FESTIVE RUDOLPH CHEESEBALL
This festive Rudolph Cheeseball is the perfect holiday appetizer! Made with creamy cheese, savory ranch seasoning, and a crunchy pecan coating, it’s shaped like Rudolph with pretzel antlers and a cherry tomato nose. Easy, fun, and sure to be a crowd-pleaser at any holiday gathering!
Equipment
- 3 Toothpicks
- Rubber Gloves (optional)
- Plastic Wrap
- Medium Mixing Bowl
- Measuring Cup
Ingredients
- 16 Ounces Cream Cheese room temperature
- 2 ½ Cups Shredded Cheddar Cheese
- 1 Cup Chopped Pecans
- Packet Ranch Seasoning 1 ounce
- 2 Black Olives
- 1 Cherry Tomato
- 2 Pretzels regular not mini
- Ritz Crackers optional for serving
Instructions
- In a medium mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese, ranch seasoning, and shredded cheddar cheese.
- Mix well.
- Using gloves if desired, roll the mixture into a ball.
- Wrap in plastic wrap and place in the fridge to chill for about 4 hours or until it can be handled.
- Place the chopped pecans in a cereal sized bowl and break up any larger pieces you see.
- Using gloves once again, if desired, scoop the pecans into your hand and press them into the cheeseball.
- This may seem difficult at first because the cheeseball will be a little hard from chilling in the fridge, but that’s ok.
- You might not end up using all the pecans, but keep pressing until you can’t really see the cheeseball underneath the pecans.
- Do not coat the flat bottom part of the cheeseball or it won’t sit properly.
- For the antlers, I broke two regular sized pretzels in half, and then removed the little center portions from the best pieces. Utz was the brand I used for the pretzels and I loved the way they looked.
- If you don’t want to mess with breaking the pretzels, just use a whole pretzel for each antler.
- Stick an antler into the top left side of the cheeseball and repeat on the right top side with the other antler.
- Push your toothpicks into place for the eyes and nose, leaving the pointy part slightly poking out.
- Cut both olives in half, and use the side without the big hole as the eyes.
- I attached them to the toothpicks using the thickest edge of the inside of the olive.
- This step you will need to be gentle with.
- Attach the cherry tomato to the toothpick for the nose and gently push it into the cheeseball so that it nestles more closely to the cheeseball, making it look more natural.
- Serve on a platter with your favorite crackers and enjoy!
Notes
● Store in an airtight container, in the fridge, for up to 1 week. Do not freeze.
● Be sure to sort through your chopped pecans and break the larger pieces into smaller pieces. This makes it nicer for coating the cheeseball and looks better as well.
● My toothpicks were super long, so I broke them down so they were easier to work with.
● Be sure to sit your cheeseball in the fridge exactly how you want it to sit once it’s ready because the cheeseball hardens once chilled. It will sit the way it hardens in the refrigerator.
● If you don’t like the way the nose and eyes look, you can pull the toothpicks out and reposition them.
● Be sure to sort through your chopped pecans and break the larger pieces into smaller pieces. This makes it nicer for coating the cheeseball and looks better as well.
● My toothpicks were super long, so I broke them down so they were easier to work with.
● Be sure to sit your cheeseball in the fridge exactly how you want it to sit once it’s ready because the cheeseball hardens once chilled. It will sit the way it hardens in the refrigerator.
● If you don’t like the way the nose and eyes look, you can pull the toothpicks out and reposition them.