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December 21, 2008

"Ohh... What's that?" Cheesecake Ball


Last night I hosted a holiday soiree. Lots of people were invited but one uninvited guest spoiled the show: snow! We have been deluged by snow, more than I've ever seen in my nine years of living in Seattle. It's quite beautiful but the roads have been a mess. As such, several party goers played it safe and stayed home.

Those that braved the elements were rewarded with LOTS of goodies, including this little ditty I threw together. It's basically a cheesecake recipe without the eggs, but it's a lot fun to eat and easier to serve to a crowd. I made mine with peanut butter and chocolate chips, but the recipe is so forgiving, you can make it anyway you want. Add nuts, try fruit flavored cream cheese, chocolate chips, dried fruit, ground graham crackers, whatever! It's one of those things that everyone is sure to love. They may not know what it is just by looking at it, but when you tell them, their faces will light-up with delight!

"Ohhh..What's That?" Cheesecake Ball
Yield 20-40 servings? I've never really measured

1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened (not too soft)
1/2 cup butter, softened or 1/2 peanut butter (not all natural)
1 1/4 cup confectioner’s sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract or other flavor of your choice
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips (optional)
1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional)
1/2 cup of mini chocolate chips, nuts, dried fruit, (whatever you want) for the outside of the ball

In a medium bowl, beat together cream cheese and butter/peanut butter until smooth. Mix in confectioner’s sugar, brown sugar and vanilla. Stir in chocolate chips and nuts, if you're using them. Cover, and chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours or until firm.

Scoop cream cheese onto a big piece of plastic wrap and using the wrap, shape into a ball (if you are making this for Super Bowl, you can shape and decorate into a football.) Chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour or overnight. If it's really soft, pop it into the freezer for a half an hour. Right before you're ready to serve, cover (or roll) the ball with mini chocolate chips or chopped nuts (or whatever you want).

Serve with chocolate wafer cookies, graham crackers, broken waffle cones, or whatever you want. Note - this will soften a bit after you take it out of the fridge, but you want it soft. If it's too hard, it won't spread well on the cookies.

19 comments:

  1. Oh Julia...this looks like it would have been worth braving the roads for! I'm so upset. Are those the wafer cookies from your mocha cream sandwiches? Will you be posting any other party dishes? I really, really wish I could have been there.

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  2. Yum-O-lish! I was excited to see a new post... figured you had been busy this time of year, but waited with great anticipation! Hope your holidays are fab despite the snow!

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  3. oh my gosh - WHAT A GOOD IDEA! I love it. I'm totally making that at my next party :)

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  4. That looks delicious. What a clever way to serve up some cheesecake.

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  5. Mandy -- I would have loved for you to be here but I would have been so nervous with you driving home in that weather. We got about 6 or 7 inches at our house during the time of the party. It was nuts. As for the wafers, no sadly they were not those cookies you remember so well (I had forgotten about them!). They were just the Famous Chocolate Wafers made by Nabisco. Oh and yes, lots more party dishes to come. :-)

    LaDue - I know, I've been so busy lately. I haven't had time to read other people's blogs either. Thank you for sticking with me! The party was really fun. It wasn't as big as I had planned for but we made the best of it. Lots and lots of food for everyone too.

    Heather - Yay! I had forgotten about this recipe and while I was at the store it just jumped into my head. People loved it!

    Hayley - Thanks! You're totally right. No plates or forks needed. :-)

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  6. Hi, Julia!
    I'm glad to hear that all is well and that you've just been a buzy bee.

    That is a FANTASIC idea! I'm going to give it a try. I have tons of cream cheese in the fridge. I'll let you know....
    ~ingrid

    Btw, I made your super Easy Fudge. I booboo-ed. I forgot to add the vanilla! I haven't cut it up yet but Devon and I licked the spatula and whisk clean. YUM!

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  7. Oh my gosh, that looks AWESOME! I definitely will be making that for one of our upcoming gatherings!

    Merry Christmas, Julia! Keep up the great work on your blog, I'll be stopping by frequently!

    Erik - Baking in Oregon

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  8. What a wonderful idea! I make cheese balls all the time but they are of the savory type. I think the next time I make a cheese ball it will be this sweet version.

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  9. Oh, THAT is cool! I'm am saving this recipe!

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  10. What a great thing to bring to a party! I love your blog, it is so cute and full of amazing recipes and photos :)

    I would love to write about your cheesecake ball on our blog! If you are interested send me an email at haley@keyingredient.com

    Thanks!
    Haley

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  11. That looks amazing, I have a birthday party coming up to prepare for and I think I will be adding this to the food list! Thankyou!

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  12. uh, has anyone actually made this ?

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  13. Are you kidding me? This is the coolest darn thing I have ever seen! And pb instead of butter?! How close does it taste to actual cheesecake?

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  14. Hey Nick -- yeah, this pretty much tastes just like cheesecake, only with a slightly smoother texture. It's extremely rich too. Every time I've make it, it's one of the first things that disappears. I don't think you'll be disappointed if you try it :)

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  15. Looks amazing! I'll definitely be trying my hand at this, I've been trying to branch out with deserts and goodies lately...

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  16. I just found your blog and was reading through past posts. . . I make this dip all the time and serve it with pretzels, the whole salty/chocolate thing - YUMMY. I have never had it with the PB, I will have to try that next.

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  17. Really neat! Never thought of making a cheese cake ball!

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  18. i haven't made a cheeseball yet but they seem so retro-y cool that i'm dying to make one next time i need food for an event.

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  19. Yum! I am going to try this tomorrow, but going to make it Keylime flavored! Thanks for sharing the recipe!

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