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Close up of Ornament Pesto Sun-dried Tomato Cheese Balls on a white place surrounded by wheat thins with a greenery above it in the background
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Ornament Pesto Sun-dried Tomato Cheese Balls

Ornament Pesto Sun-Dried Cheese Balls are a fun, festive addition to your holiday menu. It's vibrant with Christmas colors. Red sun-dried tomato, green herby garlic pesto, white creamy goat cheese and cream cheese with toasted pine nuts for a bit of crunch.
Course Appetizer
Cuisine American, Italian
Diet Vegetarian
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 5 minutes
Freezing/Resting Time 2 hours 15 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 50 minutes
Servings 6 people
Calories 457kcal
Author Mara

Equipment

Ingredients

Ornament Pesto Sun-dried Tomato Cheese Balls

  • 8 ounces goat cheese room temperature
  • 8 ounces cream cheese room temperature
  • ½ cup pesto, use homemade or store-bought
  • ½ cup sun-dried tomato drained, dried on paper towl and diced into small pieces
  • 2 tablespoons pine nuts toasted

Instructions

  • In a non-stick skillet, toast pine nuts over medium heat. Heat, shaking the pan and stirring with a wooden spoon or spatula until nuts are fragrant and golden brown (~ 3-5 minutes). Once golden, remove immediately from heat and transfer to a plate and set aside.
  • In a large bow, mix cream cheese and goat cheese with a hand mixer until well combined. Then, add cheese mixture to a piping bag (or a sandwich bag). Cut the tip-off.
  • Pipe goat cheese into silicone molds. Fill to roughly ⅓ of the mold. Repeat with other cavities. Slightly wet fingers with water and smooth out the cheese mixture until even. (Gloves are recommended to wear).
  • Add in pesto evenly into the 6 cavities and smooth out evenly using the back of a spoon.
  • Top with sun-dried tomatoes and then toasted pine nuts evenly into the 6 cavities. Press in gently. 
  • Fill the molds to the top with the cheese mixture. Save the remaining cheese mixture in an airtight container in the fridge. Slightly wet fingers with water and smooth out the cheese mixture until even. (Gloves are recommended to wear).
  • Place plastic wrap on top, press slightly, and place in the freezer for 1 hour. 
  • Remove the plastic wrap and place a dollop of the remaining cheese mixture onto 3 of the semi-spheres. Smooth out evenly with an offset spatula or spoon. 
  • Set aside a piece of plastic wrap. Take one semi-sphere with the extra cream mixture and one without and put them together to form a whole sphere. Wrap immediately in plastic wrap and use your fingers to smooth out where the semi-sphere meet. Place in the refrigerator for at least one hour.
  • About 15 minutes prior to serving, take out your beautiful ornament cheese balls, unwrap, and place them on your serving tray. Top with the Rolo candy ornament topper. Enjoy with wheat thins (my family's favorite), baguette, crostini, or your cracker of choice.

Notes

*This recipe can be made a day or two ahead. Just keep it wrapped refrigerator until ready to serve.
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for a day or two.
Nutritional information for this recipe is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. Please calculate your own nutritional information if you want it exact to what you make and use my calculations as a guide only.

Nutrition

Calories: 457kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 13g | Fat: 44g | Saturated Fat: 17g | Cholesterol: 65mg | Sodium: 527mg | Potassium: 131mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 1778IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 190mg | Iron: 2mg