Festive Cranberry Onion Cheeseball

---

Welcome to the third annual 12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop!

Stop by every day from December first through the twelfth for new ideas you can use to make your season brighter!

Meet Your Hosts

They have all been busy as Elves creating, decorating, cooking and crafting tons of new ideas for you to try this holiday season!

Shirley~Intelligent Domestications I Alli~An Alli Event I Michelle~Our Crafty Mom
I Marie~DIY Adulation  Erlene~My Pinterventures I Beverly~Across The Blvd.
I Debra~Shoppe No. 5 I Victoria~Dazzle While Frazzled

Megan~C'mon Get Crafty I Michelle~Michelle James Designs 
I Amanda~Domestically Creative Deborah~Salvage Sister & Mister 
I Jeanie~Create & Babble I Sherry~Olives & Okra

Jenny~Cookies Coffee & Crafts I Emily~Domestic Deadline I Bonbon~Farmhouse 40 

Leanna~Of Faeries & Fauna I Pam Larmore~P.S. I Love You Crafts
I Kelly~North Country Nest I Marie~The Inspiration Vault

Gail~Purple Hues and Me I Lynne~My Family Thyme 
I Karen~Dragonfly and Lily Pads I Trisha~Blowing Away Out West

 I Lorrin~Embrace The Perfect Mess   I Terri~Christmas Tree Lane 

Sam~Raggedy Bits I Cyn~Creative Cynchronicity Valeria~Val Event Gal

Yami~The Latina Next Door I Jeannee~Centsably Creative I Tania~Little Vintage Cottage

 Lauren~Wonderfully Made I Vanessa~DIY 180 I Kimberly~A Wonderful Thought
I Kim~Everyday Parties Dru~Polka Dot Poplars 

---

This recipe is easy, you can make it days ahead (in fact it's better that way!) and looks so pretty too.

One of the things that makes this stand out is that it uses cream cheese and sharp, white cheddar. The cheddar really makes the difference.  There is such an explosion of flavors here:  The sharpness of the cheddar, the nutty, smoky toasted pecans, sweet cranberries and green onions -- heavenly!

 It's also therapeutic -- forget the mixer and the spoons, just dig in and combine all the ingredients (except the pecans) with your hands to distribute everything evenly before forming into a ball.

 Roll in your toasted pecans, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 24 hours so the flavors can meld together.

 I suggest getting it out of the refrigerator at least half an hour before serving so it can soften a bit.

 Serve with your choice of crackers -- YUM!

Here's the recipe:

Toast 1 c chopped pecans (don't skip this step - it really DOES make a difference to toast the nuts) and let cool to room temperature. Combine 8 oz. softened cream cheese and 2 c shredded sharp, white cheddar cheese.  Add in 1 c dried cranberries and 1/2 c finely chopped green onion.   Form into a ball and roll in the chopped pecans. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate 24 hours.  Remove from refrigerator at least half an hour before serving.  Serve with your favorite crackers.

---

Be sure to visit our fellow 12 Days of Christmas Bloggers below for even more creative ideas this holiday season!

An InLinkz Link-up