Do you like cooking with friends? I do! I have been contemplating starting a series of posts about it. I have many friends who like to cook and share their favorite recipes. Being in the kitchen with a friend is much better than alone. Open a bottle of wine, do a little cooking, and have a big fun time. It is exactly what happened when I went to cook with my friend Terry. To top it off, the recipe was for pimento cheese balls.
Oh yes, pimento cheese. What an indulgent and decadent food it is. Cheese, mayonnaise, pimentos, and spices all mixed together for a true Southern treat. It gets better because the little balls of cheese are rolled in toasted pecans. Oh. My. Goodness. I loaded my KitchenAid food processor and camera in the car and headed over to Terry’s house. Then the fun began. There was a lot of cheese. Guess what we were snacking on while making these balls? Wine and more cheese, a gouda that someone had brought back from Germany. Want some cheese to go with your cheese? Why yes, thank you!
First we had to shred the cheese (well, after opening the wine and munching on gouda). You might be tempted to use pre-shredded but please do not. Fresh grated cheese is the way to go. Get the good stuff and use the food processor to do the shredding work. Oh, and Terry took photos as I was messing up her kitchen.
Next is grating an onion. I cut it by hand and used a regular grater. I did need a little workout to burn off the cheese indulgence.
All the ingredients wind up in the food processor (except the pecans). Remember I said I was messing up Terry’s kitchen. There was cheese everywhere.
It goes into a bowl once it is combined. Yes, I dropped more cheese on the floor when I was scraping it out of the food processor bowl. It was only a tiny little bit, enough for a good laugh though.
Time for the mixture to chill. It spends some time in the fridge before it is rolled into balls. It is a good time to clean up a mess, drink some wine, and eat some cheese.
After an hour we headed back to the kitchen. We rolled the mixture into little balls and then coated them with toasted pecan pieces.
Then we ordered pizzas because we did not have enough cheese that day. Actually, it was to feed our husbands. Okay, we did order one for us with vegetables on it. We finished up rolling the pimento cheese and set them out on a platter. They certainly are tasty looking.
Last step is taking the final photos. I took them out to a pretty bench on her patio. She had to take a photo of me taking photos. I could swear she captured me taking the photo at the top of the post.
Cooking with friends is such a good time. What is even more interesting is the recipe is one from Comfy Cuisine. Patti is one of my fellow Inspiring Foodies bloggers. I recognized her blog as soon as I saw the recipe. I was cooking with an in real life friend using a recipe from one of my online friends. It is a small world. I adapted the recipe to reflect the cheeses and amount of pimentos we used and I changed the method slightly.
When was the last time you cooked with a friend? What did you make? If you have not in a while, call a friend and make a cooking date. Laughs, good food, and fun times are to be had.
Thank you Terry for a wonderful afternoon. I cannot wait until our next cooking adventure.

Pimento Cheese Balls
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup cream cheese softened
- 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 1 teaspoon grated onion
- 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
- Pinch of salt
- Pinch of fresh ground pepper
- 2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
- 1 cup shredded Pepper Jack cheese
- 1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
- 1 jar chopped pimentos 4 ounces, drained
- 1 1/2 cups chopped toasted pecans
Instructions
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In the bowl of a food processor fitted with a knife blade, process cream cheese until smooth. Add the mayonnaise, grated onion, garlic powder, salt, and pepper and pulse until combined. Add the shredded cheeses and pimentos and pulse to combine. Transfer the cheese mixture into a bowl and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or up to 2 days. Place pecans on a baking sheet or in a medium bowl. Roll the cheese mixture into 1-inch balls. Roll the balls in the pecans to evenly coat them. Serve chilled or at room temperature.
Recipe Notes
A recipe for pimento cheese balls rolled in toasted pecan pieces. Great appetizer for cheese lovers!
Like this? Pair it with a sweet tea recipe from our guide to Southern sweet tea!
Jen @ Juanita's Cocina says
Renee,
My first love is cheese and these look FABULOUS!!!
I can’t wait to try them out. And now I feel like I need a cooking with friends day!
Renee says
Thanks Jen! Cheese glorious cheese! I hope you do have a cooking with friends day. Good food can be prepared and shared with friends.
Soni says
Awesome!!Love these cuties!Sure looks fab and makes for a great appetizer!Cooking with friends is always fun 🙂
Renee says
Thanks Soni! They are mighty cute little cheese balls. Perfect little round bites.
Terry B Gardner (@tbgdesign) says
yum and more yum. It doesn’t get better than that. Life’s good.
Renee says
So true!
Patti says
Hi Renee! Thanks so much for the mention! Weren’t they delish! Great photos!
Renee says
Thank you Patti! We had so much fun making these and eating them even more. Wow they are so good.
Joy says
Those were so good ! I think I ate about 8 of them .
Renee says
Oh yes! I certainly had my share too. Yummy.
amy @ fearless homemaker says
would you believe i’ve still never had pimiento cheese?! 12 years in the south + still haven’t tried it. must change that soon – these look great!
Renee says
What? You have not had pimento cheese? You must try it. You are a southern gal now.
Terry B Gardner (@tbgdesign) says
don’t buy the stuff in the grocery store, though….yuk.
Family Foodie says
Renee I can’t wait to try these and love that they were a recipe from one of our Inspiring Foodies! I just wish I could be there with you and Terry enjoying this treat!
Renee says
Thanks Isabel! Hopefully one day you can visit and the three of us will cook together.
Lane @ Supper for a Steal says
Yum these look delicious. I wish I had friends that liked to cook, but at least I have a mom who does. We have cooking days together!
Renee says
Cooking with family is just as good as cooking with friends. Any company in the kitchen is a good thing.
Susan says
These look so good! I didn’t become a fan of pimento cheese until recently, and now I understand why! It’s hard to cook with friends in NYC. Our kitchens are too tiny, but I do have friends over and cook for them!
Renee says
So nice of you to cook for friends. I am sure they are very happy when you do. Sad the NYC kitchens are so tiny.
Karriann says
Feed me with your pimento cheese balls please 😉
“Spice it Up”
Renee says
Sure Karriann! I am ready to make another batch any time.
Baker Street says
I LOVE pimento cheese! These would make for a great app to serve the crowds. Lovely clicks too, Renee! 🙂
Renee says
Thank you! And thanks for Terry for taking the great photos as I was messing up her kitchen.
traci says
These look great! We have an old.family recipe.that looks.exactly.like.this. its wonderful!
Renee says
Thank you Traci!
CJ at Food Stories says
I’ve been enjoying your site for a while now so I’ve nominated you for the Illuminating Blogger Award for illuminating, informative blog content. If you’re interested, you can check out the details at my site … http://foodstoriesblog.com/illuminating-blogger-award/ … Hope you’re having a great day!
Renee says
Thank you very much for the award! I am on my way to your blog to check it out.