Jalapeño Pecan Cheese Ball

This spreadable Jalapeño Pecan Cheese Ball is made with cream cheese and cheddar. It’s a spicy, creamy, crunchy, delicious, attractive addition to your party table. Watch it disappear!

Growing up I was not a fan of the cheese balls my paternal grandmother adored. But because she loved them, they always made an appearance at family gatherings around the holidays. I think my mom bought them for Gram from Hickory Farms but I’ll have to get back to you on that.

If you’ve been buying them too, I’m here to tell you how easy they are to make at home. The only challenging part is mixing the ingredients together since this makes a fairly firm ball. Roll up your sleeves and apply a little elbow grease to that wooden mixing spoon and you’ll be fine.

Jalapeño Pecan Cheese Ball

The ingredients below make one substantial cheese ball (about 1.1 lbs or 500g) but I can promise it will disappear in no time. We like to spread it on crackers or toast but you just might find yourself licking the knife when all of those are gone. Choose a dull one.

Ingredients

8 oz or 227g cream cheese, softened

4 oz or 113g sharp white cheddar cheese

1 1/2 cups or 150g pecans

2 green onions

1 fresh jalapeño

4 soft sun-dried tomato halves (if in oil, drain and pat completely dry with paper towels)

To serve:

Crackers or toast rounds

Method

Grate the cheddar cheese. Finely mince the jalapeño, green onions and sun-dried tomatoes. Separate out about 1 tablespoon each of the vegetables to be used later when we roll the cheese ball. 

Chop the pecans finely.

In a bowl, use a wooden spoon or stiff spatula to combine the cream cheese, cheddar cheese, one quarter of the pecans (you can just eyeball this) and the bigger piles of jalapeño, green onions and sun-dried tomatoes until thoroughly blended. 

Form the mixture into a ball.

Cover your work surface with cling film. I find this works best if I wipe the countertop with a clean damp sponge first which helps the cling film stick and stay in place. Sprinkle the reserved minced jalapeño, green onions and sun-dried tomatoes onto the cling film. 

Top these with the remainder of the chopped pecans. Transfer the cheese ball to the middle. 

Dampen your hands with a little water to stop the cheese from sticking to them and then roll the cheese ball around on the pecans and veggies until it’s completely covered. You can keep rolling it, applying gentle pressure until most of the pecans have adhered to the ball. 

Pile any leftover pecan/veggie bits in the middle of your serving plate and, using your hands, pop the cheese ball on top, pressing down gently. 

Refrigerate the jalapeño pecan cheese ball, covered, for at least 1 hour to chill.

Serve with crackers or toasted rounds of bread.

Enjoy!

It’s the first Wednesday of the month so that means it’s time for my Foodie Extravaganza friends to get together to celebrate an obscure food holiday. This time it’s National Georgia Pecan Month! I can’t promise my pecans are from Georgia but this recipe certainly showcases my favorite nut. Check out the links to the other recipes below. Many thanks to our host, Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm. 

• Autumn Flavored Rice Pilaf  by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Autumn Pecan Sourdough  by Culinary Adventures with Camilla 
• Candied Pecans by  Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Chicken & Pecans Sandwich by Sneha's Recipe
• German Chocolate Banana Bread by The Spiffy Cookie
• Jalapeño Pecan Cheese Ball by  Food Lust People Love
• Pecan Chutney by Magical Ingredients
• Pecan Long Grain and Wild Rice (Instant Pot) by Palatable Pastime

Foodie Extravaganza is where we celebrate obscure food holidays by cooking and baking together with the same ingredient or theme each month. Posting day is always the first Wednesday of each month. If you are a blogger and would like to join our group and blog along with us, come join our Facebook page Foodie Extravaganza. We would love to have you! If you're a spectator looking for delicious tid-bits check out our Foodie Extravaganza Pinterest Board.

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Bavarian Cheese Spread

Bavarian Cheese Spread, also known as obatzter, obazda, obazde, obazd'n and obatzda, is a strong cheese spread made with ripe Camembert, cream cheese, butter, onions, spices and, of course, beer. It’s a classic Bavarian beer garden recipe, best enjoyed with a cold stein of Weissbier or indeed, your own favorite brew.

The original Obatzda recipe is credited to Katharina Eisenreich who was the innkeeper of the Bräustüberl Weihenstephan from 1920 -1958, a good long run. She served it to her guests as a light snack to accompany their morning beer and soon the idea spread, with many beer gardens creating their own special recipes. 

I'm just going to say that again to make sure you didn't skim by it: morning beer. Why don't we have a morning beer tradition? It sounds like a solid idea, at least on the weekend.

The recipe I’m sharing for this week’s Sunday FunDay Oktoberfest theme is purported to be that original Bavarian cheese spread recipe from the Bräustüberl Weihenstephan. I must confess that I had a certain reluctance to believe that a classic German cheese spread recipe would actually start with a French cheese. So I consulted an American friend who spent time in Germany growing up. Enough time that, in fact, she is fluent in German and is now a qualified German teacher. She kindly checked what she called the “German part of the web” and confirmed the recipe and added a bit more information. 

Bavarian Cheese Spread

Frau Eisenreich's Bavarian cheese spread does start with Camembert, the riper the better. The story there goes that it was created to use cheese that was reaching its use by date and was quite strong. Butter was added to make it milder. And to be authentic, obatzda must be mixed or kneaded together by hand. A side note that I found humorous: Apparently Germans call all cream cheese Philadelphia. 

Ingredients

8 3/4 oz or 250g Camembert cheese

1/3 cup or 70g butter

5 1/3 oz or 150g cream cheese, at room temperature.

4 1/4 oz or 120g onions, minced, plus extra sliced in rings to serve

1/4 teaspoon paprika, plus another pinch for garnish

1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

1 pinch each salt and pepper

7 tablespoons or 100ml Weißbier (weissbier/wheat beer)

Method

Cut the Camembert into small pieces with a sharp knife. This is easier when the Camembert is still chilled. Put it in a large mixing bowl and leave to come to room temperature.

Add butter, cream cheese, chopped onions, paprika, cumin, salt and pepper. 

Use your clean hands to thoroughly mix the ingredients together until you have a homogeneous paste. 

Use a rubber spatula to scrape the bowl, then add in the beer and mix again until all the beer is incorporated, using your hands or a wooden spoon. 

Cover the bowl with some cling film and refrigerate several hours or even till the next day to give the flavors time to combine.

Serve the Bavarian cheese spread sprinkled with a little paprika for garnish, along with brown bread or pretzels, slices of raw onion and, of course, beer. 

It’s Sunday FunDay and we are here to help you celebrate Oktoberfest whether that’s a thing in your neck of the woods or not! Check out all the German fare we are sharing below! 

• Bauernfrühstück (German Farmer’s Breakfast) from Sneha's Recipe
• Bavarian Cheese Spread from Food Lust People Love
• Beer Braised Steak from Palatable Pastime
• Beer Brats on Pretzel Rolls from Amy's Cooking Adventures
• Obatzda (Cheese Spread) from Making Miracles
• Oktoberfest Breakfast Casserole from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Sourdough Soft Pretzels from Karen's Kitchen Stories

We are a group of food bloggers who believe that Sunday should be a family fun day, so every Sunday we share recipes that will help you to enjoy your day. If you're a blogger interested in joining us, just visit our Facebook group and request to join.

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Cheddar Smoked Paprika Soda Bread #BreadBakers

Cheddar Smoked Paprika Soda Bread is cheesy good with a subtle smoky flavor that is great freshly sliced or toasted. Use it for sandwiches or to dip in a sunny side up fried egg yolk. So good! 

Smoked paprika is one of my favorite spices and I use it a lot when I am cooking vegetarian dishes, for a little extra flavor that I might have otherwise added with smoked bacon in a non-vegetarian recipe. It’s great in tomato sauce and chili for the same reason, even when those do have meat already. 

One of the few things my husband and I disagree on is smoked cheese. I’m a fan. He’s not. In this quick soda bread, the smoked paprika makes a nice background to the cheddar, a hint of smokiness that reminds me of smoked cheese. What’s funny is even the smoked cheese naysayer loves this bread. Go figure.

Cheddar Smoked Paprika Soda Bread

If you don’t have buttermilk but do have white vinegar and regular milk, make a buttermilk substitute by adding 1 1/2 tablespoons vinegar to your measuring jug, then fill up to the volume needed with milk. Stir and set aside for about five minutes and you are ready to start mixing.

Ingredients

3 cups or 375g all-purpose flour, plus extra for kneading

1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

1/4 cup or 57g unsalted butter, cut into pieces

4 oz or 113g extra sharp cheddar, finely grated 

1 1/4 cups or 296ml buttermilk

For glaze:

1 egg white

1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika

Method

Preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C and line a baking pan with baking parchment or a silicone liner.

In a small bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt and smoked paprika. 

With a pastry blender or a fork, cut the butter into the dry mixture until it resembles a coarse meal. 

Add the grated cheddar cheese a little at a time and stir well to combine. 

Pour in buttermilk and mix until dough comes together. 

Turn the dough out onto a heavily floured surface.

Knead the dough by folding it over and pressing it down four or five times. 

Shape the dough into a round loaf and place it on your prepared baking sheet. Whisk the smoked paprika into the egg white and brush the top of the loaf with the mixture.  

Use a lame or sharp knife to cut a large X into the top of the dough.  

Bake in your preheated oven for 40-45 minutes or until golden brown. 

Cool on a wire rack then slice to serve.

Enjoy!

It’s the second Tuesday of the month so it’s time for Bread Bakers and our theme is spiced savory recipes! Check out all the bread recipes we are sharing today. Many thanks to our host, Renu of Cook with Renu. 

• Cheddar Smoked Paprika Soda Bread by Food Lust People Love
• Copy Cat Domino's Zingy Paneer Parcel by Sneha's Recipe
• Everything Bagel Biscuits by Palatable Pastime
• Flourless Quinoa Vegetable Muffins by Cook with Renu
• Rosemary, Sage, and Wild Rice Levain by A Messy Kitchen
• Spicy Onion Buns by Ambrosia
• Spiced Up Potato, Turmeric, and Oat Bread by Magical Ingredients
• Sourdough Focaccia with Italian Herbs and Spices by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Sourdough Aloo Paratha by Zesty South Indian Kitchen
• Swedish Rye Bread (Limpa) by Karen's Kitchen Stories

#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. Follow our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated each month on this home page. We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient.

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Parmesan Bacon Potato Squares

Parmesan Bacon Potato Squares are a tasty appetizer (or side dish) of thinly sliced potatoes layered with bacon, cream and cheese that turn crispy and more-ish when they are baked, cooled then cut into squares and roasted in the oven. 

Fair warning: this dish needs to be started at least one day before you plan to serve it but in a way, that’s the best part because it can be mostly made, if necessary, several days ahead and chilled. Leave the final roasting till just before you are ready to serve. 

Potatoes are sliced thinly and layered with cheese and cooked bacon then pressed and chilled so they can be cut into handy squares. Make sure you don’t skip the step where you secure the squares with toothpicks or you will mightily regret it. 

The original recipe on Taste.com.au skips this step and my first batch out of the oven was a complete disaster. The potatoes were delicious for sure, but they weren’t anything like squares anymore. See the evidence below. Don't let this happen to you. 

This recipe makes enough for an enormous crowd. It’s easily halved but, should you have any leftovers, they are spectacular with scrambled eggs, added to an omelet or reheated and eaten as a side dish. (That is what I did with my disastrous ones.) 

 

Parmesan Bacon Potato Squares

As mentioned, this recipe is adapted from one on Taste.com.au, one of my favorite sites for recipe inspiration. You will need two casserole dishes, one larger for the actual potato dish and one you can fit inside it to compact the potatoes while they are chilling. 

Ingredients

6 lbs or 2.72 kg russet potatoes, peeled and sliced thinly with a mandoline

6 fresh thyme sprigs, leaves picked, plus extra for garnish

5 1/3 oz or 150g Parmesan cheese, grated

1 1/2 cups or 355ml heavy cream

3 lbs or 1.36kg thin-sliced smoked bacon, fried (not too crispy) and drained 

1/2 cup or 113g butter, melted and cooled

Optional: Sriracha sauce for drizzling on to serve

Method

If you don’t have a mandolin with which to cut the potatoes, by all means, use a sharp knife but do cut the slices as thinly as possible. 

Use baking parchment to line the base and up the sides of a 9 x 14 in or 23x35mm pan, allowing the sides to overhang somewhat. Put two layers of your thinly sliced potatoes in evenly in the bottom of the lined pan. Top with a little of the cream and thyme leaves. 

Cover those with a layer of Parmesan and cooked bacon. 

Add another double layer of sliced potatoes. Continue building your casserole until you’ve used all of your potatoes and bacon and thyme, making sure you finish with a couple of layers of potatoes on top, along with the last of the Parmesan and cream. 

Finally, pour the melted butter over the top. Fold the baking parchment in and cover the top with some cling film. 

Place a smaller casserole dish on top of the dish and fill with something heavy. I used eight cans of various vegetables. Leave to rest for about 20 minutes. 

Meanwhile preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C.

Remove the weights and cling film. Cover the large casserole top in foil and bake for about 1 hour or until the potatoes are tender. Remove the foil (save for later) and bake for another 20 minutes to brown the top. 

Put the foil back on the dish and put the smaller casserole dish back on top. Leave to cool until it can be put in the refrigerator. When cool, put it (casserole dish still on top) in the refrigerator to chill overnight. 

When you are ready to make the squares, start your oven preheating to 400°F or 200°C.

Loosen the sides of the potatoes from the pan and turn the whole rectangle out onto a cutting board so your top is now your bottom. Remove the parchment paper and discard. 

Trim the edges with a sharp knife so you have straight sides. (These scraps are great reheated in a non-stick skillet. Add some eggs for a delicious weekend breakfast.) 

Cut the chilled potato into squares.

 Skewer each one with a toothpick, top to bottom. Put them on their sides on two or three large baking pans (with sides) and roast 10 minutes in your hot oven or until lightly golden. 

Turn the squares over and roast until they are crispy and deep golden, about 10-15 more minutes.

Drain on paper towels. 

Serve warm with sriracha sauce to drizzle, if desired, and some sprigs of thyme for garnish. 

Enjoy! 

It's the first Wednesday of the month so that means it's time for our Foodie Extravaganza celebration of National Potatoes Day which is August 19th this year! Many thanks to our host, Karen of Karen's Kitchen Stories. 

• Baked Potato Ragada Chat from Magical Ingredients
• Chorizo Stuffed Hash Browns from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Lemon & Dill Potato Salad with No Mayonnaise from Faith Hope Love & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice
• Parmesan Bacon Potato Squares from Food Lust People Love
• Potato Lollipops from Sheha's Recipe
• Potato Puffs from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Salt and Vinegar Skillet Potatoes from Palatable Pastime
• Schupfnudeln (German Potato Noodles) from Tara's Multicultural Table
• Tartiflette with Fromage Fort from Culinary Adventures with Camilla

Foodie Extravaganza is where we celebrate obscure food holidays by cooking and baking together with the same ingredient or theme each month. Posting day is always the first Wednesday of each month. If you are a blogger and would like to join our group and blog along with us, come join our Facebook page Foodie Extravaganza. We would love to have you! If you're a spectator looking for delicious tid-bits check out our Foodie Extravaganza Pinterest Board.

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Garlic Browned Butter Parmesan Roasted Asparagus

This Garlic Browned Butter Parmesan Roasted Asparagus is a most wonderful side dish or even appetizer. Set the dish out and let guests help themselves to spear after spear. They'll be gone in a jiffy. 

According to Miss Manners and Emily Post, asparagus is legitimately finger food. One of my favorite ways to eat it is cooked but still crunchy to dip in a soft-boiled egg. Runny egg yolk and buttered asparagus with lemon = yum! It’s like deconstructed Hollandaise sauce. (Make a note now and try it!) Who needs toast soldiers? 

These days asparagus seems to be available year round, flown in from somewhere (mostly Peru, it seems, which makes sense since they terrace-farm up the mountain sides so it's like a different temperature/season as the altitude changes) but I do particularly enjoy buying it during springtime when it comes from farms closer to home. 

If you love asparagus, you might also like my cheesy asparagus potato tart, asparagus salmon fried rice, asparagus wrapped in prosciutto or pan-fried chicken with bacon and asparagus. 

Garlic Browned Butter Parmesan Roasted Asparagus

You can use the Parmesan that comes in the plastic shaker container for this dish but I don’t think it melts as effectively the kind freshly grated from a wedge. Either way, keep a close eye on in as it browns. 

Ingredients

1 lb or 450g asparagus spears, woody ends trimmed

Olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

3 tablespoons butter

2 cloves garlic, mashed then minced

1 tablespoon fresh squeezed lemon juice

2 oz or 56g freshly grated Parmesan

Method

Preheat your oven to 425°F or 220°C.

Arrange asparagus in a single layer on a baking pan. Drizzle with a little olive oil and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. 

Roast in preheated oven until vibrant in color and tender-crisp, about 10 minutes).

While the asparagus is in the oven, brown the butter. Melt the butter in a small pot over medium heat, stirring constantly. The milk solids will separate and then start to brown. Cook, still stirring, until the butter is golden colored with browned bits at the bottom. 

Take it off the heat and quickly stir in the minced garlic. 

Add the lemon juice and stir to combine. 

Remove the asparagus pan from the oven and turn the oven to broil (grill) on high. 

Spoon the garlicky browned butter over the asparagus and toss to coat. 

Cover with the grated Parmesan. 

Return the pan to the oven for a few minutes, watching it carefully so it doesn’t burn. You just want to see the cheese and asparagus turned a little golden in places. 

Enjoy!

This month my Baking Bloggers are sharing asparagus recipes and I want to make them ALL. Check out the links below. Many thanks to our organizer and host, Sue of Palatable Pastime. 

• Pancetta and Asparagus Tarts by Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Asparagus and Ham Quiche by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Cheesy Garlic Roasted Asparagus by Making Miracles
• Goat Cheese Chicken with Asparagus by Palatable Pastime
• Asparagus and Mushroom Quiche Tart by Sid's Sea Palm Cooking
• Garlic Browned Butter Parmesan Roasted Asparagus by Food Lust People Love
• Asparagus With Cheese Sauce by Sneha's Recipe
• Minty Roasted Asparagus Vegan Pesto by Magical Ingredients

Baking Bloggers is a friendly group of food bloggers who vote on a shared theme and then post recipes to fit that theme one the second Monday of each month. If you are a food blogger interested in joining in, inquire at our Baking Bloggers Facebook group. We'd be honored if you would join us in our baking adventures.

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