Deconstructed Cheese Ball

Everyone I know, including myself, loves cheese ball, however, it is a bit unattractive in its ball form rolled in nuts. I deconstruct the cheese ball when I want an elegant look which is great for a dinner party.

These cheese ball bites are very easy to make. You will need a sharp knife to dice the veggies very small.

You will need to following ingredients:

1 baguette - sliced into 1/4 inch pieces
4 oz cream cheese - whipped is best for this application
1/4 onion - finely diced
1/4 red bell pepper - finely diced
1/4 orange bell pepper - finely diced
2 oz monterey jack or cheddar cheese - sliced in thin strips
4-5 olives - finely diced
8-10 walnut halves - sliced in thin strips
6 slices salami - sliced in thin strips

There isn't an exact recipe for these. Use what veggies you have (and love) in the fridge. Mix and match what ever you want! I made these for a few people who don't love spice but diced jalapeno peppers would be really yummy!

If you don't want to cut out bread rounds you could also use crackers.

From your baguette cut 1/4 inch slices. Using a cookie cutter or a small rimmed glass cut out rounds. Don't throw away your scraps. Toast them and use for bread crumbs in a later dish!

Smear with cream cheese. I used whipped cream cheese to make it easy to spread but you could use regular. Just make sure it is really soft as to not tear your bread.

Finely dice all of your veggies. If you are using salami and cheese just slice them into thin strips.
Cut slices from walnut halves. You don't need to be exact. Just keep them thin.

Start making thin rows of veggies, cheese, and meat with your diced and sliced pieces.

I did it in this order:
red bell pepper
walnut
olive
cheese
salami
onion
orange bell pepper

Keep in mind what flavors you want the most of and keep those toward the center. The longer the row is the more flavor you will get from that ingredient. You can make these a few hours in advance and keep in the fridge.