Summer Sausage Cheese Ball

Summer sausage, four cheeses, green onions and chives make the flavors in this festive cheese ball out of this world.  Make it in no time and watch it disappear!

The holidays.  Time for lots and lots of entertaining.  Whether is friends, family or both,  the festivities always center around one thing; THE FOOD!

It seems no matter where I try to entertain, everyone ends up in the kitchen, around the food.  I gave up the fight long ago, and just made sure that when I am entertaining, I have food and drink scattered throughout the kitchen so guests can mingle and nosh their way around the room.

One thing that ALWAYS goes over at parties is the meat and cheese tray.  Charcuterie is such a hip thing at restaurants, and I love to make a nice cheeseboard when guests come over.  Heck — I could make a meal out of it!

Every good hostess knows that adding Summer Sausage into holiday appetizers is the secret to a successful party.

Johnsonville’s Summer Sausage has been made with the same original recipe for over 70 years. Summer Sausage is a type of hard dried and smoked sausage that is similar to salami in preparation but can be kept without refrigeration.  Johnsonville sausage is made the Johnsonville Way – from a team dedicated to creating the best sausage in America with choice cuts of meat and a variety of flavors and spices mixed in.  Johnsonville Summer Sausage takes 24-48, hours from start to finish,  to perfect.

I made the most amazing cheese ball using Johnsonville Summer Sausage this past weekend.  it was so easy to put together and I added it right to my cheeseboard.

Putting together a cheeseboard is all a matter of taste.  I make them all of the time, and I keep a lot of the elements the same, but switch it up, too.  Here are some hints to creating an eye appealing cheeseboard for your next get together.

You don’t need to have a fancy cheeseboard,  sometimes, when I am making a really large board, I use a cookie sheet!  Using small bowls, add things like pickles, olives, artichokes or Giardiniera. Place them on opposite corners.  I added the cheese ball  directly to the plate.

I added some grapes, two kinds of Johnsonville Summer Sausage, and assortment of cheese.

I love to add a little something sweet to my cheese boards.  I added some sugared pecans to this one.  I also love the look and the taste of sugared cranberries.

Finally — adding sprigs of fresh herbs just takes the whole thing up a notch.

Don’t you just want to dig in??

You can add your breads and crackers to the board, or, like me, keep them in a basket on the side.

While I was playing around with the cheeseboard I made a couple of short skewers, too.

So easy, and such a colorful presentation!

A thick chunk of summer sausage,  half of a grape tomato, a chunk of New York White Cheddar Cheese and a green olive.

How about we learn how to make this amazing Summer Sausage Cheese Ball??

I started with Johnsonville Original Summer Sausage.  Sliced it fairly thin,  then Julianned it, and chopped it small.

Cream cheese, triple cheddar shredded cheese blend, green onions and chives.

Chopped summer sausage, green onion and cream cheese are whipped together, and rolled in triple cheddar cheese and chives. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour, or until ready to serve.

Add it to a cheeseboard or serve it on a plate alone, surrounded by crackers.

The BEST part about all of these Summer Sausage appetizers?  Everything can be done ahead of time, allowing you to be able to enjoy your guests, not be stuck in the kitchen!

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Print Recipe

Summer Sausage Cheese Ball

Summer sausage, four cheeses, green onions and chives make the flavors in this festive cheese ball out of this world. Make it in no time and watch it disappear!

Prep Time5 minutes mins

Total Time5 minutes mins

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Summer Sausage Cheese Ball

Servings: 1 cheeseball

Calories: 200kcal

Author: Michaela Kenkel

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Ingredients

• 8 ounces cream cheese softened
• 2/3 cup Johnsonville Original Summer Sausage chopped
• 2 green onions sliced
• 1 cup triple cheddar shredded cheese
• 1 Tablespoon chives chopped

Instructions

• In a bowl, beat cream cheese. Add in summer sausage and green onion, mix until incorporated.
• Form into a ball.
• Lay out a piece of plastic wrap, place cheese ball in the center.
• Mix shredded cheese and chives together.
• Sprinkle on the cheese ball rotating and pressing into it to cover all side. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and chill for at least an hour prior to serving.
• Unwrap and serve with crackers.

Nutrition

Serving: 1 | Calories: 200kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 6g | Cholesterol: 51mg | Sodium: 334mg | Sugar: 1g

Visit www.SummerSausageStory.com to view recipes and videos about Johnsonville’s Summer Sausage, as well as an online store where you can get it delivered right to your door in time for the holidays.

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Johnsonville. The opinions and text are all mine.