Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Festive Gluten Free Cheese Ball



This recipe is based on a Food Network recipe from Paula Deen.  I added Gruyere Cheese to make it a bit more cheesy.  Some of the things I learned while making this dip were to one read your directions a couple days prior to making your recipe.  Two is to assemble it at home.  I had not refrigerated this dip overnight so it was not as solid as it should have been. Last, I put the the dip I had made at home together at my friend Carla's house and unfortunately I had not brought enough almonds.  It still looked like a pine cone, and it tasted phenomial, but it would have so much less stressful if I had followed the direstions I just listed.  Well, there is always next time. 






Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cups whole natural almonds

• 1 (8-ounce) package of cream cheese

* 1 cup grated Gruyere cheese

• 1/2 cup real mayonnaise

• 3 crispy cooked bacon slices, crumbled

• 1/2 teaspoon dill weed

• Salt and pepper

• 1 tablespoon chopped green onion

* 1/3 tablespoon chives, finely chopped

• Sprigs, for garnish

Directions

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.

Place and spread all the almonds on a cookie sheet or in a shallow pan, pushing the almonds around until they turn color, about 20 minutes.

Mix together the cream cheese and the mayonnaise. Add the bacon, salt and pepper, dill, and onion. Chill overnight.

On a serving platter, make 2 pine cone shapes with the cheese. Begin to press the almonds at a slight angle into the cheese, starting at the narrow end of the pine cone shape.

Do this in rows, continuing to overlap rows until all the cheese is covered. Garnish with fake sprigs, or real ones, or with rosemary.



Serve at room temperature and spread on crackers.

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