Mini Bacon Onion Ranch Cheese Balls are the perfect bite-sized appetizer for all your holiday parties, gameday tailgating & poolside snacking. So good, loaded with bacon, fried onions, cheddar cheese & more–PLUS they are easy to make too!
My friends, it is no secret, I love snacks & appetizers. If we are ever at a party together, you can always count on me to be hanging out by the food & grazing all night long.
I don’t know what it is, but I literally could live off snacks. So it is no wonder that I’m 100% addicted to these Mini Bacon Onion Ranch Cheese Balls.
You see, my mother-in-law was the queen of party food. She loved to put out an incredible spread & she was an amazing hostess.
I always loved going to her place for holidays because, yep, I knew the snacks would be great I would get to munch all day.
bacon ranch cheese ball
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One of the things she would make is a bacon-onion ranch cheese ball. I loved it. But the one downside to a regular cheese ball is that once everyone takes some from the outside, the inside is lacking all the good stuff that it was rolled in.
So the idea of having bite-sized cheese balls is super appealing. You get your very own cheese ball with all the good stuff in every bite.
The bonus is that you don’t even really need a cracker because you have the pretzel that not only works as a way to eat it cleanly, without ever having to touch the cheese ball, but it gives the crunch of the cracker all in one magical bite.
What I love about these is not only how delicious they are, but how portable they are too. Just grab a couple & mingle the party away.
These never last very long when it comes to game day. We make these every single weekend for game day, race weekend – basically all the time. I have no shame – they are DELICIOUS!
Here are some commonly asked questions
How can I make these ahead of time?
You bet. I love to make these the night before or the morning ahead of the party. Just keep refrigerated & then add the pretzels before putting out to serve. You don’t want the pretzels to get soft by putting them in the refrigerator.
Can I make these with different flavors?
You bet! Add in other seasonings, roll them in nuts & dried fruits instead of bacon. The sky is the limit with these.
What is the best way to store leftover mini cheese balls?
After serving, place leftover cheese balls in a shallow airtight container. Be sure to label with the date before refrigerating. This recipe should keep for up to 3 days. I like to remove the pretzels before refrigerating the leftovers & then add new pretzels when serving again.
How many can this serve?
Sometimes my scooping varies in size, so I usually get about 25-30 mini cheese balls. Perfect for our family when having a party.
best cheese ball recipe
Can this recipe be doubled?
Absolutely! We often double this recipe if we are taking these to a potluck or having friends over for a party. They are a hit, so if you have more than a couple people over, make sure to make a lot.
HOW DO YOU MAKE MINI BACON ONION RANCH CHEESE BALLS?
- Add the softened cream cheese to a mixing bowl along with the cheddar cheese, ranch seasoning, fried onions, granulated garlic & minced onions.
- Use a firm spoon or silicone spatula to fold & mix the ingredients together until well incorporated.
- In a small bowl, combine bacon bits & parsley.
- Scoop cheese mixture using a teaspoon & roll into bite-sized portions.
- Drop into the bacon/parsley mixture and roll around until coated.
- Place on the serving platter & place a pretzel stick into each cheese ball before serving.
Other Simple and Savory Appetizers
Spinach Artichoke Stuffed Mushrooms
Can this be made into a regular-sized cheese ball?
Absolutely. If you just want a regular cheese ball, you can form the cheese mixture into one large ball & then roll the whole thing into the bacon/parsley mixture.
More Cheesy Recipes to Try
- Cheese Log
- Smoked Cream Cheese
- Pretzel Cheese Dip
- Sausage Cheese Dip
- Ham & Cheese Hot Spinach Dip
- Bacon Alfredo Cheese Cups
- Easy Cheese Ball Recipe
Mini Cheese Balls
To make this recipe you will need…
- cream cheese – softened
- cheddar cheese, shredded
- dry ranch seasoning
- fried onions
- granulated garlic
- minced onions
- bacon bits
- chopped parsley
- pretzel sticks
Products I love when making this mini cheese ball recipe…
These mini cheese balls are is so EASY and delicious – and if you’re like me, then you probably already have many of these items on hand
OR maybe you have never made a cheese ball recipe before, & you might be a bit hesitant – but you’re going to love the how simple this recipe is.
I have made a list below of the things I absolutely can’t live without when it comes to making this appetizer.
Cheese Ball Bites
If you love this easy bacon cheese balls recipe, you’re going to love these other delicious appetizer & snack recipes too. Please click each link below to find the easy, printable recipe!
Bacon Cheese Ball
Mini Bacon Onion Ranch Cheese Balls
Ingredients
- 12 ounces cream cheese – softened
- 1 cup cheddar cheese shredded
- 1 pkt ranch seasoning dry – just the powder packet
- 3 tsp fried onions
- ½ tsp granulated garlic
- ½ tsp minced onions
- 1 cup bacon bits
- 2 tsp chopped parsley
- 30 pretzel sticks
Instructions
- Add the softened cream cheese to a mixing bowl along with the cheddar cheese, ranch seasoning, fried onions, granulated garlic & minced onions.
- Use a firm spoon or silicone spatula to fold & mix the ingredients together until well incorporated.
- In a small bowl, combine bacon bits & parsley.
- Scoop cheese mixture using a teaspoon & roll into bite-sized portions.
- Drop into the bacon/parsley mixture and roll around until coated.
- Place on the serving platter & place a pretzel stick into each cheese ball before serving.
Nutrition
Nutritional information for the recipe is provided as a courtesy and is approximate. Please double-check with your own dietary calculator for the best accuracy. We at Yummi Haus cannot guarantee the accuracy of the nutritional information given for any recipe on this site.
Daphine Campbell says
Is this dried parsley or fresh chopped parsley? Which works best, store bought canister bacon bits or make your own?
Gina Kleinworth says
I usually use whatever I have on hand at the time. For these, I bought the real bacon pieces in the bag and used fresh parsley. But these will work great with either version of those ingredients.
Angie says
Are the fried onions French’s fried onions you buy at the market or do you actually fry chopped onions?
Gina Kleinworth says
They are the French’s fried onions. The crispy ones.
Melissa Delarosa says
Going to a Derby party today and making these to take. They are delicious. I added finely chopped jalapeños for a little zing. In the mixture of the outside seasonings to roll these I added crushed fried onions and crushed ritz crackers. I made this recipe x5 the ingredients. Lots of people will be there. I can’t wait until they taste them. 🤗