Last December I shared a post for easy cheesey holiday hors d’oeuvres, all made with cream cheese. This month, I shared a recipes for a fun and delicious homemade boursin and a half dozen plus cool ways to cook with real butter. But, as it is the time of year, when holiday entertaining is at the forefront, I thought it would be timely to repeat this post with some great ideas for easy holiday hors d’oeuvres plus don’t miss my super simple tiramisu dessert shots at the end of the post.
I first showcased these easy Holiday hors d’oeuvre recipes on Fox 8 in High Point, NC December 2022. The video is still up and the recipes are still some of my favorite quick and easy go-to’s. Watch the video and then scroll down for more tips and tricks and two crowd pleasing recipes.
My favorite little serving trick with cream cheese is right at the top of the segment. After you watch, keep reading here for all of the tips and tricks and the recipes with all of their sweet and savory variations.
Make Cream Cheese your Always-on-Hand Go-To
The wonderful thing about all of the recipes in today’s post is that you can have everything on hand in your pantry or in your fridge. While these recipes will work with lower in fat Neufchatel Cheese they really work best with whole milk cream cheese.
Cream cheese is a soft mild very spreadable cheese specific to America. It is made with milk and cheese and offers the same nutritious proteins and vitamins we find in whole milk. Often “tub cream cheese” comes “flavored” with herbs, onions or sometimes even smoked salmon. Leave these varieties for spreading on bagels and English muffins. For the following recipes go with the plain cream cheese and then add the additional sweet or savory flavors yourself.
Shop Local
If you live in Charlotte, make it a plan to go and buy homemade local cream cheese from my good friend Zack Gadberry of Uno Alla Volta. Zack and his wife Victoria sell at the Matthews Community Market on Saturdays. He always has his plain cream cheese available. in addition there are always a variety of seasonal flavors. #TellThemHeidiSentYou
Here are the Basics
In addition to the cream cheese – here is the short list of other ingredients you’ll need on hand to make all of the recipes in this post
- Refrigerator puff pastry, pie dough or crescent roll dough
- a block of cheddar or colby cheese
- a block of Parmesan cheese
- Your favorite peanut butter ( my go-to is the crunchy variety from Coddle Creek Farms in Mooresville NC)
- eggs
- Markola Coffee Syrup from Durham NC – order online here. I first tasted this wonderful syrup when I was staying at The Durham Hotel. They use it at the bar to make coffee tonics – a wonderfully refreshing mocktail made with a splash of the syrup over ice, tonic water and a squeeze of lemon. Delicious.
Entertain Your Guests with These Tasty Cream Cheese Puffs
This recipe is so simple. In addition to a block of cream cheese, you’ll need a mini muffin tin and a package of your favorite refrigerator dough. I like the puff pastry because it puffs and adds a more festive look to your hors d’oeuvre platter.
Pesto Perfect
First, make the homemade pesto by using this recipe. I make tons of pesto in the summertime when basil is plentiful. This time of year, when basil is no longer in the garden, I use fresh spinach I find at local farmers markets and add 1-2 packages of fresh basil leaves from the grocery store produce department. If I don’t have pine nuts in the freezer, walnuts or almonds and even pistachios make a fine substitute.
Don’t have basil? No worries. You can make pesto from a variety of other herbs as well. Try fresh mint leaves with almonds; or substitute fresh sage leaves for the basil and pistachios or local pecans for the pine nuts.
A food processor will make short work out of all the chopping and blending. First, use the steel knife to chop the pesto and spinach; then add the walnuts and chop them in with a couple of quick on/offs and finally add chunks of real aged Parmigiana Reggiano cheese. You can put the chunks of Parmesan right in over the spinach and nut mixer and blend well. Then, add the block of cream cheese.
For everything we are doing today – I’ve substituted a block of cream cheese for the EVOO called for in the original recipe. This will give you a cheesier spread for dipping or for serving on crackers.
Before you bake the pesto in these recipes, be sure to add a whole egg to the mix for more of a puff at the end.
Puff Pastry and Pesto Holiday Tree Bread
Ingredients
- 1 sheet puff pastry dough or use refrigerated pie crust dough or crescent roll dough
- 1 cup Heidi's Homemade Pesto made with cream cheese
- 1 egg
- 1 beaten egg mixed with a bit of water
- 2-3 Tbsp. Parmesan Cheese finely grated
Instructions
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Unroll the puff pastry dough onto a sheet of parchment paper.
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Use a rolling pin to make it just a little bit larger. Take care not to roll it too thin.
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Add one whole egg to your cream cheesy pesto.
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Spread the pesto across the dough leaving about a 1/2 inch on each side.
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Fold the dough over to enclose the pesto layer.
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Cut off two corners of the dough to make a triangular top to your tree and cut the bottom of the dough out to make a tree trunk.
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Use your knife to cut strips into each side of your "tree" . Then, take your fingers and twist each of the strips to make the tree branches. Don't worry if some of the pesto oozes out.
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Once all of your "branches" are twisted. Gently brush the top of the dough with a bit of the egg wash and sprinkle finely grated Parmesan cheese over all.
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Carefully slide the tree on the parchment paper to a baking sheet and bake in a preheated 400 degree oven for 15 mins.
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Let cool slighty and serve for guests to enjoy as a pull apart bread.
Spread the pesto on the dough and cut as shown below:
Easy Holiday Hors D’oeuvres: Cheese Puffs
if you need something even quicker, make these little cheese puffs instead of or in addition to the puff pastry tree.
I like to make these with my homemade pimento cheese. For the best flavor, I use slightly spicy fresh red peppers instead of jarred pimentos. I also prefer to shred my own cheddar or colby cheese. Use cream cheese instead of mayo, for thicker, richer results.
Once you’ve made the pimento cheese, add an egg and then bake it in these little bite-sized puffs.
If you are a blue cheese lover, you can make this same recipe with blue cheese, cream cheese and local pecans.
Drizzle with a bit of honey or your favorite balsamic glaze just before serving. For fun variation on today’s theme, Here’s another blue cheese puff recipe with a how to video both at the end of this post on SC pecans.
Pimento and Cream Cheese Puffs
The secret to this rich and creamy variation is to add cream cheese to the traditional recipe instead of using mayo!
Ingredients
- 2 -3 hot red peppers ( these are the same size as a jalapeno) split in half and seeds removed
- 2 cups colby or cheddar cheese finely grated
- 1 1/2 blocks cream cheese
- dash salt to taste
- 1 sheet puff pastry dough defrosted
- 1 small tomato seeded and chopped
Instructions
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Place the halves of the hot red peppers in a food processor fitted with the steel knife and chop to a fine mince.
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Add the shredded colby or cheddar cheese and the cream cheese.
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Use the on/off button to blend just until everything is mixed. You might have to scrape down the sides of the food processor halfway thru.
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Add and egg to the cheese mixture and reserve
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Unfold the sheet of puff pastry dough out slightly and use a rolling pin to make it a bit larger.
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Cut the sheet into 12 small squares. use your knuckles to gently push a square of dough into each of the muffin rounds
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Fill each of the cups with a spoonful of the pimento cheese, egg and cream cheese mix. Top with chopped tomatoes.
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Bake in a preheated 400 degree over for 15 mins.
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Cool slightly in pan and lift out to serve.
And now for dessert…
Who doesn’t love a little something sweet on the holiday hors d’oeuvre table. These shot glasses filled with a bit of my cream cheese and peanut butter tiramisu blend, make for the perfect sweet bite.
To that end, I used the food processor once again to blend together cream cheese with my favorite peanut butter, a bit of powdered sugar and some delicious coffee syrup to make a quick and easy peanutty tiramisu blend.
Want a fun holiday finish to top off this – or any other dessert. Add a little sparkle with some incredible fun edible glitter. Pastry Chef Savannah Broder of the County Club of NC turned me on to edible glitter when she did this cooking demo with me a the NC Mountain State Fair. Now you can find my favorite edible glitters in my Amazon store! Shop with me here.
Spoon or pipe the mix into shot glasses and serve with a cookie. For a fun extra touch, sprinkle the top with mini chocolate chips of cocoa nibs and enjoy!
Peanut Butter and Coffee Cream Cheese Mousse
Ingredients
- 1 jar Coddle Creek Farms Crunchy Peanut Butter Made in Mooresville NC, see where to buy link at the top of this post
- 1/3 cup powdered sugar
- 1 1/2 blocks cream cheese
- 4 Tbsp. Markola Coffee Syrup made in Durham NC, see where to buy link at the top of this post
- a sprinkling of mini chocolate chips or cocoa nibs
- 1 cookie for each serving depending on the size of the glass, I like to use hard lady fingers or vanilla wafers
Instructions
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Blend all of the ingredients except the cookies and cocoa nibs together in a food processor until smooth.
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Pipe into individual serving cups or shot glasses
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Add a cookie to each serving.
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Top with mini chocolate chips or cocoa nibs and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Good work, Heidi. You des-oeuvres a pat on the back.