Description
Spider Cheeseballs are a spooky and delicious Halloween appetizer made from creamy cheeses mixed with herbs and spices, rolled into fun spider shapes coated with black sesame seeds and pretzel legs. Perfect for adding a festive touch to your party snack table, these no-bake cheeseballs delight guests with their creamy texture and crunchy exterior.
Ingredients
Scale
Cheese Mixture
- 2 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 4 ounces goat cheese
- 4 green onions, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon dried dill weed
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Coating and Legs
- 1/2 cup black sesame seeds
- 2 cups pretzel sticks
- Additional pretzels and crackers for serving
Instructions
- Prepare the cheese mixture: In a bowl, beat together the softened cream cheese and olive oil until smooth. Next, beat in the goat cheese, chopped green onions, minced garlic, dried dill weed, dried oregano, kosher salt, and black pepper until well combined. Chill the mixture for 30 minutes to firm up and enhance flavors.
- Form the spider bodies: Using your hands, roll the chilled cheese mixture into balls—1 1/2 inches in diameter for small spiders and 3 inches for large spiders. Ensure the balls are smooth and compact for easy handling.
- Coat with sesame seeds: Roll each cheese ball in the black sesame seeds, pressing gently so that they become evenly coated, creating a textured black exterior resembling a spider’s body.
- Attach pretzel legs: For small spiders, break 4 pretzel sticks in half to make 8 legs and carefully insert them on each side of the ball to mimic spider legs. For large spiders, use 8 whole pretzel sticks similarly for the legs, ensuring firmness so the legs stay in place.
- Chill before serving: Wrap the finished Spider Cheeseballs in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to allow flavors to meld and the structure to set. Serve chilled alongside crackers and extra pretzel sticks as desired for an inviting party platter.
Notes
- Use room temperature cream cheese to make mixing easier and achieve a smooth texture.
- Chilling the mixture before forming balls helps make rolling easier and prevents stickiness.
- Adjust herb quantities to taste if you prefer more or less seasoned cheese balls.
- Black sesame seeds give the spider a spooky black color; substitute with poppy seeds for a different texture if desired.
- Handle the pretzel legs gently to avoid breaking them when inserting into the cheese balls.
- These cheeseballs keep well covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 spider cheeseball (approx. 100g)
- Calories: 220
- Sugar: 1g
- Sodium: 380mg
- Fat: 18g
- Saturated Fat: 7g
- Unsaturated Fat: 10g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 8g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 5g
- Cholesterol: 35mg
