Prosciutto & Fig Cheeseball Bites

I’m sure that many people consider cheeseballs “old school” or “retro.” I’d agree that they’re probably both of those things.

But really, I think they’re a holiday tradition. Along with my family’s sour cream sugar cookie recipe and homemade Chex mix, it’s just not Christmas without a cheeseball.

My grandma had been in charge of holiday cheeseballs for years, until she announced last year that it would be her last year making them. She handed out her recipes for them and called it quits.

I mean, I really don’t blame her. When I’m grandma-aged, I’m probably not going to be cooking anything around the holidays. I’ll let other people cook for me while I sip sherry or something. I don’t even know what sherry is. It just sounds like something an old lady would drink, right?

If I wanted a cheeseball, it was up to me to make it myself this year. Rather than one big cheeseball, I decided to make a bunch of little ones.

For a nice balance of flavor, I would recommend choosing one salty ingredient (like prosciutto), one sweet ingredient (like dried figs), and a fresh herb (like chives).

You’ll also need cream cheese and some kind of shredded cheese (like Gouda). A nutty coating on the outside of the cheeseball bites is optional, but you’ll probably want mini pretzel sticks for easy serving and eating.

The great thing about this recipe is how you can completely adapt it to suit your own tastes and use ingredients already in your kitchen.

Don’t want to spend the money on prosciutto? Just use regular ham. Not a big fan of figs? Try dried dates or dried cherries. Can’t find Gouda? Use Swiss cheese instead.

However you choose to make them, enjoy these little bites of cheesy goodness!

Prosciutto & Fig Cheeseball Bites

Author: Lori Yates

Yield: 24 cheeseball bites

Prep: 25 minutes minutes

Total: 25 minutes minutes

I love cheeseballs, and these give you all of the flavor without the mess of serving off one giant cheeseball.

4.5 from 2 ratings

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Ingredients

• ▢ 1 package cream cheese, at room temperature 8 ounces
• ▢ 4 ounces Gouda cheese shredded
• ▢ 3 ounces prosciutto finely chopped
• ▢ ⅓ cup finely chopped dried figs
• ▢ 2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
• ▢ ½ cup finely chopped walnuts optional
• ▢ 24 pretzel sticks

Instructions

• In large bowl, use electric mixer to beat cream cheese, Gouda, prosciutto, figs and chives until well combined. Roll mixture into 24 tablespoon-size balls. Refrigerate 1 hour or until firm.
• If desired, place walnuts on small plate and roll cheese balls in walnuts; pressing so nuts adhere to cheese balls. Immediately before serving, skewer each cheese ball with a pretzel stick.

Calories: 88kcal, Carbohydrates: 3g, Protein: 3g, Fat: 8g, Saturated Fat: 3g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g, Monounsaturated Fat: 2g, Trans Fat: 0.005g, Cholesterol: 17mg, Sodium: 99mg, Potassium: 52mg, Fiber: 0.4g, Sugar: 2g, Vitamin A: 166IU, Vitamin C: 0.2mg, Calcium: 49mg, Iron: 0.2mg

This website provides estimated nutrition information as a courtesy only. You should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.

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