Stephie Cooks

Food from the heart

Pineapple Pecan Cheese Ball

by 39 Comments

Pineapple Pecan Cheese Ball: Cream cheese mixed with crushed pineapple, peppers, scallions, and pecans – the perfect sweet-salty addition to any party or gathering!

This post is sponsored by Diamond of California, but all opinions are 100% my own. Thank you for supporting brands that make this site possible.

Pineapple Pecan Cheeseball 3
My aunt is the cheese ball queen.

She has 3 cheese ball recipes that she pulls out once a year, typically at either Thanksgiving or Christmas. Considering we are a family of 8 (now 9 with the addition of Alex) on a good day, making 3 cheese balls for one holiday gathering seems a bit extreme, but she continues to make all of the recipes as each one is someone’s favorite.

Pineapple Pecan Cheese Ball
My mother, my aunt and I are partial to the Pineapple Pecan Cheese Ball. Her version includes cream cheese, crushed pineapple, green onions and plenty of pecans.

This year, after eating my weight in cheese ball at Thanksgiving (don’t worry, I gave her cheddar and blue cheese ball some well-deserved attention as well), I decided to recreate this salty-sweet wonder in my own kitchen.

Pineapple and pecans and cheese might seem a little bit wacky, but I promise – it is awesome.

The sweetness of the pineapple is balanced by the pepper (red in my version), green onion and Worcestershire sauce, and the crunchy pecans are basically a must to round the whole thing out.

I wish I could say that you need crackers to spread it on, but I would have a total Pinocchio moment if I told you that I had never eaten it straight from the spoon.

Pineapple Pecan Cheese Ball 2
Just like with my Cream Cheese Ranch Rollups, you can make this the night before or early in the morning the day of – you’ll be glad that you allowed the flavors to meld into each other, making it 10 times better.

Just try to actually use a cracker as a vehicle to get it to your mouth – particularly if you are serving it at your New Year’s Eve party. Your guests will thank you.

Pineapple Pecan Cheese ball 4

Pineapple Pecan Cheese Ball

Pineapple Pecan Cheese Ball

Pineapple Pecan Cheese Ball: Cream cheese mixed with crushed pineapple, peppers, scallions, and pecans – the perfect sweet-salty addition to any party or gathering!

Prep Time 15 minutes
Chill Time 8 hours
Total Time 8 hours 15 minutes

Ingredients

  • 2 8-ounce packages cream cheese, softened
  • 1/3 cup finely diced red pepper
  • 1/4 cup thinly sliced green onion
  • 2 8-ounce cans crushed pineapple, very well drained
  • 2 teaspoons seasoned salt
  • 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 cups Diamond of California Pecan Chips

Instructions

In a large bowl, mix together the first 6 ingredients and 1/2 cup of the pecans until thoroughly combined. Shape into a ball, cover and allow to chill in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours or preferably overnight.

Before serving, roll the cheese ball in the remaining pecans. Place on a platter and serve with crackers.

Category: Appetizers
 

Comments

  1. Stephanie @ Girl Versus Dough says

    You’re going to laugh, because I def just made three cheese balls for tomorrow’s post… and for just me and the hubs to eat. We are drowning in cheese ball over here (and yet I still really want summa this sweet-salty one you got here, too).

    Reply

  6. Kelly says

    OH my gosh!!! How cool is this???!! I made this recipe several years in a row for parties many years ago (in the mid ’90’s!), and it’s SO COOL to find out that it’s your Aunt’s recipe!!!! 😀 What a small world!!! 😀 I LOVE this cheese ball, it’s my all-time favorite of all cheese balls, and believe me, I’m cheese ball addict and that’s a HUGE compliment!! 😀 (I got it out of Taste of Home mag I think??? It’s been too long now!) Just THRILLED to see this! I’ll have to make it again SOON! 😀

    Reply

      • Stephie says

        Hi Kelly! I think there are a number of versions of this type of cheese ball around, but this is the one that I grew up eating (some don’t use the pepper, most don’t use Worcestershire sauce, etc etc) and love! (Kind of like fruitcake recipes – every family has their own version!) Glad to bring this back to your kitchen 🙂

  7. Kim Honeycutt says

    This is so close to the one my Mother always made. Never used the Worcestershire Sauce that I know of but bet it’s good. Pinning it!!

    Reply

  19. Alyssa says

    Oh my goodness! I have a family reunion coming up this weekend, and I am in charge of DIPS! Hooray for your post! I know what I’m serving now 🙂

    Reply

    • Stephie says

      I have never tried it — I sometimes get nervous about freezing dairy, as I find it can alter the texture. But, you could certainly give it a try and let us know how it goes!

      Reply

    • Stephie says

      Who needs a cracker?? A spoon works great!

      Kidding. Sort of. Really, any cracker is great. I like a nice hearty one that can stand up to a good spread, as opposed to a delicate water cracker or something like that.

      Reply

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