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Pear-Shaped Sake Cheese Ball
Chill: 6 hrs to 24 hrs
Stand: 15 mins
Ingredients
- 2 8 ounce package cream cheese
- 1 8 ounce package Camembert cheese, rind removed and cut up
- 1 cup shredded aged white cheddar, provolone or Swiss cheese (4 ounces)
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1/4 cup sake, dry white wine or milk
- 2 tablespoons apricot or peach preserves
- 1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper or black pepper
- 1/2 cup slivered almonds, toasted and chopped
- 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese or Romano cheese
- 1 inch stick cinnamon
- 1 small fresh bay leaf
- Sesame crackers, celery stalks, cucumber slices, Bosc or Anjou pear slices, apple wedges and/or dried apricot halves
Directions
1. In a large bowl, let cream cheese, Camembert, shredded cheddar and butter come to room temperature for 45 minutes. Add sake, apricot preserves and pepper. Beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until almost smooth. Stir in almonds.
2. Cover and chill cheese mixture about 2 hours or until easy to handle. Shape mixture into a round ball. Shake Parmesan cheese onto a piece of waxed paper; roll ball in cheese. For a pear, mold the round cheese ball into a pear shape (if making pear shape, sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese after shaping). Cover with plastic wrap. Chill for 4 to 24 hours.
3. To serve, place pear-shape or the round cheese ball in a large shallow serving bowl or on platter. For the pear, make a small depression in the top for stem end. Insert cinnamon stick in pear for stem and the bay leaf. Let stand for 15 minutes before serving. Arrange crackers, celery, cucumber, pear or apples and/or apricots around the cheese.
