Pimento Cheeseball
Sharp cheddar, cream cheese, roasted peppers, and bacon make up this pimento cheese ball. It’s the perfect Southern appetizer!
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- plus time to soften cream cheese and firm the cheeseball: 2 hours
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours 20 minutes
- Yield: 1 cheese ball 1x
- Category: Appetizer
- Method: Mix
- Cuisine: Southern
Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 10 slices bacon
- 8 oz block extra sharp cheddar cheese
- 8 oz block cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 12 oz Jar roasted red peppers, drained and diced
- 3/4 teaspoon paprika
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- Cook the bacon until crispy and set aside. Make oven-cooked bacon for an easy, low-mess method.
- Shred the sharp cheddar in a food processor or with a box grater.
- Add everything but the bacon to a large mixing bowl. Stir until well combined.
- Cut a large piece of plastic wrap and lay it flat. Scrape the cheese mixture onto the center of the plastic wrap. Pull up the sides of the plastic wrap and use the plastic wrap to shape the cheese mixture into a ball. Twist the plastic wrap to completely close up the cheese ball.
- Place in the fridge to firm up for at least 1 hour. Or up to overnight.
- Meanwhile, crumble bacon into bits and dump it onto a cutting board or large plate.
- Remove the cheeseball from the fridge and reshape it if necessary to get a nice round ball. Carefully remove the cheese ball from the plastic wrap and place it on the bacon bits. Coat the cheese ball in bacon bits.
Serve with crackers and cut vegetables such as carrots, celery, and cucumbers.
Notes
- Make it up to 1 day ahead.
- Refrigerate leftovers in a sealed container for up to 3 days.
- If you don’t want to use bacon for the coating, you can substitute 1 cup of toasted, chopped pecans.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 2 tablespoons
- Calories: 77
- Sugar: 0.5 g
- Sodium: 158.7 mg
- Fat: 6.5 g
- Carbohydrates: 1.1 g
- Fiber: 0.1 g
- Protein: 3.6 g
- Cholesterol: 18.9 mg
Find it online: https://mandiofthemountains.com/pimento-cheese-ball/
