This Halloween Cheese Ball that looks like a jack-o-lantern makes the cutest appetizer for any Fall or Halloween party. Made with a simple Ranch Cheese Ball base, you can't go wrong with how cute this looks and how good it tastes!
Love festive cheese balls? Also try my Pumpkin Cheese Ball, Turkey Cheese Ball, and Christmas Cheese Ball.
Halloween Cheese Ball
This Halloween Cheese Ball is made in the cutest festive jack-o-lantern for one adorably festive addition to your fall parties. Nothing spooky here, just a yummy basic ranch cheese ball formed into a pumpkin, and then with a few cute decorations this appetizer will be the talk of your party.
It's fun, silly, and so simple to make. It's the perfect addition to a Halloween charcuterie board. Serve it with crackers and crunchy vegetables, for a treat everyone will love. You and your guests of all ages will love it.
If making a cheese ball at home seems hard, don't worry, it's simple. I'm sharing step-by-step instructions to make and prepare the cheese ball with ease including how to get it in the shape of a pumpkin and add the jack-o-lantern decorations. You can make it a day or two ahead of time and serve it at your party.
This fall recipe is so fun, festive, and delicious.
bctt tweet="Jack-O-Lantern Halloween Cheese Ball " username="juliewunder"]
Why You'll Love this Halloween Cheese Ball...
- You'll love that the Halloween Cheese Ball is made with really simple, easy-to-find ingredients like cream cheese, cheddar cheese, and ranch seasoning.
- It's a fun way to elevate your Halloween spread and is a total crowd-pleaser.
- Who doesn't love cheese?
- Making homemade cheese balls is easier than you might think! This one has Ranch seasoning and is only four ingredients for the cheese ball itself.
- You can make this ahead and add the decor day off.
- It's so cute!
Ingredients:
Here's an overview of what you'll need to make this Halloween Cheese Ball, but keep scrolling for the full recipe amounts.
- Plain Cream Cheese: This cheese ball starts with just regular cream cheese. I like to use the brick kind. You can use reduced fat or regular, depending on your dietary preferences. You'll need to pull it out of the fridge at least 30 minutes before you are mixing the recipe, so it is a bit softened.
- Vegetable Cream Cheese: Instead of just using plain cream cheese, I like to mix in some Garden Vegetable Cream Cheese that has cucumbers, red bell peppers, and carrots in the mix for even more flavor into the cheese ball. If you don't like it you could substitute Garlic Herb Cream Cheese, Chive and Onion Cream Cheese, or even Jalapeno Cream Cheese if you like a kick in your cheese.
- Ranch Seasoning: The Ranch is SO good here! Use my Homemade Ranch Seasoning in this recipe with a blend of parsley, chives, onion, and garlic. You can also use your favorite packaged Ranch Seasoning.
- Sharp Cheddar Cheese: To get the orange color you'll need orange cheese. A nice sharp cheddar cheese adds some richness and an orange color to the outside of the pumpkin. Half of the two cups this recipe calls for goes inside the cheese ball and the rest goes on the top of the ball to get the orange color.
- Olives: Olives are what you need to make the jack-o-lantern face. Slice them in half and use a small knife to cut out the triangles, as shown in the photos.
- Bell Pepper: This Halloween Cheese Ball calls for one bell pepper. You'll need one with a pretty curved stem to make the top of the pumpkin stem. To prep the bell pepper, cut out the stem with a sharp knife and then cut any excess off of the bottom. You'll also want to finely dice 2 tablespoons of the bell pepper for the cheese ball. Slice the rest of the pepper into strips to use for dipping.
Halloween Cheese Ball Dippers:
Serve this Halloween Cheese Ball for Thanksgiving with any of these fun dippers.
- Tortilla Chips
- Pita Bread
- Pretzels
- Bagel Chips
- Crackers - Ritz, Triscuit, Pita Crackers
- Veggies - Carrot Sticks, Bell Pepper Slices, Cucumber Slices
Instructions:
This is an overview of the instructions to make this Halloween Cheese Ball, but the full detailed printable recipe is below in the recipe card.
Step One: Make the Cheese Mixture
- Start with the bell pepper. Carefully remove the stem from the bell pepper as shown and set it aside for decorating the jack-o-lantern. Dice 2 tablespoons of the bell pepper for the recipe and cut the rest for cheese ball dippers.
- Next, you'll mix the cheese. In a medium bowl or a stand mixer, put the softened cream cheese, vegetable cream cheese, ranch seasoning, diced bell pepper, and 1 cup of sharp cheddar cheese. You don't need to add any salt. You can mix this by hand, but it's a lot easier with a mixer. You could also use a hand mixer or food processor. Make sure your cream cheese has been sitting out for about 30 minutes before trying to do this, or it will be too hard.
- Finish by mixing the cheese mixture until well combined. Once mixed, push it down with a spatula on the sides of the bowl so a ball starts forming as shown in the second photo below.
Step Two: Form the Pumpkin and Decorate the jack-lantern:
- Once you have your cheese mixture, lay out a large sheet of plastic wrap on a flat surface. Sprinkle most of the remaining cheddar cheese onto it.
- It's easiest to do this with your hands. Form the cheese into a ball that resembles a Halloween pumpkin. Set the cream cheese mixture ball onto the cheese on the plastic wrap. Carefully push the cheddar cheese into the ball.
- Fold the plastic wrap around the cheeseball, making sure the orange sharp cheddar cheese coats the ball as much as possible. You might need to sprinkle some cheese around the sides and top. It takes a bit of finesse to get it covered.
- To make it look like a pumpkin, use 4 pieces of yarn or kitchen twine. Wrap the yarn around the ball one at a time as shown below. Pull it tight enough to make indentions. Tightly tie the strings one at a time until you do all four, getting the 8 pumpkin ribs or vertical grooves. You can also do this with rubber bands.
- Put the wrapped cheese ball into the fridge to chill for at least 2 hours, but up to overnight. It will be loose and will need to firm up.
- When ready to serve, carefully remove the yarn and the plastic wrap.
- Next, decorate the jack-o-lantern. Top it with the bell pepper stem, using a small amount of cream cheese to make it stick. Use a small amount of cream cheese to stick the olives to the cheese ball and make them stick.
- Serve with crackers or your favorite dippers.
Variations
I love this Halloween Cheese Ball as written, but here are some fun variations.
- Make it Spicy: Add red pepper flakes or even Jalapeño.
- Mix Up the Seasoning: You can swap out the ranch flavoring of this cheese ball with other spices like my Italian Spice Mix, Taco Seasoning Mix, or even Cajun Spice Mix. You could even add garlic powder.
- Make it Low Fat: An easy way to lighten it up is to use your favorite brand of low-fat cheese to light this up.
- Mix Up the Cheese: You can swap out other cheese for the cheddar including Colby or mozzarella. You'll just need to keep an orange cheese for the exterior of the pumpkin to keep the orange color.
- Fun Mix-Ins: You can also add other fun mix-ins to the actual cheese ball like bacon, olives, scallions, diced onion, pimentos, chives, or even garlic.
FAQ
Storage & Leftovers
Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days.
Make Ahead
To make this a day ahead of time, just assemble the stem and toppings and jack o lantern decorations right before serving.
Freezing
Yes, You can freeze a completely made cheese ball without the stem topping. Wrap it in foil and freeze for up to three months.
What's a good cracker for a cheese ball?
Any cracker that is a bit harder and can not break when trying to cut off a peice of the cheese ball. Some of my favorites are pita crackers, Triscuit crackers, ritz crackers, or even club crackers.
How long can a cheese ball sit out?
If serving guests a cheese ball, you should not leave it out for more than two hours or the cheese will spoil.
How to you firm up a cheese ball?
The cheese not making a ball right? The cheese just needs to firm up. Put it in the fridge for a few minutes to firm up, and then you should be able to gently roll it.
Halloween Cheese Ball recipe is Spooky Fun!
This Halloween Cheese Ball shaped like a a jack o lantern is so spooky and fun! It's perfect for any Halloween party and will be the talk of your appetizer spread. You can't go wrong with this cheesy goodness!
I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!
Jack-O-Lantern Halloween Cheese Ball Share on XMore Cheese Ball Recipes to Try:
- Pumpkin Cheese Ball (Shaped like a pumpkin!)
- Christmas Cheese Ball (Decorated like Rudolph)
- Turkey Cheese Ball for Thanksgiving
- Mini Pimento Cheese Balls
More Ideas for Your Halloween Party:
- Pumpkin Cheesecake Dip
- Savory Pumpkin Hummus
- Mini Pimento Cheese Bites
- Jalapeno Popper Dip
- Cottage Cheese Pizza Dip
- Cream Cheese Stuffed Mini Bell Pepper
- Everything Bagel Cucumber Bites
- Stuffed Celery
- Healthy Smoked Salmon Dip
If you make this Halloween Cheese Ball recipe, I’d love to hear what you think! Leave a comment and a star rating ★ below. Make sure to follow me on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook too!
Halloween Cheese Ball
Ingredients
- 1 bell pepper
- 6 black olives
- 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 8 ounces vegetable cream cheese, softened
- 2 tablespoons ranch seasoning
- 2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese, divided
Instructions
- FIrst, prep the Halloween decorations for the cheese ball. Carefully remove the stem from the bell pepper as shown and set it aside for decorating the pumpkin top. Dice 2 tabelspoons of the bell pepper for the recipe and cut the rest for cheese ball dippers.
- Carefully cut the jack o lantern face out of the black olives.
- In a medium bowl, or a stand mixer, put the softened cream cheese, vegetable cream cheese, ranch seasoning, and 1 cup of the sharp cheddar cheese. Mix or stir until well combined.
- Push the cheese mixture down the sides of the bowl so a ball starts forming.
- Get out a large peice or plastic wrap and lay it on a flat surface. Sprinkle most of the remaining cheedar cheese onto it.
- Fold the plastic wrap around the cheeseball, making sure the orange sharp cheddar cheese coats the ball as much as possible. Using 4 peices of yarn or twine, wrap the yarn around the ball to make indentions.
- Put the ball into the fridge to chill for at least 2 hours, but up to overnight.
- When ready to serve, carefully remove the yarn and the plastic wrap. .
- Top with the bell pepper stem, using a small amount of cream cheese to make it stick. Use a small amount of cream cheese to stick the Jack o Lantern face onto the pumpkin.
- Serve with crackers or your favorite dippers.
Notes
Nutrition
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Susan Rawls says
This is the best idea for a Halloween Party and So Cute!