Total Cheeseball

Cheese balls are by far at the top of my list for a quick appetizer! You can't screw them up at all and I typically have everything on hand for them. I was with my mom over the holidays and she was tempted to go buy some but I reminded her that 1. store bought cheese balls are gross and 2. I was home, so why not make them? Store bought cheese balls are so disturbing to me. I can never figure out why they have a red color in them and who wants to eat the nasty soggy almonds they are rolled in? Cheese balls are so easy to make! I have so many recipes I can share with you but I will just provide you with my favorite cheddar ball and you can go from there. I am going to warn you now, you must mix these by hand to get the best flavor. And, it is best if you can make them the day before so that they are nice and tasty.

Smokey Cheddar Cheese ball
1 cup extra sharp yellow cheddar
1 cup sharp white cheddar (I LOVE the flavor combo of both but if you only have one on hand then that is fine) You can use dill Havarti (LOVE!) or pepper jack for other fun flavors.

1 block cream cheese softened
 2 Tsp Worcestershire sauce
3-4 dashes of Tabasco sauce - depending on how spicy you like it
1/2 tsp liquid smoke
1/4 tsp ground onion and ground garlic
2 green onions finely diced (optional if you don't have it on hand)

Dump all of the above into a bowl. Wash your hands, remove your rings and smash it all together until it is combined. Roll it into a ball.

Wash your hands, then place the bowl into a large piece of plastic wrap and pop in the fridge.

Toppings
You can use any of the following to roll your ball in. I like a combo of all but if you only have one or hand that is fine too. You can see that you can easily adjust the flavor of this cheese ball by what you put in and on it.
You will need about 1/2 a cup of any of the following:
Smoky salted almonds finely chopped
Pecans finely chopped
Real bacon bits
Fresh Parsley or a combo of dill, parsley and rosemary

Take your cheese ball out of the fridge and stretch out the plastic wrap. Pour your desired topping over the ball and shake it around in the plastic wrap until it is thoroughly coated. Wrap back in the plastic wrap and pop in the fridge until you are ready to serve. You can also make mini cheese balls by first rolling them into small walnut size balls then rolling them in your favorite topping.

Enjoy Y'all!