Roasted Red Pepper + Bacon Goat Cheese Truffles.
I don’t mean to be misleading. But.
I made truffles with cheese.
Okay, whatever. Not REAL truffles. Not like the smoked blue cheese truffle I ate in Oregon this past summer (OMG.). Not like a truffle with goat cheese and chocolate (though that may be forthcoming.). I know. You don’t need to tell me.
I made a little truffle made with some of the best flavors ever. Bacon, roasted red peppers, garlic… you know, stuff like that.
My cousin actually made these for Thanksgiving and they were phenomenal. Granted she made them with dried cranberries and stuffed the center with an injection of honey, but are you even surprised that I trashed them up with bacon?
No. No, you’re not. Of course.
You know me so well!
Okay, but wait. Let’s talk about how these are quite possibly the cutest little Christmas appetizer ever. Right?! They have the red and green going on… so totally festive. Leave them out for Santa. I mean, it’s 2012, Santa probably eats goat cheese by now.
If not, he should.
Oh also, since it’s 2012, is it really appropriate to be talking about a large man with a white beard creeping in your house at night? That sets off all sorts of alarms in my head. I was scared to death of Santa as a kid anyway. No, seriously. I think I made both of my brothers sleep in my room on Christmas Eve until I was 13 or so. True life.
So maybe this year, we can do something like set these goat cheese truffles inside our mailbox, and then Santa can drop off some presents at the top of the driveway?
Yeah. I like that better.
Roasted Red Pepper + Bacon Goat Cheese Truffles
Ingredients
- 8 ounces plain goat cheese, softened
- 1/2 cup chopped roasted red pepper
- 3 slices thick-cut bacon, fried and chopped
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
- 3/4 cup pistachios, chopped and crushed
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine softened goat cheese with peppers, bacon, garlic salt and pepper. Using a large spoon, spatula or even your hands, mix and stir until combined well and everything seems equally distributed through the goat cheese.
- Roll the goat cheese into 1/2-1 inch balls (or smaller or larger, depending on your preference), then roll through the pistachios to coat. Set on a plate and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving. These can be made well ahead of time – I’d say at least about 3 days.
- Store in the fridge!
Notes
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I appreciate you so much!
I’m such a nutcase that all I can think of is frying these little things up. Ummmm… yes.
121 Comments on “Roasted Red Pepper + Bacon Goat Cheese Truffles.”
Like a cheese ball but tiny! This is wonderful. It’s like you made the mini-muffin version of a cheese ball. I’m in.
Amazing flavor combination! Can’t wait to try these.
I am really wanting to give a savory food gift this year. How long would these keep and how would you package them to give? Any suggestions?
Thanks!
I’d say they’d probably last 3-4 days max (maybe a bit longer? I’m really bad with that stuff.) but they have to be refrigerated. So you could put them in a cute tin or something, but they need to be refrigerated no matter what. They may work best as a hostess gift where you can take them from your fridge to the other home.
thanks! do you think they would freeze well?
all of my very favorite flavors in one bite! yes please!!!
i need to make these for someone or for some party so i don’t eat them all myself…
Holy moly! I have never in my life seen a truffle like this!! It has all the most wonderful savory flavors and it’s so darn creative!!! I need to make truffles!!! It’s on my must make before Christmas list!!
So if someone was allergic to nuts, what would you suggest using in place of pistachios? I’m using pretty good at the whole substitution thing, but not sure on this one. They sound too amazing not to try!!
Oooh that is a tough one…maybe you could crush corn flakes and season them a bit?
when i was buying the cheese the woman that cut it (ha) said she rolls goat cheese in wasabi peas! thought it sounded really good… or just regular dried peas
You could crush up some crackers and roll them in that. I bet an herbed cracker would be divine!
What about crushed up fried onions? It fulfills the deep fried needs.
Sound sooo good! Did you use salted or unsalted pistachios?
I used unsalted, but I think either works, just depends on your preference!
Haha I too thought truffles = chocolate… But goat cheese is never sething you turn down.
Everytime I read your blog I have to add something to the list of food I am making for Christmas! These look amazing!
I too shared your sentiment for the scariness of Santa!! In fact, I was so scared of Santa coming into my house when I was a kid that my parents had to tell me that he wasn’t real so I would stop freaking out. I thought I was the only one!!
That being said, I’ve been trying to decide on a holiday appetizer for a party this weekend, and I think I found it! Thanks!
Yup. Christmas Eve. These will by in my face.
The problem with me and this shape of cheese is that I can just eat them all day LONG, and feel like I am doing nothing wrong..
GOAT CHEESE! You know that’s my favorite! ;) Merry Christmas indeed.
I am in need of a show stopping appetizer to take to my community holiday party. I just found it!
I’ve made larger cheese balls similar to this, but the mini ones make me so happy! :)
oh yum!! this is perfect for holiday parties, or for my dinner
um….is it bad that i just want to smash a few of these on some toasted bread and call it a day? because i do.
did you listen to hanson christmas yet?! i even played it at mixed this weekend during the cocktail party – ha! spreading the hanson love.
I loooove goat cheese. I can totally see these lined up on a tray with little flag topped toothpicks…and then, I’d eat them all.
i LOVE the idea of a savory truffle. These seem terribly dangerous to have around. I can just picture it now…me making a double batch of these for a party (you know, to make sure there’s enough), than managing to eat one entire batch before they leave the house. So good!
Is there another cheese besides goat cheese that you can use and get the same effect? Just not a huge goat cheese lover, but love the idea of this app. Thanks! :)
I think you could probably try cream cheese, but you might want to season it more/differently since it tastes different. You also may not want it to totally soften – it might be difficult to roll into balls then.
For non-goat cheese lovers, add cream cheese to the goat cheese — it lightens the flavor of the goat cheese. A lot of my non-goat cheese eating friends will eat it when it’s cut with cream cheese.
This looks like the perfect little cheese ball! YUM!
These look amazing! The perfect holiday appetizer!
These look amazing–I totally got tricked and thought they were of the chocolate variety. Then I saw the title and was like “huhhh?”. But I actually think I am way more excited about these!! They would make the perfect party appetizer or hor d’oeuvre
I love cheese truffles! These may need to happen for a potluck I’m apart of next week. Screw the dip I had in mind…
WHAT THE WHAT?! I’m in love!
Would these freeze well? Thinking about making them ahead of time for Christmas parties coming up..
My love for you is embarrassing.
OMG! These sound amazing! Who doesn’t love the combo of bacon & goat cheese :)
Love the little balls of goat cheese + red pepper, pre-dipping into the pistachios! I could go for that combo! What a great idea for an appetizer. Love goat cheese!
Your bacon levels have seemed pretty low lately, so these totally make sense. ;)
I was terrified of Santa TOO! I used to stay up and like shake in my bed, just waiting to hear someone shimmy down the chimney and kidnap me. But I always fell asleep after like 10 minutes of wide-eyed fear and woke up relieved the next morning I wasn’t inside that big red sack.
SAVORY TRUFFLES! Awesome! Oh god do I love goat cheese. And bacon. And oh goodness I’d just love these. Sadly I cannot make them for Christmas at my mom’s, as she pretends to be allergic to peppers. Pooh.
You could use chopped sundried tomatoes instead. :)
In looking at the picture, it appears you’ve rolled them in pistachios and something else. Did you omit an ingredient? I can’t wait to try this recipe.
nope – just pistachios. it may look that way because they are crushed and chopped.
I think Santa would definitely appreciate these! A little break from the cookies :)
Wow! those look really good. Can’t wait to try them as an appetizer.
Just stop. This is basically everything I love in one bite. Goat cheese is the answer to everything.
NOM
you had me at the title. a combination of some of my favorite things..you never disappoint!
Love! I will definitely be making these for our christmas party.
YES, with chives, please!
Totally making this for a Christmas party we have on Sat, and I have no time to cook/bake!
Not only are these adorable, and poppable, they’re also festive. I don’t think that poppable is a word, but it’s the word I like to use for foods you can just pop in my mouth.
This is pretty much all of my favorite things LITERALLY wrapped up into one. I love the idea of fresh herbs too! Sage to make it autumnal, or basil in the summer! YUM!
All the things I love rolled (literally) into one! :)
Cutest appetizer ever!!
YUM! Jessica thanks so much for sharing this! I totally want to make these – I’m a sucker for any new way to eat cheese and bacon :-D
These are the most brilliant…the most fantastical…the most appetizing balls I have ever seen! I am so making 525,600 of these crunchy, savory little Christmas balls tonight. I diiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiie. The end.
Omg….YES! Everything about these makes my soul happy! Making these stat!
Oh, I’m right there with you on the frying. The outside would be all crisp and the cheese would be all gooey. Definitely seems worth a try! ;)
YUM! love savory treats!
I make a torte at Christmas with goat cheese, pesto and garlic. I think I will adapt it to include bacon and make it into little balls. Love this!