This Christmas Cheese Ball needs a place on your table this year! Made with orange and cranberry, it’s easy to make and full of festive flavors. It’s a great holiday centerpiece and perfect as an appetizer, as part of a cheeseboard or a casual finger food.
Is it really Christmas without an awesome cheese ball recipe?! I’ve packed all of the festive flavors into a fun cheese appetizer that’s so easy to make! Wow your guests with this holiday cheese ball recipe!
How to Make Orange Cranberry Cheese Ball (Christmas Cheese Ball Recipe)
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In the bowl of a food processor, combine cream cheese, goat cheese, lemon juice, Worcestershire Sauce, salt and black pepper. Process 30 seconds or until smooth. Add cheddar cheese, chives, orange zest, orange marmalade and dried cranberries; process until smooth and ingredients are fully incorporated.
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Transfer the cheese to the center of a large piece of plastic wrap that has been placed on a work surface. Pick up the cheese from under the plastic wrap and shape the cheese into a ball. Twist the plastic wrap to enclose the cheese ball. Set the wrapped cheese ball in a bowl with the twisted part of the plastic wrap on top and refrigerate it for at least 1 hour or until firm. You can make the cheese ball up to three days ahead of serving.
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Remove the cheese ball from the fridge 30 minutes prior to adding the topping mixture, After 30 minutes, remove the plastic wrap and roll the ball in the topping mixture, pressing as you work your way around the ball to ensure the topping adheres.
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At this point, the cheese ball is ready to serve, or it can be loosely covered and placed back in the fridge until ready to serve.
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When ready to serve, allow it to soften on the counter 30 minutes prior to serving.
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Serve on a platter or cheese board along with fresh veggies, crackers, pretzels, and/or crostini.
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Enjoy!
FOR THE TOPPING ON THE CHRISTMAS CHEESE BALL:
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Mix the dried cranberries, pecans and orange zest together in a medium bowl.
The perfect make ahead party appetizer
At the time of year when you are entertaining more friends and family than usual, make ahead party food and appetizers are a must! You can prep this Christmas cheese ball a whopping three days ahead of time, so it’s perfect to keep in the fridge to serve at any point.
Can you freeze a cheeseball?
If you are really planning ahead, you can in fact, freeze the cheeseball before you add the toppings and it will be good for up to a month. Be sure to wrap it in securely in the plastic wrap and thaw it in the fridge.
Sweet and savory Christmas cheese ball recipe
The flavors in this festive appetizer are the perfect mix of sweet and savory with a little tang. The pecans add texture to the soft cheese and we all know cranberries and orange work so well together!
How do you serve a cheese ball appetizer?
I like to keep it simple when serving cheeseballs and simply like to serve them up on a plate with a selection of savory crackers. You can however serve the cheese ball a part of a larger cheeseboard, and this works especially well if you have lots of guests. Serve with several cheeses, nuts, crudite and crostini.
Top Tips to Make This Orange Cranberry Cheese Ball (Christmas Cheese Ball Recipe)
- If you don’t have a food processor, you can mix the ingredients in a large bowl with a spoon. It will take longer but work the same!
- Be sure to cover the whole cheese ball in plastic wrap so that it’s secure.
- Let the cheese ball come to room temperature before adding the toppings.
Be sure to check out these other cheese ball appetizer recipes!
- Classic Cheese Ball
- Mini Cheese Ball Bites
- Everything Bagel Cheese Ball
- Smoky Port Wine Cheese Log
- Sweet Potato Chorizo Sausage Cheese Balls
- Bacon Ranch Cheese Ball Recipe
- Fried Goat Cheese Balls with Cherries and Pecans
- Christmas Tree Cheese Ball by Slow The Cook Down
Orange Cranberry Cheese Ball - Christmas Cheese Balls
Ingredients
For the Cheese Ball:
- 16 ounces cream cheese room temperature
- 8 ounces goat cheese room temperature
- 1½ tablespoons freshly-squeezed lemon juice
- 1½ teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce
- 1/3 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 4 ounces sharp cheddar cheese shredded
- 3 tablespoons minced fresh chives
- 1 teaspoon fresh orange zest
- 1 tablespoon sweet orange marmalade
- ¼ cup dried cranberries
For the Topping:
- 4 ounces dried cranberries
- 3.5 ounces Honey Roasted Pecans
- Zest of 1 large orange
Instructions
For the Cheese Ball:
- In the bowl of a food processor, combine cream cheese, goat cheese, lemon juice, Worcestershire Sauce, salt and black pepper. Process 30 seconds or until smooth. Add cheddar cheese, chives, orange zest, orange marmalade and dried cranberries; process until smooth and ingredients are fully incorporated.
- Transfer the cheese to the center of a large piece of plastic wrap that has been placed on a work surface. Pick up the cheese from under the plastic wrap and shape the cheese into a ball. Twist the plastic wrap to enclose the cheese ball. Set the wrapped cheese ball in a bowl with the twisted part of the plastic wrap on top and refrigerate it for at least 1 hour or until firm. You can make the cheese ball up to three days ahead of serving. Remove the cheese ball from the fridge 30 minutes prior to adding the topping mixture, After 30 minutes, remove the plastic wrap and roll the ball in the topping mixture, pressing as you work your way around the ball to ensure the topping adheres. At this point, the cheese
- ball is ready to serve, or it can be loosely covered and placed back in the fridge until ready to serve.
- When ready to serve, allow it to soften on the counter 30 minutes prior to serving.
- Serve on a platter or cheese board along with fresh veggies, crackers, pretzels, and/or crostini.
- Enjoy!
For the Topping:
- Mix the dried cranberries, pecans and orange zest together in a medium bowl.
Last step! Don’t forget to show me a pic of what you made! Upload an image or tag me @thecookierookie on Instagram!
Nutrition Information
Is there a good substitute for goat cheese? Not sure it’s my favorite…..thanks! Merry Christmas 🎄
You can use the same amount of cream cheese or mascarpone cheese, both of which will give you a similar creamy texture! Merry Christmas to you as well!
Delicious and beautiful – I love the little bit of tang great combo of flavors!
Thank you, Melissa!!
This is gorgeous! Love the flavors of cranberry and orange together! I love that this can be frozen and made ahead of time!
Right! That always makes things so much easier!!
This Cheese ball is a dream for the holidays
I know, right!! One of my favorites!!