Servings
10
Total Cook Time
15MIN
Ingredients
- 2 8-oz. pkgs cream cheese, softened
- 8 oz. Cache Valley® sharp cheddar finely shredded (2 cups), divided
- ¼ cup butter, softened
- ¾ cup canned pumpkin, unsweetened
- 2 scallions, finely chopped (about ¼ cup)
- 1 tbsp sage leaves finely minced (or about 5 leaves)
- ½ tsp smoked paprika
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp garlic powder
- ¼ tsp fresh black pepper
- Assorted crackers
- Assorted bell peppers, carrots and other vegetables, slice
Steps
- In a medium bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, combine cream cheese, 1 ¼ cup of the Cache Valley® cheddar cheese, and the next eight ingredients, through the black pepper. Beat on medium speed until fluffy, scraping bowl as needed. Cover and chill 4 to 24 hours.
- Place the cheese mixture in the center of a large piece of plastic wrap. Wrap the mixture and shape into a ball, remove plastic wrap and roll the ball in the remaining ¾ cup cheddar cheese.
- After rolling the cheese ball in the remaining Cache Valley® cheddar cheese, wrap the ball in another piece of plastic wrap. Place a few rubber bands around the plastic-wrapped cheese ball to form ridges (I used 3 rubber bands). Chill 30 minutes to 1 hour. Remove the rubber bands and unwrap cheese before serving. Add additional sage leaves and a cinnamon stick (or fresh green bean) down the center to complete the effect.
Hands on time: 15 minutes
Chill time: 4 hours plus 1 hour for pumpkin shape to set
Serving tip: Set out the cheese ball 30 minutes before serving so it will be more spreadable.
Recipe Author: Sally Humeniuk Good Dinner Mom
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