yummy! I wanted to let you know that I’m featuring this post tonight at the Create & Share Link Party (7:00 PM MST)! Congratulations!!! Can’t wait to see what you share with us this week. 🙂
Yay, fantastic. Thank you, Mandee!
Hello, I saw your link on Creative Ways. These look delicious–I want to add fresh garden herbs too! Blessings, Cecilia
Fresh herbs would so good too! Thanks for visiting, Cecilia!
This is so dangerous, I should never have looked at this. Now I have to do this for every party ever. Thanks for posting. Hello from Totally Terrific Tuesday.
Haha these are too good and perfect for parties! Thanks for stopping by, Melissa!
I LOVE this idea. I am getting married in a few weeks and we are doing the reception food ourselves. This is a great idea and totally doable! I am going to have to look into doing this. I think this should definitely be added to our list. What a great idea!
Congrats on your upcoming wedding, Morgan! These are totally doable, simple yet impressive. Hope you give them a try. 🙂 Thank you!
What a creative idea – these look so good. 🙂 #TotallyTerrificTuesday
Thank you, Jhuls!
Oh my goodness. What a neat idea! I am SO doing this at my next get together! I would love for you to share this at my weekly link party, The Mommy Club, that starts every Tuesday night.
Thank you, Sherri!
These looks so good, I love everything that involves cheese! Glad I found you on the create, link and inspire linky party!
Welcome, Lauren! Glad you found my blog. Thanks for stopping by!