Freezer Cheese Balls

By lorik

Ingredients

• 2 cups (8 oz) shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• 1 8 oz package cream cheese or Neufchatel
• 4 oz blue cheese, cut into pieces
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2/3 cup coarsely chopped walnuts or pecans

Details

Adapted from sunsetpublishing.com

Preparation

Step 1

Allow cheeses and butter to stand at room temperature untilsoft. Shred or cut cheddar into small pieces and put into the large bowl of an electric mixer. Add cream cheese, blue cheese, and butter, beat just until blended. Add garlic and beat until creamy.

Cover and chill cheese mixture for about 3 hours or until firm enough to shape into balls. Divide in half and shape each half into a smooth ball, place in a plastic bag and refrigerate or freeze until needed.

Allow frozen cheese balls to stand at room temperature, unwrapped, 3 or 4 hours before serving. Roll each ball in nuts, pressing lightly to adhere. Serve with crackers or warmed bread. Makes 2 3 inch cheese balls.

For a fun twist, roll small personal sized cheese balls instead of 2 larger ones. Also, you can chop fresh herbs such as parsley and thyme and roll the cheese balls in herb mixture instead of nuts.