This recipe I am sharing today for Easy Pepper Jelly Cheese Bites is something that I used to make fairly often as a dinner party nibble when I used to work at the Manor.
They are like a savory thumbprint cookie, short and buttery, nice and cheesy and filled with hot red pepper jelly! For the holidays you can alternate the red pepper jelly with green jalapeno jelly, giving them a really festive look!
Not only are they really easy to make, but they require very little effort and only 4 simple ingredients, including the pepper jelly!
These used to be very popular with the dinner guests at the Manor. I would bake and serve them to enjoy with their pre-dinner cocktails.
In the U.K. I used to use sweet chili sauce as it was impossible to find pepper jelly there unless you made it yourself. That was also very tasty! The guests loved these!
You can make the dough up ahead of time and wrap and chill it in the refrigerator for several days if need be, ready to pinch, roll and bake on the day you wish to serve them.
They can also be baked ahead of time and reheated just prior to serving. You can also freeze them and gently reheat on the day.
These delicious appetizers are just bursting with cheesy flavor with a sweet spicy jelly bite for a fun twist on traditional thumbprint cookies!
I have kept these pretty plain, but I have also seen them rolled in crushed toasted nuts prior to baking for another tasty twist. Toasted pecans work really well. Just roll the dough in the finely crushed nuts prior to baking.
Fun and exciting! To be honest, though, they are plenty delicious just as is without the nuts.
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE EASY PEPPER JELLY CHEESE BITES
Just four simple ingredients. Easy peasy lemon squeezy.
- 2 cups (8 ounces/230g) extra strong cheddar cheese, grated
- 3 to 4 TBS cold butter
- 1 cup (145g) plain all purpose flour
- jalapeno or hot pepper jellies
I highly recommend grating your own cheese for these tasty bites. You can use a white cheddar or a dyed cheddar. Today I used an orange cheddar.
Also, make sure you use a really well flavored cheddar cheese. Strong or extra strong. You want a cheese that is really going to stand up to the flavor of the jelly you choose to use.
One of my favorite strong cheddar cheeses is Cathedral City. I first fell in love with it in the U.K. It was so lovely, I remember bringing some home to my father the first time I flew back to Canada for a visit.
I am so delighted that it is now readily available here in Canada. I love this cheese, with crackers, on a cheese tray, in macaroni and cheese and in these Pepper Jelly Cheese Bites!
It also makes really great Cheese on Toast. That is one of my favorite snacks. I also enjoy it with a bowl of hot soup.
Sometimes I even add crisp bacon to my cheese on toast, and other times I will use it for a base for a simple supper of beans or spaghetti on toast.
HOW TO MAKE EASY PEPPER JELLY CHEESE BITES
These really are a very simple and tasty nibble. Hang onto this recipe it is bound to become a favorite with your family and guests, during the holidays or at any other time of the year! They also make great hostess gifts when packed into an attractive tin, nestled into some parchment or tissue paper. You will need a food processor to make these. You can do it without, but they won't have the same short texture and it will take a lot more work!
Place the cheese, butter and flour in the bowl of your food processor. Pulse several times until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Once this happens, allow the motor to run for 25 to 30 seconds until the dough forms a ball around the blade. Try not to overwork the dough.Remove from the bowl. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for half an hour.
Preheat the oven to 400*F/200*C/ gas mark 6. Line a large baking tray with baking parchment.
Pinch off walnut sized balls of the chilled dough and shape into 1 inch in diameter balls. Place, evenly spaced on the baking sheet.Bake in the preheated oven for five minutes. Remove from the oven and immediately make a small depression in the center of each with the end of a large wooden spoon.
Fill each depression with either jalapeno pepper jelly or hot pepper jelly. Return to the oven and bake for an additional 5 to 7 minutes, until golden brown on the bottoms.
Leave to cool to lukewarm before serving. Remember hot jelly can really burn the skin so do be careful when handling.Note - you can make these ahead of time up to the point of adding the jelly. Simply reheat briefly in the preheated oven and then add the jelly and bake for an additional five minutes as per the recipe.
Not only are these a very pretty nibble, but they are also really delicious. You get the short, buttery textured, rich cheesy biscuit/cookie part which is beautifully accented by the bite and heat of that sweet and hot pepper jelly!
Sweet and savory. That is a taste combination that is always enjoyed!
Some other tasty appetizers that you might enjoy which I have baked here on The English Kitchen are:
JALAPENO PEPPER JAM BAKED BRIE - Gloriously rich and creamy gooey brie mixed with that hot pepper jam . . . perfect for spreading onto soft slices of a fresh French loaf . . . and topped with a few leaves of rocket. This puff pastry encased appetizer is actually very simple to make and is also incredibly delicious! It can be as plain or as ornate as you wish to make it!
GRUYERE AND MUSTARD STICKS -Little puff pastry bread sticks that are very easy to make and incredibly moreish. Making them is as simple as spreading some puff pastry with mustard, folding it over and cutting the pastry into sticks . . . glazing it with an egg yolk wash, sprinkling with some coarse sea salt and sprinkling with grated gruyere cheese. Easy peasy lemon squeezy for sure!
Yield: 20 - 25 bitesAuthor: Marie Rayner
Pepper Jelly Cheese Bites
Prep time: 15 MinCook time: 10 MinInactive time: 30 MinTotal time: 55 MinShort and savory with a bit of a bite. These are sure to be really popular on your nibble tray when entertaining. For the holidays use a mix of jalapeno and red pepper jellies for festive colors!Ingredients
- 2 cups (8 ounces/230g) extra strong cheddar cheese, grated
- 3 to 4 TBS cold butter
- 1 cup (145g) plain all purpose flour
- jalapeno or hot pepper jellies
Instructions
- Place the cheese, butter and flour in the bowl of your food processor. Pulse several times until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Once this happens, allow the motor to run for 25 to 30 seconds until the dough forms a ball around the blade. Try not to overwork the dough.
- Remove from the bowl. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for half an hour.
- Preheat the oven to 400*F/200*C/ gas mark 6. Line a large baking tray with baking parchment.
- Pinch off walnut sized balls of the chilled dough and shape into 1 inch in diameter balls. Place, evenly spaced on the baking sheet.
- Bake in the preheated oven for five minutes. Remove from the oven and immediately make a small depression in the center of each with the end of a large wooden spoon.
- Fill each depression with either jalapeno pepper jelly or hot pepper jelly. Return to the oven and bake for an additional 5 to 7 minutes, until golden brown on the bottoms.
- Leave to cool to lukewarm before serving. Remember hot jelly can really burn the skin so do be careful when handling.
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