Goat Cheese Balls
Little heavenly bites of Mini Goat Cheese Balls with bacon and pistachio will elevate your next tailgating party.
Are you guys ready for The Big Football Game coming up next weekend?
To be honest, I don’t care about the game when the Steelers aren’t in it, but that doesn’t stop me from watching it (mainly for the commercials) and from making football party food.
Typically at parties, there’s usually a meat and cheese tray or a cheese ball. Cheese + wine is a no brainer.
Because everyone’s plates are piled high with food, I wanted small bites of cheese (mini cheese balls, if you will), which is what inspired these Mini Goat Cheese Balls with bacon and pistachio.
Goat cheese was the first cheese that popped into my mind because it’s one of my favorite cheeses.
Named after the use of goat’s milk, it’s a bit tangy and almost like a savory cream cheese.
I added bacon because you always need bacon at parties and rolled the truffles in pistachios that added a nice (and necessary) crunch. You can eat them as is or serve on crackers.
Now that I have my recipe, which wine pairs best with goat cheese?
After some research, I learned that Sauvignon Blanc pairs best with soft creamy cheeses like goat cheese because the acidity in the wine matches the tangy acidity in the cheese.
You can also serve some Pomegranate Punch for New Year’s Eve.
Goat Cheese, Bacon, and Pistachio Truffles
Little heavenly bites of Goat Cheese, Bacon, and Pistachio Truffles paired with Sauvignon Blanc will elevate your next tailgating party.
Ingredients
- 8 ounces creamy goat cheese, softened
- 1/4 cup crumbled bacon (roughly 3 slices cooked bacon)
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup finely chopped pistachios
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, beat together goat cheese, bacon, garlic powder, onion powder, and salt. Make roughly 1 inch balls with your hands or a cookie scoop.
- In a small bowl, add the pistachios. Roll each ball in the pistachios to coat then place on a plate. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
More Cheese Recipes:
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What heavenly little bites for Game Day. Or any day as far as I’m concerned.
An everyday treat!
Such a creative combination of flavors…and no baking involved! Delicious!
Yup so when the oven is hogged up with chicken wings and dips, you can still snack on these truffles ;)
Cheese, please!!! I am always one of the people standing guard over the cheese offering at a party, so these sound right up my alley! I love anything with goat cheese, and it sounds perfect to pair with the sauvignon blanc!
Can never get enough cheese (and wine)!
Carla! Love that you made mini cheese balls?! Hello? Brilliant! and I also love watching the commercials. . I worked in advertising for about 12 years so love watching how so many companies and advertisers shell out millions and millions of dollars for :30 or :60! :P
I’m a video producer, so I sit there and try to figure out how they were all made ;)
SO easy, SO delicious! You’ve hit a home run with these wonderful savory truffles, Carla!
Thanks Liz!
Goat cheese + bacon + wine = a party!
A fun party indeed!
You are a genius! I love this combination. The wine pairing is spot on as well. Yumm-o!
Thanks Shannon!
Oh yes please! Cheese Bacon and Pistachio rolled into one…. wow!
Can’t beat it ;)
Mmmm, Carla, everything is right about these! And goat cheese is one of my faves. Now you have me thinking of different combos to make more goat cheese truffles.
Ooo I’d be interested to hear what combos you come up with!
OMG Carla I’m on my way over! I’ll bring more Gallo Sauvignon Blanc! ;)
Hurry! ;)
Great flavor combo and it also looks so festive and pretty!
Thanks Amy!
I have almost everything at home to make these but I don’t think it would be safe to leave me alone with a serving of them. hmmm perhaps next time Braden and I do a cheese and meat lunch!
These truffles may be tiny, but they are mighty dangerous when it’s just you and them ;)
Finger food with bacon that pairs well with wine?! What’s not to like?
Bacon, wine, and cheese – what more can you want? ;)
Fantastic party appetizer Carla! And perfect with Gallo’s Sauv Blanc. Steelers are my #1 team too, and then come the Niners from my adopted home, but sadly neither made it to the Super Bowl this year.
Nope, the Steelers had quite a sad season. Hopefully next year!
Wow… you know me and goats cheese! This sounds amazing
Go Team Goat Cheese!
Oh yum, yum, yum! I love goat cheese and l love pistachios – what a great recipe!
Thanks :)
As an only child who never learned to share (this isn’t really true, but that’s the stereotype), I kind of love that I could have my OWN cheeseball and not have to share with anyone. Because these look wayyyyy too good to share. I don’t pair pistachios with goat cheese enough, but it’s a great combo.
I have an older brother and I still don’t like to share ;)
I love these savory little truffles. The goat cheese, bacon and pistachios sounds like such a tasty combination, perfectly paired with the Sauvignon Blanc!
Thanks Alida!
I love anything with goat cheese!
Me too! My favorite cheese.
Wow, these look amazing. These would be gobbled up at my house.
Thanks Jennie!
This is like having a gourmet snack food that takes only minutes to prepare. I love it and can’t wait to try it. I’m not much for football, but I’ll do the food and watch commercials and half-time. LOL
A gourmet snack with protein and dairy, right?
Finally, a savory truffle! You are my one true hero, Carla!
Hey somebody had to make one ;)
Hi need to know asap, are the pistachios roasted or not. Are they salted or unsalted. Can’t wait to try this.
The pistachios were not roasted. I recommend using unsalted so you can control the salt level especially since there’s bacon, but if you do use salted, you can taste and make adjustments to the filling.
I could see myself going to town on these! I love every ingredient in them! YUM!
Thanks Shawn!
Let’s see – I love goat cheese, I love bacon and I love pistachios. Pretty sure I’ll love this recipe. :)
Check, check, and check! Sounds like you need this recipe asap.
Oh yum three wonderful things all in one!
The best (savory) trio ever!
Why we have never thought to combine pistachos with cheese before is beyond me. These sound fantastic!
We need to pair them together more often, no?
Love your use of pistachios in this! I’ve done chocolate pistachio truffles in a similar method and they were so easy. The goat cheese combo sounds like an amazing combination that I will have to try out!!
Hi Carla came across your recipe on Pinterest and I was wondering how long could I keep them in the fridge before serving.
Hi Carla I have printed the recipe and saw where they can be made a few days ahead of time.
cheers
Love goat cheese (and all things bacon!) The wine pairing looks delicious!
How many does this receipe make?
Thanks for pointing this out! I recently switched recipe card plugins, which didn’t properly transfer all of the information. It makes about 18-20 mini cheese balls.