Easy Cheese Ball

Yields: 16 (1/4 cup) servings | Points vary

My rating:

This cheese ball is extremely easy to make, and absolutely delicious! I made the Jack-O-Lantern cheese ball (see below) for a Halloween party this year and it was a huge hit ~ They scraped the plate clean! Be creative and have fun with this one!

Ingredients:

2.5 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
16 oz cream cheese (soft, at room temperature)
1 package (1 oz) Ranch dressing mix
3/4 cup almonds or chopped pecans (optional) *

Directions:

In a medium size bowl, mash cream cheese. Mix dressing mix and Cheddar cheese into the cream cheese. Shape the mixture into a ball. Roll the ball in the almonds. (Or just pat the nuts onto the cheese ball) Refrigerate covered until ready to serve. Serve with an assortment of crackers. Yum!

Yields: 16 servings (approx. 1/4 cup per serving)

Note that this makes a pretty big cheese ball! If you want, you can cut the recipe in half, or make 2 cheese balls.

Nutritional Info: (per serving)

Using regular cheddar and cream cheese: 171 calories, 15 g. fat, .75 g. fiber (4.5 points per 1/4 cup serving)
Using low-fat cheddar and low-fat cream cheese: 121 calories, 8 g. fat, .75 g. fiber (3 points per 1/4 cup serving)
Using fat-free cheddar and fat-free cream cheese: 92 calories, 3 g. fat, .75 g. fiber (2 points per 1/4 cup serving)

*Note that eliminating the nuts reduces each serving by about 1 point!

Jaime's Jack-O-Lantern Variation:

Add orange peppers to make a jack-o-lantern face! Use celery or a pretzel rod for the stem!

Original Source: Allrecipes.com

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