Red White and Blue Cheeseballs

Red white and blue cheeseballs are a delicious bite-sized appetizer to celebrate the 4^th of July, Memorial Day, and other patriotic holidays. They add a nice pop of color to your holiday table and are perfect to spread on a crake or two.

For more patriotic appetizers, check out these red white and blue goat cheese logs, watermelon feta skewers, patriotic pizza bites, and 4^th of July salad.

4^th of July Cheeseballs

If there’s one appetizer everyone loves, it’s mini cheese balls! These pretty red white and blue cheeseballs look very patriotic and are one the easiest way to feed a crowd.

They are also quick to make ahead of time. Just roll them in a bunch of spicy, nutty, and floral toppings and pop them in the fridge until ready to serve.

Cheese skewers and Jarlsberg cheese dip are more cheese appetizers I know you’ll love.

Ingredients

Cheese balls

• 8 oz full-fat cream cheese – Block-style cream cheese works well in this recipe. Be sure to let your cream cheese soften to room temperature before starting.
• 1 1/4 cups feta cheese – adds great savory flavor to the cheeseballs. You can also substitute Swiss cheese, Havarti, or Gouda. Either way, you want to shred the cheese fresh from a block of cheese for the best taste.
• 4 tablespoons parmesan cheese – create a rich, sweet-savory umami aroma.
• 3 tablespoons breadcrumbs – help the mixture hold together. You can use regular or Italian breadcrumbs.
• 1 teaspoon salt – You may need to use more or less depending how salty your cheddar and parmesan are.
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper – to round out the other ingredients.
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder – Feel free to swap in the freshly minced garlic cloves or sub with onion powder.

Toppings

I picked coatings that reflect the colors of the American Flag and will stick to the cheese balls. You need approximately 1/4 cup of each color for this recipe.

• Red pepper flakes – Pepper flakes add heat to the cheese balls and reflect the color red. Parika, chopped sun-dried tomatoes, and bacon bits would also work well for red cheese balls. Dried red dianthus petals are a lovely floral option.
• Desiccated coconut – Desiccated coconut are fine shreds of unsweetened dried coconut and represent the color white. You could also use breadcrumbs or ground almonds instead of coconut or sprinkle the cheese balls with white pepper.
• Blue cornflower petals – There aren’t many blue herbs or spices, but cornflower petals are both blue and edible. You can order dried petals online. They look stunning on our cheese balls and have a subtle floral taste.

Instructions

One batch of my recipe makes 18 to 20 mini cheese balls. 1 serving is 2 to 3 balls. If you need more servings, double or triple the ingredients. If making a bigger batch, it’s convenient to use a food processor to blend the cheese mixture.

Serving Suggestion

A fun way to serve the red white and blue cheesecake balls is in the shape of the American flag. Grab a rectangular serving platter and place a couple of blue cheese balls in the top left corner. Then, arrange alternating rows of red and white cheese balls around it.

I recommend doubling or tripling the recipe, so you have enough cheese balls to create the flag design.

As you can see in the photos, I used a star-shaped cookie cutter to cut out stars from slices of bread. It’s a fun way to incorporate another element of the star spangled banner.

Make Ahead & Storage

• Make-ahead: You can prepare the cheese balls up to 2 days ahead of time. Keep them chilled until you need them.
• Store: Place the cheeseballs into an airtight container and refrigerate. Enjoy the cheeseballs within 4 to 5 days.

More 4^th of July Recipes

• Flag Fruit Pizza
• 4^th of July Cupcakes
• Red White & Blue Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Stars & Stripes Cheesecake Bars
• Patriotic Mint Cooler