Winter is closing in and it is time to think about holiday foods! I am back with The Little Potato Company and this holiday cheese ball! Arrange your roasted Creamer potatoes and decorate your cheese ball to represent all things holiday-related!
This is a sponsored post. I was fortunate enough to receive products and/or monetary compensation from The Little Potato Company. Though products were received, all opinions are my own and I would not recommend a product that I did not enjoy.
I have a fun one today!
This December marks three years of me creating Creamer potato recipes for The Little Potato Company! I cannot believe it has been three years!
You would think by now I would have run dry of recipes, but these little potatoes are so versatile, sometimes I find it hard to pick just ONE recipe to share for the month!
Looking back, my pan-fried fingerling potatoes with bacon didn't seem anything special, but to this day they are still one of my most popular recipes! Thankfully people dismissed those horrible pictures back then and realized the recipe is a winner!
Today's holiday cheese ball uses LPC's Terrific Trio. I went with this varietal because of the mix of colors in the bag. You can get really creative and fully deck out your "Christmas tree." I would have been happy with a couple extra blue potatoes, but in the end, I am super happy with this creation! Seriously, doesn't the whole "tree" and "presents" make you want Christmas to arrive tomorrow?!
I was a little worried that the holiday cheese ball appetizer wouldn't come off as a Christmas tree with presents, but I asked my 6 year-old daughter what she saw in the picture (she was at school when I put together the appetizer,) and she immediately recognized it as a tree with presents. So win-win!
Personally, I would serve this appetizer on a darker plate/background so that the cheese ball stands out more. The addition of spinach and chives really brings out the Christmas cheer 🙂
As for arranging this holiday cheese ball, you can get sooooo creative! Maybe shape the cheese into a wreath and serve the potatoes in a bowl. Or arrange the potatoes as a wreath and perhaps the cheese ball as little trees? I feel I will be revisiting this recipe a lot and coming up with new, fun ideas to showcase 🙂
On a final remark, this holiday cheese ball is gluten-free and vegetarian. I was going to add bacon to one so that vegetarians and meat eaters can enjoy this dish, but I totally forgot to buy bacon! It would have made fantastic "ribbon" for the presents 🙂 Then again, I do like how the pecans represent bows and the cranberries represent ribbon wrapping string 🙂
📖 Recipe
Holiday Cheese Ball with Roasted Potatoes
A fun holiday cheese ball appetizer that will have both kids and adults digging in! Get creative!
Ingredients
- 2 (1.5 lbs each) bags of Little Potato Company's Terrific Trio potatoes, halved
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- Salt and pepper
- ½ tsp. garlic powder
- 1 tsp. paprika
- 1 tsp. dried oregano
Cheese Ball
- 350 g (about ¾ lb) cream cheese, room temperature
- 113 g (about ¼ lb) goat cheese
- 2 cups grated cheddar cheese
- ¼ cup pecan halves, pureed in food processor
- 1 oz fresh spinach, pureed in food processor
- 2 tbsp. freshly chopped chives
- Dried cranberries (Craisins) and pecans for decorating
Instructions
- Mix cream cheese, goat cheese, and cheddar cheese together in a large mixing bowl until nicely combined. Stir in pureed pecans, pureed spinach, and chives. Form into "presents" and decorate with additional toppings to represent wrappings and bows. Chill in refrigerator.
Potatoes
- Preheat oven to 450F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone liner.
- Toss potatoes, oil, and seasonings together in a large bowl until potatoes are evenly coated. Lay out in a single layer on baking sheet and roast for 20-25 minutes, tossing halfway through. Potatoes will be crispy on the outside, but soft on the inside.
Assembly
- Arrange potatoes into two trees. If you have extra, serve them in a bowl. Cut potatoes to represent a star at the top.
- Place cheese balls under tree. Sprinkle with extra chives, cranberries, and/or pecans if desired!
- Serve with cheese knives 🙂
Notes
Cheese balls can be made in advance! Get creative and use any toppings you like to decorate your "presents!" The sweetness of dried cranberries pair nicely with the potatoes (I wish I had added more into my cheese balls!) If you have extra potatoes, feel free to serve them in a nice bowl 🙂
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 15 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 281Total Fat: 18gCarbohydrates: 21gProtein: 10g
KarenM
This looks so good! Who doesn't like potatoes and cheese? We do an heavy appetizer meal on Christmas Day, this sounds perfect for this year!