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Holiday Tree-Shaped Cheese Ball

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Holiday Tree-Shaped Cheese Ball
  • Prep 20 min
  • Total 4 hr 20 min
  • Servings 7
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An easy, eye-catching way to serve a holiday cheese ball. The best news? You can make it up to a month in advance!
By Betty Crocker Kitchens
Updated May 5, 2005

Ingredients

  • 3 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened
  • 4 cups shredded Cheddar cheese (16 ounces)
  • 2 tablespoons basil pesto
  • 1 tablespoon grated onion
  • 1/4 teaspoon yellow mustard
  • Red pepper sauce
  • 1/4 cup finely chopped parsley or cilantro
  • 1/4 cup pine nuts or sliced almonds
  • 2 tablespoons chopped red bell pepper
  • Piece of lemon peel, if desired
  • Assorted crackers, if desired

Steps

  • 1
    Stir together cream cheese and Cheddar cheese; divide in half. Stir pesto into 1 half; stir onion, mustard and 2 or 3 drops pepper sauce into other half. Cover each half; refrigerate about 4 hours or until firm enough to shape.
  • 2
    Place cheese mixtures on cookie sheet. Shape each half into cone shape to look like a pine tree.
  • 3
    If desired, wrap each tree, label and freeze up to 1 month. Twelve hours before serving, remove trees from freezer. Thaw in wrapper in refrigerator.
  • 4
    Just before serving, roll trees in parsley, pressing it evenly onto trees. Press pine nuts onto trees in string form for garland. Press bell pepper pieces onto trees for ornaments. Top each tree with star shape cut from lemon peel. Serve with crackers.

Tips from the Betty Crocker Kitchens

  • tip 1
    Place the tree in the middle of a platter covered with a cloth napkin “tree skirt,” and surround it with crackers of all shapes and sizes for the “gifts.”
  • tip 2
    A combination of fresh basil and oregano instead of the parsley or cilantro gives this tree Italian flair!

Nutrition

165 Calories, 15 g Total Fat, 6 g Protein, 1 g Total Carbohydrate

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size: 1/4 Cup
Calories
165
Calories from Fat
135
Total Fat
15 g
Saturated Fat
9 g
Cholesterol
45 mg
Sodium
180 mg
Potassium
60 mg
Total Carbohydrate
1 g
Dietary Fiber
0g
Protein
6 g
% Daily Value*:
Vitamin A
12%
12%
Vitamin C
2%
2%
Calcium
10%
10%
Iron
2%
2%
Exchanges:
1 High-Fat Meat; 1 1/2 Fat;
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
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