I love the idea of a holiday cheeseball – until it’s a half-eaten, lumpy mess at the end of the party. These single-serving goat-cheese balls are packed with the surprising textures and flavors that a traditional, larger cheese ball offers, but they cut down on the prospect of any food waste. You can mix and match the dried fruit and nut combinations in accordance to your preference or what you have in your pantry, but my favorites are cranberries with walnuts, apricots with pistachios and figs with hazelnuts.
Makes 28-32 truffles
12 oz. room temperature goat cheese
6 teaspoons finely chopped mixed fresh herbs such as chives, chervil, parsley, tarragon and/or thyme
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1/2 cup chopped dried fruit such as apples and raisins, apricots, cherries, figs or mango
3/4 cup finely chopped toasted nuts such as walnuts, pistachios, almonds, hazelnuts or macadamia nuts
Mix cheese, herbs, salt and pepper in a bowl. Roll mixture into 1-inch balls. Use your thumb to make an indentation in each ball and press a few pieces of dried fruit into the center. Mold cheese around the dried fruit; roll ball in chopped nuts, and place truffles on parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Chill 20 minutes before serving. These can be made up to two days before serving.
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