A Christmas Giveaway, A New Wreath and a Cheese Ball Igloo

The winner of this past weeks giveaway is: Jenny Please send me your mailing info and I will ship it right out. This week's giveaway is for a basket of Christmas goodies. It includes: Chocolate bars, chocolate covered blueberries and cherries, shortbreads, Holiday Jam from Stonewall Kitchen and all sorts of fun items. To enter, leave a comment on this post. If you are not already a follower, sign on to follow. This will be the last giveaway for a while. I need to restock the giveaway larder!!!

December 18th......one more week!

I have a wonderful cheese ball recipe and when I am invited to holiday parties, I think it is fun to dress it up a bit. So, I make a cheese ball igloo.

The recipe:

• 2 - 8 oz.packages cream cheese
• 1/2 cup chutney
• 1/4 cup onion diced
• 1 tsp. granulated garlic
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. pepper
• 1/2 cup Colby cheese shredded
• 1/2 cup Monterey Jack cheese shredded

directions

1. Mix together the cream cheese, chutney , onion, garlic, salt and pepper.
2. Fold in the Colby and Monterey jack cheeses.
3. Line a small bowl with plastic wrap and press the cheese into the bowl.
4. Chill overnight.
5. Turn the cheese mixture out onto a serving plate.
6. Spread cream cheese around the cheese ball and then cover the cheese in a layer of cream cheese too.
7. Score the cheese ball with a toothpick to resemble an igloo.

Cut several blocks from a block of cream cheese and form the entrance to the igloo. Add sprigs of fresh rosemary for trees.

Cut red pepper boxes to place under the trees. Using small and jumbo black olives, split the jumbo olive and fill with cream cheese to make the penguins. Fill the small olive with cream cheese for the head and sit it on top of the jumbo olive. Form the penguins feet from carrots and cut a small triangle of carrot for the nose. Stick a frilly toothpick down through the head to make the plume. Cut a carrot flag and attach it to the top of the igloo with a toothpick. Kids love these cheese balls. Serve it with crackers.

I made another retro wreath from things I found at the thrift shop.

The grapevine wreath was 99 cents.

I covered it with tinsel I found for 59 cents.

When you are done with the tinsel you can no longer see the grapevine.

I found bags of these balls for 99 cents.

I glued on a circle of different colored balls.

Then I filled in around the circle with smaller balls.

Back to cookie baking. I have about a million more to bake!