Zombie Brains Cheese Ball (re-run)

I made this back in 2017 and thought I'd share again in case you're in need of an easy fun appetizer for Halloween (or any time really, it's good even without forming it into brains hahaha):

I have very nice friends who don't seem to mind that every time I bring food to a party, I'm going to make something that I want to blog hahaha. So even though it was NOT a Halloween party I brought this zombie brains cheese ball to Ronda's party so I could try it out...and no one even blinked.

This is quite easy to do and tastes yummy (once you get past the way it looks that is!). It's a pesto flavored cheese ball topped with squiggly "brains" made from feta and cream cheese, surrounded by sun-dried tomato sauce. Even if you don't want it "zombie" themed this is a very good combo, just spread the topping on instead of making it look brain- like!

Ingredients:

• 2 pkgs (8 oz. each) cream cheese, softened
• 1 pkg (3.5 oz.) crumbled feta cheese
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup Classico Traditional Basil Pesto Sauce
• 2 T. toasted pine nuts
• 1/2 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
• 1 clove garlic
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 T. balsamic vinegar
• crackers for serving

Directions  - see my note after about the feta mixture:

1. In a food processor, blend 1 pkg. of cream cheese and the feta until smooth, scraping down the sides as necessary. Spoon into a plastic baggie and refrigerate. 
2. Add the remaining 1 pkg. cream cheese, parmesan, and pesto sauce to the food processor and process until well blended. Add the toasted pine nuts and pulse several times to mix. Place the mixture into a piece of plastic wrap and shape into a ball, cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.
3. Add the sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, water, olive oil and balsamic vinegar to the food processor and process until smooth. Set aside.
4. Unwrap the pesto ball and turn onto a plate. Gently shape into an oval. Cut the tip off one corner of the feta mixture baggie and pipe onto the pesto ball in a twisting brain-like pattern. Spoon the sun-dried tomato sauce around the cheese ball and serve with crackers. 

note: I put the feta mixture in a baggie and into the fridge like they said but two things - 1) it was too firm after chilling it to squeeze out of the baggie and 2) I couldn't control the squiggles like I wanted to using the plastic bag. So I let the mixture set out to warm up a bit and then put it into a decorator bag with a big circle tip so I could make the "brains" look better.

original recipe found here. 



one year ago: baked crab cakes
two years ago: Halloween spider soap

Cheese Ball(s)

Remember when I posted that Cassandra asked me for a cheeseball and I made the "everything cheeseball" but we ate it instead of giving it to her? (click here for that post). I forgot to post that I actually did make her one of her own! This is very simple to do and so yummy - when I gave it to her she was working and walked over to the drug store and bought some crackers...by the time I got home she texted me that they had eaten the whole box of crackers and 1/2 the cheeseball already! hahaha I laughed!

8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 cup shredded cheddar
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
cooked chopped bacon - don't know how much I used, at least 4 slices (or just use already cooked "real bacon" in a little bag, I totally cheated and did this!)
shredded cheddar for the outside of ball

Mix the cream cheese, 1 cup cheddar, garlic and onion powder, band bacon together until smooth. Turn the mixture out onto a large piece of saran wrap, wrap around the mixture and shape it into a ball. Refrigerate for at least an hour. It will be soft when you first roll it up and you're gonna question how it's going to become a ball, but it will! Remove from fridge and roll in additional shredded cheese, place on a serving tray and serve with crackers, pita, celery sticks, whatever. Traditional cheeseball is usually rolled in chopped nuts but I like shredded cheese better.

This is how I transported it to Cassandra (she doesn't
have a fridge at work). I put it in a small plastic container, then
set it inside a bigger plastic bowl filled with ice and covered it. 

My sister makes a delish hot buffalo dip so I took that idea and made the above cheeseball into a "buffalo cheese ball" by adding buffalo sauce, diced celery, and blue cheese crumbles. I didn't measure, just kept adding until it looked right and since I don't like spicy food I just added buffalo sauce (like Frank's) until it bordered on too spicy for me. She (and everyone at the party) loved it!