thepioneerwoman
Turkey Cheese Ball
This adorable turkey cheese ball couldn't be easier. It has a savory gouda and cream cheese body, cheese straw feathers, a bell pepper head, and pecan feet.
👥 8 Servings⏱️ Prep & Cook: 1h 40m⏳ Prep: 40 min👤 Sarah Holden📖 thepioneerwoman
🥘 Ingredients
Check off ingredients as you prepare them:
🍳 Cookware
- ●food processor
- ●bowl
📝 Preparation Steps
1
Pulse the pecans in a food processor until finely chopped. Transfer to a shallow dish and set aside. To the food processor, add the cream cheese, gouda, sun-dried tomatoes, milk, parsley, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, salt, and a few grinds of black pepper. Pulse until the mixture is fully combined and almost smooth.
Black pepper, to tasteblack peppercorns2
2
Set aside 1 teaspoon of the cheese mixture in a small bowl and refrigerate. Use wet hands to shape the remaining cheese mixture into a ball. Roll the cheese ball in the pecans to thoroughly coat. Refrigerate until firm, at least ⏱️ 1 hour and up to overnight.
3
To decorate, transfer the cheese ball to a serving platter. Make the first row of tail feathers by carefully inserting the cheese straws into the back of the cheese ball in a fan shape. Insert a row of oval buttery crackers in front of the cheese straws, pressing them in so they are lower than the cheese straws. Make a third row of feathers by inserting 7 pieces of the mini oval crackers in front of the buttery crackers, cut-side down. Insert a mini oval cracker half on each side of the cheese ball cut-side in, for wings (eat the remaining half cracker or reserve it for another use).
oval buttery crackers (such as Town House Original Oven Baked Crackers)7mini oval crackers (such as Town House Pretzel Flipsides Minis), halved crosswise5
4
To make the turkey neck and head, halve the bell pepper lengthwise and cut it lengthwise into thick strips. Cut a 4-inch piece off the curved end of 1 strip and insert it in the top of the cheese ball. (Reserve the remaining bell pepper for another use or cut it up to serve with the cheese ball.)
5
For the beak, trim the reserved piece of sun-dried tomato into a small triangle and attach it to the pepper head using the reserved cheese mixture as glue. Use the cheese mixture to adhere the peppercorn eyes. Tuck the 2 pecan halves under the cheese ball as feet.
6
Serve the turkey cheese ball with crackers and cut-up vegetables.
Crackers and cut-up vegetables, for serving
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