A cheese ball is an American

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that is a type of

cheese spread Cheese spread is a soft spreadable cheese or processed cheese product. Various additional ingredients are sometimes used, such as multiple cheeses, fruits, vegetables and meats, and many types of cheese spreads exist. Pasteurized process cheese s ...

. It first appeared in the 1940s, fell out of fashion, and then had a resurgence in popularity in the 21st century.

Ingredients, preparation and serving

The cheese ball is typically made from grated

hard cheese There are many different types of cheese. Cheeses can be grouped or classified according to criteria such as length of fermentation, texture, methods of production, fat content, animal milk, and country or region of origin. The method most comm ...

and softened cream cheese, sometimes with some sort of binder such as mayonnaise; the mixture is shaped, chilled to resolidify, and often rolled in nuts, seeds, or herbs to provide a decorative finish. It is often served with crackers or crudites at holiday parties in the United States. Cheese balls are sometimes formed into wheels or logs rather than balls or shaped and decorated to represent a variety of items such as owls or pineapples.

Origins

The dish is representative of mid-20th century

US cuisine American cuisine consists of the cooking style and traditional dishes prepared in the United States. It has been significantly influenced by Europeans, indigenous Native Americans, Africans, Asians, Pacific Islanders, and many other cultures an ...

. According to '' Splendid Table'' the first recipe appeared in a 1944 cookbook by Virginia Safford, a "wildly popular columnist" for the '' Minneapolis Star Journal''.

Popularity

The dish fell out of fashion for a period; by the late 1980s the term "cheeseball" was synonymous with "lacking style, taste, or originality". According to

Amanda Hesser Amanda Hesser (born 1971) is an American food writer, editor, cookbook author and entrepreneur. Most notably, she was the food editor of ''The New York Times Magazine'', the editor of '' T Living'', a quarterly publication of ''The New York Times'' ...

, writing for the ''New York Times'' in 2003, it "tend to be associated with shag rugs and tinsel, symbols of the middle-class

middlebrow The term middlebrow describes easily accessible art, usually literature, and the people who use the arts to acquire culture and "class" (Reputation, social prestige). First used in the British satire magazine ''Punch (magazine), Punch'' in 1925, t ...

". Kim Severson, writing for The New York Times in 2016, said it was "the culinary equivalent of a

Rorschach test The Rorschach test is a projective psychological test in which subjects' perceptions of inkblots are recorded and then analyzed using psychological interpretation, complex algorithms, or both. Some psychologists use this test to examine a pe ...

". Amy Sedaris and her brother

David David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

wrote a play, The Book of Liz, that focussed on cheese balls as a metaphor for "the cliches we all live by", according to Ben Brantley. She included a recipe in her 2006 cookbook, ''Hosting a Party Under the Influence'', and in 2007 made a version on the Martha Stewart Show, which according to Severson, "elevated cheese ball

kitsch Kitsch ( ; loanword from German) is a term applied to art and design that is perceived as naïve imitation, overly-eccentric, gratuitous, or of banal taste. The avant-garde opposed kitsch as melodramatic and superficial affiliation with ...

to an art form". According to ''Splendid Table'''s Jennifer Russell, writing in 2014, "Sedaris may be singlehandedly responsible for the cheese ball's revival." In 2014 ''Culture'', an industry magazine, said "cheese balls are making their comeback". MplsStPaul Magazine called 2016 "the year of the cheese ball", calling the dish "the North’s answer to Southern

pimento cheese Pimento (or pimiento) cheese is a spread most popularly made of cheese, mayonnaise and pimientos and served on crackers and vegetables or in sandwiches. A favorite of the cuisine of the Southern United States, it also is enjoyed elsewhere, with ...

References

{{Cheese dishes Cheese spreads Appetizers American cuisine Cheese dishes