The simplest and fastest appetizer I’ve ever made is this Hidden Valley Ranch cheese ball. It can be prepared in a matter of minutes and served virtually instantly. The components can be stored for several months. accompanied by buttery crackers.
| Prep Time: | 10 mins |
| Additional Time: | 5 mins |
| Total Time: | 15 mins |
| Servings: | 16 |
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon sour cream
- 1 (1-ounce) package ranch dressing mix
- 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese
- ½ pound Cheddar cheese, shredded
- ¼ cup finely chopped pecans
Instructions
- Mix sour cream with ranch dressing mix in a bowl until smoothly combined. Add cream cheese and Cheddar cheese to the bowl and mix together with your hands until thoroughly blended. Chill mixture for 5 minutes, then shape into a ball.
- Place pecans into a shallow bowl and roll all sides of cheese ball in pecans to coat. Serve immediately.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 124 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 2 g |
| Cholesterol | 31 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 0 g |
| Protein | 5 g |
| Saturated Fat | 6 g |
| Sodium | 253 mg |
| Sugars | 0 g |
| Fat | 11 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
I make this every holiday and it’s always a BIG hit. The only thing I do different is I fry a pound of bacon till crispy and crush it up. Then I roll the cheese ball in the bacon till covered. I don’t put nuts on the outside just the bacon.
My mother-in-law used to make it all the time and added chopped roast beef & ham.
Delicious! Made into 2 balls and froze one- thawed out just as yummy!
simple and it tastes amazing
So good and so easy! Also added a little dried chives and garlic and it was so good! Thanks for the recipe!
I made this and it was a hit! I added real bacon bits and skipped the pecans. It is super ready to make.
It was really too salty for us. But it would be better to make next time and use a small amount of the ranch dressing packet
This cheeseball is excellent! The flavor is amazing, and always a hit every time that I make it. The only tweak I make is to roll it in bacon, rather than nuts (because of a nut allergy).
I used Colby cheese and skipped the pecans and rolled it in bacon bits. It turned out wonderful and everyone loved it! I agree with people saying to make it the night before so the ranch can Marry-in-ate 🙂
Very fast and easy! I made the shape more into a cheese log rather than a ball, and took it and a few sleeves of Ritz crackers to a small party. It was gone in no time and everybody raved about it. Thanks CASTOWAYS!
my friend made it at tonight’s church study was so yummy I can’t wait to make it…so good that I’m craving right now
Fabulous recipe.
I just made this cheeseball. I purchased a Kraft brand ranch dressing & dip oz ounce package. Since other reviewers said the whole packet could be too salty, I only used about 3/4th of the package. I also did as another reader suggested and added Worcestershire sauce and chopped dried onions. It tasted great. This is a good recipe for a change of pace when you don’t want the traditional sweet cheese ball made with crushed pineapple. I also put whole almonds on top for the pine cone look.
This was super easy to make. Would suggest either using 1/2 the amt of ranch or adding extra block of cream cheese. I put real bacon in it instead of pecans.
I would use lite Ranch dressing over the pkg of Hidden Valley. It was WAY TOO salty for us. Loved the taste but not the salt. And I like salt. I asked my husband as he does not salt anything and he said without all the extra salt this would be perfect. I agree.
Too salty. Reduce ranch dressing in half or add an additional half block of cream cheese. Presto! Great cheeseball!
Loved this cheese ball! The cheese, the seasonings are delightful. I do, as a recipe submitter, have a problem with people who change everything in the recipe and then give it a bad rating. If you rate a recipe then make it the way it is specified or don’t rate it at all.
Did everything but the pecans I fried up some bacon and chopped it fine added some in with the mix and then crusted the outside with it me and the gf absolutley love it..great recipe
Very tasty. This is a very easy cheese ball to make. Everyone loves it.
This was a big hit! I used bacon bits instead of pecans. I think the bacon bits pulled it all together well.
I made this for New Year’s Eve. It was gone quickly. Everyone commented on how wonderful it was and I was thrilled with how easy it was. I made it the night before and left the ball in the refrigerator overnight. Before serving, rolled it in the chopped pecans. Dynamite! Thanks for sharing.