Olive Cheese Balls
Yield: About 36 balls
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Tips: For a slight change in texture, you can substitute bread crumbs for 1/2 of the flour (see recipe directions below).
Suggestion: Delicious alone, or served with Buttermilk Ranch Dressing for dipping.
Olives are enjoyed by all ages, and by themselves alone make a great appetizer for parties, holidays and any social gathering. So, when you take a tasty green pimento-stuffed olive and wrap it inside a flaky, cheesy dough,
then bake it until it's golden and crumbly, how can you go wrong? Olive Cheese Balls is a fun appetizer recipe that is easy to prepare and cooks in just 15 minutes. The dough is made with a simple mixture of cheddar cheese, parmesan cheese, butter and flour, and offers a wonderful complimentary flavor and crunch to green olives. These appetizers are tasty when served warm, at room temperature, or cold right from the fridge! They taste great all by themselves, as shown in the above photo, but you can add even more flavor and pizazz by serving them with a side of Buttermilk Ranch Dressing for dipping. Note: You can also vary this recipe a little by substituting 1/2 of the flour with some bread crumbs (plain or seasoned). I have personally tried this olive appetizer both ways, and both are delicious in their own way. Photo above shows Olive Cheese Balls made with without bread crumbs.)
Recipe▼
Ingredients
- 1 cup all purpose flour (or 1/2 cup flour and 1/2 cup bread crumbs, plain or seasoned)
- 1 cup grated cheddar cheese
- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
- 3 tablespoons butter, melted
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 F.
In a medium mixing bowl, mix together flour, cheddar cheese and Parmesan cheese. Add melted butter and stir until blended. Place about 1 tablespoon of mixture in the palm of your hand, then place an olive in the center of the mixture. Mold mixture around olive into the shape of a ball, squeezing gently to soften mixture into a dough-like consistency (the warmth of your hands will help soften the dough), making sure entire olive is covered. Use additional mixture if needed, or allow excessive mixture to drop back into the bowl. Try to use only as much dough as is needed to coat olives. (Note: Passing coated olive from one hand to the other over and over while gently squeezing with each hand is the easiest way to form balls.)
In a medium mixing bowl, mix together flour, cheddar cheese and Parmesan cheese. Add melted butter and stir until blended. Place about 1 tablespoon of mixture in the palm of your hand, then place an olive in the center of the mixture. Mold mixture around olive into the shape of a ball, squeezing gently to soften mixture into a dough-like consistency (the warmth of your hands will help soften the dough), making sure entire olive is covered. Use additional mixture if needed, or allow excessive mixture to drop back into the bowl. Try to use only as much dough as is needed to coat olives. (Note: Passing coated olive from one hand to the other over and over while gently squeezing with each hand is the easiest way to form balls.)
