Before I get into these delightful little cranberry-orange goat cheese bites, I wanted to mention my Instagram. We’ve gotten a number of concerned messages about my whereabouts. My Instagram is currently disabled; I was “cleaning house” with accounts that I followed and they decided that was suspicious and have disabled my account. I’m so sad about it…I’ve been trying to get it back, but I’m starting to lose hope. It’s devastating…I have about 10 years of family and work memories, hundreds of story archives, and messages from people I love. If anyone has any contacts at Instagram, I would greatly appreciate it! If it looks like I can’t get it back, I’ll start another one or turn my photography account (@katejonesphotography) into an Our Best Bites account. But. I’m still holding out hope I can get it back.
Cranberry-Orange Goat Cheese Bites
ANYWAY. These Cranberry Orange Goat Cheese Bites combine some of my favorite holiday flavors–rosemary and orange and cranberry. Add in some spicy honey (I found mine at Walmart in semi-rural Louisiana, so I imagine it can’t be THAT hard to find, but you can always make your own by combining 2 tablespoons honey with a pinch of cayenne pepper.) These are a perfect addition to a holiday charcuterie board or you can roll the entire log of cheese in the cranberry-orange relish and serve it on a plate with crackers.
You’ll need 8 ounces goat cheese, fresh cranberries, zest from 1 orange, a sprig of fresh rosemary, salt, and spicy honey or honey mixed with cayenne pepper.
Scoop about 1 1/2 teaspoons of goat cheese (using a cereal spoon or measuring spoon; it doesn’t have to be a perfect measurement) and form into a ball. If the cheese is sticking to your hands, you can get your hands wet and roll the cheese into a ball. Repeat with the remaining cheese.
Refrigerate until ready to use.*
In a small bowl, combine the chopped cranberries, orange zest, chopped rosemary, salt, and spicy honey. Allow to stand for about 10 minutes.
Remove the cheese from the fridge and use your hands to grab some of the cranberry mixture. Gently press the mixture all over each cheese ball and repeat until finished. Serve with crackers
and additional spicy honey if desired.
Cranberry-Orange Goat Cheese Bites
Description
This deceptively simple-yet-elegant appetizer is perfect for holiday parties and charcuterie boards
Ingredients
8 ounces goat cheese, softened to room temperature
1 1/2 cups chopped fresh cranberries (about 8 ounces or 1/2 a standard bag)
1 tablespoon orange zest
1 sprig fresh rosemary leaves, stripped from the woody stems and chopped
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons chili-infused honey (or 2 tablespoons honey + 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper)
Instructions
Scoop about 1 1/2 teaspoons of goat cheese (using a cereal spoon or measuring spoon; it doesn’t have to be a perfect measurement) and form into a ball. If the cheese is sticking to your hands, you can get your hands wet and roll the cheese into a ball. Repeat with the remaining cheese. Refrigerate until ready to use.*
In a small bowl, combine the chopped cranberries, orange zest, chopped rosemary, salt, and spicy honey. Allow to stand for about 10 minutes.
Remove the cheese from the fridge and use your hands to grab some of the cranberry mixture. Gently press the mixture all over each cheese ball and repeat until finished. Serve with crackers and additional spicy honey if desired.
Notes
If desired, you can just roll an entire cold log of goat cheese in the cranberry mixture instead of making individual bites.
If you are looking for other recipes like these, try…
Questions & Reviews
Can you substitute the goat cheese for a different cheese?
You could do cream cheese, just don’t let it get too soft and make sure you use full fat.