Sharon’s Pecan Cheese Ball
This is another Sharon recipe. And for all the people who say “ew, cheese ball” – don’t knock it until you’ve tried it.
Sharon and I once ate an entire cheese ball by ourselves. We were in Baton Rouge (I don’t remember the year, but it was while she and Jerry still lived in Louisiana), talking about either Christmas or Thanksgiving plans. What was she going to make? What was I going to make? She brought out a cheese ball to snack on while we talked, and before we knew it, we’d eaten the whole thing. Just the two of us, crackers and cheese ball and planning holiday meals, and it was gone. That’s how good this is.
Yes, it’s a cheese ball. Yes, it’s clichéd. Everyone thinks of cheese balls as ’70s weirdness, like Jell-O salads; retro in the bad way. It’s the thing your grandmother made that you politely avoided at family gatherings, or the thing in the obligatory Hickory Farms gift box you sent the in-laws (or got from your employer). But if I can convince people to try this one, they love it. Every time I take it to a party or an office get-together, it’s a hit, and nobody can figure out what’s in it.
It’s pineapple. No one ever guesses pineapple.
Sharon made this for Christmas and Thanksgiving every year, and once in a while for special occasions when the whole family was together or they had people over. Now it’s my go-to party contribution. I always get asked for the recipe, usually along with some version of “I never thought I’d like cheese ball,” and I always share it. Sharon never believed in keeping recipes secret. (Her chili is already here on the blog, too.)
There are exactly two ways to mess this up, and I’ve done one of them. The first is the mixer. I made this for an office party once, used a mixer, and wound up with “cheese ball dip.” It just would not hold a ball shape. Sharon laughed and laughed about that. Use a wooden spoon or, better yet, a gloved hand, and get in there.
The second is the pineapple. You want crushed pineapple in heavy syrup, not in juice and not in “lite syrup.” The sugar makes a difference in both the flavor and the texture. It started getting harder to find about six or seven years ago, and these days it sometimes only comes in 12-ounce cans. As of right now, Publix in Atlanta has those 12-ounce cans, and I buy a half dozen every year to stock up, just in case they ever go away.
I use Lawry’s seasoned salt because I’m a Lawry’s girl, from my mom and her mom. Penzeys makes a really good seasoned salt too, or use whatever kind you like best. It’s what gives this its savory backbone, so don’t skip it or swap in plain salt. And yes, a tablespoon of seasoned salt sounds like a lot. Trust me on this one: it isn’t. Once the cheese ball has had time to chill and the flavors meld, the salt fades into the background and does exactly what it’s supposed to do – make the other flavors brighter and bolder. I use a scant tablespoon, and it’s just right.
Serve it with crackers. Wheat Thins are good, I love Triscuits, but really any cracker works. My gluten-free friends use carrot and celery sticks and love it.
The first time I made this after Sharon died, it felt like a continuation of a tradition, just like her banana bread and her brisket and all the other wonderful food she made. Sharon made it every Christmas and Thanksgiving. Now I do. Or Kevin does. Or David and Barb do. It gets brought to the holidays and set out on the appetizer table, and people who thought they didn’t like cheese balls find out that, actually, they do.
That’s what Sharon’s food does. It changes minds. It brings people together. It disappears before you realize you’ve eaten the whole thing.
Do you have a recipe that converts skeptics? What’s your go-to party contribution? Let me know in the comments.
Sharon’s Pecan Cheese Ball
Ingredients
- 2 8-oz packages cream cheese softened
- 8 oz crushed pineapple in heavy syrup drained and squeezed very dry; see Notes
- ½ cup green bell pepper finely chopped
- ½ cup green onions finely chopped
- 1 Tbsp seasoned salt a scant tablespoon; I use Lawry’s
- 2 cups pecans chopped, divided
Instructions
- Drain the pineapple really well. Squeeze it in cheesecloth or a tea towel, let it rest, and squeeze it again. You want it as dry as possible.8 oz crushed pineapple in heavy syrup
- In a large bowl, mix the cream cheese, pineapple, green pepper, green onions, seasoned salt, and half the pecans (1 cup) together well, with a wooden spoon or a gloved hand. Do not use a mixer.2 8-oz packages cream cheese, 8 oz crushed pineapple in heavy syrup, ½ cup green bell pepper, ½ cup green onions, 1 Tbsp seasoned salt, 2 cups pecans
- Divide the mixture and form it into balls. Two is usually right; see Notes for sizing. Roll each ball in the remaining pecans (1 cup total, split between them).2 cups pecans
- Chill, ideally for a day or two, so the flavors blend and the balls set up. Serve with crackers.
Notes
- Use crushed pineapple in heavy syrup. If your can is 12 ounces, use 8 here and save the other 4 for a salad or something.
- Squeeze the pineapple as dry as you can: cheesecloth or a tea towel, let it rest, then squeeze again. Wet pineapple means a soft ball.
- Do NOT use a mixer. It breaks down the cream cheese and the mixture won’t hold a ball shape. Wooden spoon or gloved hand only.
- Make the balls as big or as small as you like. For 6 to 10 people, dividing the mix in half is usually about right: a decent-size ball for the appetizer spread and one in reserve if the first one goes fast. (Or one for you for later, after everyone’s gone.) The one in these photos is small; I used about a third of the mix for a ball to photograph and for our Sunday football snacks. If you go the other way and make one huge ball, use 2/3 of the pecans inside and 1/3 to roll it in. But really, a single cheese ball is ridiculously large.
- Make it a day or two ahead so the flavors blend and the balls set up. It’ll keep a week in the fridge, if it lasts that long.
P.S. If you can’t find pineapple in heavy syrup where you live, stock up when you do find it. It’s worth having a few cans in the pantry.
P.P.S. Callie was very put out that I wouldn’t let her taste test the cheese ball, so she made sure her tail touched the crackers. Revenge. (And yes, I’m still going to eat that cracker.)
