When it comes to party food, cheese balls are a timeless classic. Combining both flair and flavor, it’s a favorite at all types of gatherings. Also, cheese balls are incredibly easy to prepare in advance. While the classic cheese ball is a beloved staple, there are a few modern twists that are not only easy but also add a touch of elegance to your appetizer table.
The Versatile Classic Cheese Ball
A classic cheese ball traditionally features cream cheese, shredded cheddar cheese, scallions, herbs, and spices. This mixture is shaped into a ball, chilled, and then coated with chopped nuts. However, one of the great things about cheese balls is their versatility. You can easily customize them with a few creative tweaks. Let’s explore two scrumptious and delightful cheese ball recipes that are guaranteed to earn rave reviews!
Classic Nutty Cheese Ball
Ingredients:
● 1 (8 oz.) package of cream cheese, room temperature
● 1 (4 oz.) package goat cheese, room temperature
● 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
● ½ tsp. garlic powder
● ¼ tsp. pepper
● ½ cup finely chopped walnut or pecan
● Buttery crackers, for serving
Directions:
● Take a large bowl and blend the cream cheese, goat cheese, shredded cheddar cheese, garlic powder, and pepper.
● Spoon the mixture onto a piece of plastic wrap and tightly gather the ends together.
● Shape the mixture into a big ball and chill for at least 4 hours until fairly firm or up to 2 days in advance.
● Spread the chopped walnuts on a cutting board, unwrap the cheese ball, discard the plastic, and roll the ball in the chopped nuts to coat.
● Serve with buttery crackers.
Cheddar Cheese Ball Blossom
Ingredients:
● 12 oz. extra sharp cheddar cheese, room temperature
● 1 (8 oz.) package of cream cheese, room temperature
● ¾ tsp. Greek seasoning
● 1 clove garlic, mashed
● 2 tsp. minced fresh thyme
● 1 small scallion, minced
● 1 (6 oz.) bag of colorful vegetable chips, like Terra Sweets & Beets
Directions:
● In a food processor, combine extra sharp cheddar cheese, cream cheese, Greek seasoning, and mashed garlic. Purée everything for 2 minutes, until smooth.
● Pulse in minced fresh thyme and minced scallions.
● Transfer the mixture to a serving plate and shape it into a 1-inch thick disk.
● Serve with the vegetable chips.
Stunning Decoration Idea
The vibrant colors of vegetable chips make it effortless to transform this cheese spread from a delightful starter into a stunning focal point. To make the dish more picture-perfect, craft a Terra flower design by arranging chips in a circular pattern of petals inserted into the cheese. Enjoy your delectable cheese balls at your next gathering!
Viral TikTok Video Asks Parents to Normalize the Inevitable Mess in Kids’ Room
Tidying up the kids’ rooms is a common nightmare for almost every parent! Though Marie Kondo’s popular series Tidying Up on Netflix has come up with a genius space-saving trick of folding clothes, one mom has got another better idea. She urges the parent community to ‘normalize’ the mess in the kids’ room and save time and frustration in the process. Because, no matter how often or how neatly you fold your kids’ laundry, a mess is inevitable at that place. Her TikTok Video has racked up over 2.6 million views already!
The Video
Under the TikTok handle @playroominspo, Courtney recently posted a video asking not to fold the kids’ clothes at all. In the sped-up video, she is seen putting the laundry away in the boxes in her kids’ room, just without any folding or even pairing socks. The video plays with the message that it only took four minutes to put the clothes away, which was far better than clothes piled up for days in the room, waiting to be folded and then stored. So, normalizing the mess in your kids’ room with a ‘no-fold’ system has its perks!
The Responses
While a lot of parents were amazed by Courtney’s parenting hack video, some were skeptical too. Many lauded it as one of the best relieving parenting methods they’d hope to learn about sooner. One person even admitted that they don’t even fold their own clothes. The nay-sayers came up criticizing it as a lazy person’s idea to normalize a mess. But defending Courtney, others quickly responded that it was worth all the saved time and mental health. The habit can, of course, co-exist in each parent, but at the end of the day, normalizing the mess in kids’ rooms isn’t that big a deal.