Holiday Cheese Ball Wreath

These little balls of cheese are rolled in a variety of toppings like toasted nuts and sesame seeds, dried herbs, and even some crushed pink peppercorns for some heat! A Holiday Cheese Ball Wreath is a great way to jazz up your snack table! Serve with your favourite crackers and some warm crostini!

We absolutely love these! They are so good smeared on crackers, but I love to smear one on a slice of a very fresh baguette. I like the chewiness of fresh bread with the cheese, but if you prefer crunch, then go the crostini route. A Holiday Cheese Ball Wreath will make a stunningly gorgeous display on any Christmas buffet or snack table. Just place a little pickle or cheese fork beside the plate or even a stack of toothpicks. Now, everyone dig in!

I may have mentioned it a time or two here at Lord Byron’s Kitchen. One of our favourite meals is what is most commonly called crudité. We chop up fresh veggies and plate them up with our favourite dip or hummus. Served alongside are two or three cheeses, crackers, crostini, etc. So, in our home, a Holiday Cheese Ball Wreath makes complete sense!

In the cooler months, I put everything out on the counter and we pile up our plates and eat dinner on the couch while watching whatever it is we might be into at the moment. In the summer months, we sit outside on our back deck. Sometimes we have a glass of Diet Coke with a lime wedge, and sometimes, I make us all a cocktail.

USE FRESH GREENERY TO CREATE A BEAUTIFUL WREATH BASE FOR YOUR CHEESE BALLS

I have a herb garden which allows me to pick fresh herbs all summer long. Knowing full well that I wanted to use some of my fresh herbs, like the summer savoury you see in the photos, to help me create the wreath look, had me photographing this particular recipe in early August. Luckily, fresh herbs are available anytime in most large chain grocery stores, so you can easily recreate the same look in December!

My Holiday Cheese Ball Wreath is the second in my 12 Edible Wreaths of Christmas Series. If you have not done so already, please join me for 12 consecutive days – yes, even Saturday and Sunday! – while I share one new edible wreath with you every day. If you cannot wait until tomorrow, you can always check out a series from Christmases past. Find the links for each series below. So, let’s just get into it!

EDIBLE WREATHS ARE THE CHARCUTERIE OF CHRISTMAS!

Charcuterie boards are everywhere these days, and it seems that there’s a theme for just about everything. With that in mind, why not create wreath-shaped charcuterie boards for Christmastime!? I started out with a few varieties in mind, but the more I thought about it, the more I loved the idea and before long, I had a list of twenty themes. Narrowing it down to 12 was hard, but I managed to put some of the themes aside until next year!

With an abundance of nuts in my pantry and a gorgeous section of summer savoury growing in my herb garden this past summer, I put together this Holiday Cheese Ball Wreath quite quickly and easily. Everything you see in the wreath is available at most larger chain stores, which means all you have to do is assemble it. Christmastime is busy enough as it is! Putting out a nice spread for friends and family shouldn’t add to your holiday stress!

Most charcuterie boards will include thinly sliced meats and cheese too. And, you can certainly add those things to your wreath if you’re putting it out before dinner as an appetizer. But, in this case, I’m keeping these wreaths simple and very on-theme.

WHAT IS CHARCUTERIE ANYWAY?

Charcuterie is a French term meaning “flesh” and “cooked.” It is a branch of cooking devoted to prepared meat products, such as bacon, ham, sausage, terrines, pate, etc. Originally intended as a way to preserve meat before the advent of refrigeration, they are prepared today for the flavours derived from the preservation processes.

Today, when we hear the term charcuterie, most of us immediately know that we are referring to the preparation and artful assembling of arranging items like cured meats, hard and soft cheeses, dried and fresh fruits, vegetables, and crackers or bread on a large wooden board.

Charcuterie has been popular in many parts of Europe for many, many years. In fact, there’s documented evidence of charcuterie being present in ancient Roman times. The popularity of these boards did not catch on here in North America until recently. Now, they’re everywhere! And, I’m going to show you how to make wreath-shaped charcuterie boards specifically for Christmas!

INGREDIENTS NEEDED FOR THIS RECIPE:

The following is a list of the items needed to prepare a Holiday Cheese Ball Wreath. Please keep in mind that the amount of each ingredient needed will greatly depend on how many people you are serving. For exact amounts and measurements, refer to the printable recipe card located near the bottom of this post.

• Cream Cheese – When baking with cream cheese it is always best to use brick style rather than whipped or cream cheese in a tub.  The brick style is firmer and more condensed.  The same train of thought can be applied to these cheese balls. The firmer cream cheese will work best.
• Goat Cheese – There are so many varieties with flavours already in them – do not buy those for this recipe. Buy plain, soft, unripened goat cheese like this.
• Toasted Nuts – Almost any nut will do. I used pecans, pistachios, and cashews.
• Toasted Sesame Seeds – You can use white or black sesame seeds. I used a combination of both for contrast. Remember, we eat with our eyes first!
• Dried Herbs – You might think that fresh herbs would be better, but not in this case. The moisture from fresh herbs and the moisture from the cheese form to make a wet cheese ball. Nobody wants that! Use dried parsley, chives, or Italian seasoning!
• Pink Peppercorns – These not only add a pop of colour but also add some heat. Obviously, you can use other reddish items too, like finely chopped dried cranberries, for example!
• Fresh Summer Savoury

HOW TO TOAST SESAME SEEDS

If you are not familiar with toasted sesame seeds, then please try it just once. You will probably never revert to using untoasted sesame seeds again! I have tried using non-stick frying pans for toasting, but nothing works as well as a stainless steel pan. You could use a cast iron pan, but since they get very hot and retain heat so well, it’s easier to burn the seeds.

See the frying pan in this picture? That’s the exact one that I use all the time. I’m not suggesting you run out and buy this same cookware set, but I wanted you to see the pan – remember, do not use non-stick if possible. You’ll get better results with plain stainless steel.

So, unlike most cooking where you’re required to preheat first, you don’t want to apply that same rule to toasting seeds. Add the seeds to a cold pan. Place the pan on the burner and turn the heat on – no higher than medium and probably even less if using a gas burner.

Keep the seeds moving about. I use a rubber spatula. Once you start to smell that warm and toasty aromatic smell, pay close attention. The seeds will take on a slightly golden colour. Don’t let them get too dark. Once you’re satisfied, immediately remove them from the hot pan and transfer them to a dinner plate where they can be spread out to cool.

GOAT CHEESE

Goat cheese is one of my favourite cheeses. It’s so creamy and smooth, and completely flexible in terms of food prep. Goat cheese can be sweetened, made to taste savoury, and adds so much depth to recipes. It’s a great vessel for carrying a stronger flavour and it really does blend well with more dominant ingredients.

Goat cheese, or chevre, is a cheese that is made from goat milk. It is made in a wide variety of styles, from soft fresh cheese to hard-aged cheese. You may have noticed that in comparison to cheese made with cow’s milk, goat cheese is slightly tart. That’s because cow’s milk and goat’s milk have similar overall fat contents, but goat’s milk is here in fatty acids. It also has a lower lactose content than cow’s milk.

Goat cheese has been made for thousands of years and dates back to Ancient Greece around 5,000 B.C. In the simplest form, goat cheese is made by allowing raw milk to naturally curdle, and then draining and pressing the curds. Other techniques use an acid (such as vinegar or lemon juice) or rennet to coagulate the milk. Soft goat cheeses are made in kitchens worldwide, with cooks hanging bundles of cheesecloth filled with curds in the warm kitchen for several days to drain and cure. If the cheese is to be aged, it is often brined so it will form a rind, and then stored in a cool cheese cave for several months to cure.

HOW TO PREPARE YOUR WREATH BASE

The first thing you want to do is to source a serving plate or bowl. The number of people you are serving and the number of items you have to place on the board will help to determine the size you will need. You can use a cutting board, a charcuterie board, a marble slab, or an old silver-plated tray as you see in the photographs.

Next, using fresh sprigs of summer savoury, create a circular pattern on the board. Position the sprigs so that the leafy end is pointing out from the center of the board. The size of the wreath will be determined by how many cheese balls you will be piling onto it, so size the wreath accordingly. It’s always best to make the summer savoury wreath a little bigger so that the green leaves are not completely covered with cheese. Once you’re happy with positioning those, it’s time to make the balls and assemble them.

HOW TO MAKE THE CHEESE BALLS

Allow the cream cheese and goat cheese to rest at room temperature for thirty minutes. In the meantime, prepare your toppings. If using pecans, cashews, and pistachios as I did, you will want to toast them first and allow them time to cool before crushing. Working with one type of nuts at a time, add them to a cold skillet. Turn the heat to medium and use a spatula to keep the nuts moving. Once they become fragrant and start to slightly darken, remove them from the skillet and transfer them to a plate. Cool completely. Repeat with each type of nut or seed.

Once the nuts are completely cooled, you can add them one type at a time to a food processor and pulse them once or twice to break them up. You can also use a pestle and mortar to crush them or chop them with a knife. Transfer the nuts to separate bowls and set them aside. Add any dried herbs or any chopped dried fruit to separate bowls as well.

Next, place the cream cheese in a bowl and beat it until smooth. Add in the softened goat cheese and beat into the cream cheese until well incorporated. Measure one tablespoon of the cheese mixture and roll it into a ball. Roll into your topping of choice and transfer to a prepared serving platter. Continue to make cheese balls until all of the cheese mixture is used up.

Insert a few sprigs of summer savoury around the serving platter or fill in any gaps if desired. Serve immediately or refrigerate for a few hours. Remove from the fridge and let sit and room temperature for twenty minutes before serving.

MAKE IT AHEAD OF TIME

You can make this Holiday Cheese Ball Wreath earlier on the day you are serving it, however, I would not make it a day or two in advance. There most certainly will be some moisture in the cheese and some of the toppings, which will most likely become soggy in spots if left to sit too long. If you do make it ahead of time, I would not recommend any longer than 8-12 hours. Cover the cheese balls well and keep them refrigerated until about 20 minutes before serving.