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    Home » Appetizers » Pepperoni Skull Cheese Ball

    Pepperoni Skull Cheese Ball

    Published: Oct 14, 2019 · Modified: Jan 15, 2023 by Sula · This post may contain affiliate links · 34 Comments

    Jump to Recipe

    Skull shape for Halloween

    Halloween is coming so, of course, we need an appetizer! This Pepperoni Cheese Ball works great because, like all cheese balls, you can pick the shape. So go ahead and make a football for a tailgate party, but if you’re having a Halloween party, use your head . . . or skull shape instead.

    Ingredients for this Cheese Ball

    I adapted this recipe from sugardale.com and it’s a crowd pleaser. Almost all cheeseballs start with cream cheese and shredded cheese, but this one adds pepperoni and a packet of Italian dressing seasoning to rev up the flavor. Green olives are an optional add-in. I added some because I already had the olives out for decorative purposes.

    ingredients: cfream cheese, shredded cheese, pepperoni, Italian dressing mix, olives, and sliced almonds.

    The original recipe also calls for rolling the ball in Parmesan cheese. I skipped this, since I wasn’t making an actual ball and I didn’t think the Parmesan was strictly necessary. But, go ahead and try it if you wish. As we say in Wisconsin – MORE CHEESE!

    How to make this Pepperoni Cheese Ball

    This mixture comes together quickly. Simply let the cream cheese soften before you begin, mix all the ingredients together. You'll need to chop up the pepperoni and olives first.

    If you do not have a full-sized food processor, a mini-processor will do a great job to chop the pepperoni into smaller pieces. If going this route, simply use an electric hand mixer to combine the chopped pepperoni with the rest of the ingredients.

    Once I got a full-sized food processor, it became even easier to make this cheese ball. Chop and mix all in the same container!

    Shape and decorate into a Skull Cheese Ball

    Now to the decorating: For Halloween, I made this into a skull shape. Many cheeseballs need to be refrigerated before shaping, and it will depend upon how warm your cream cheese is. If it seems very soft, place it in a bowl, cover and refrigerate for 30 to 60 minutes to chill it before trying to shape it.

    chopped pepperoni in a food processor
    chop and mix all ingredients
    forming the cheese mixtire into a skull shape
    shape the mixture

    I used the end of a rolling pin to make hollow eye sockets and halved an olive to make the eyes.

    rolling pin forming eye sockets
    a rolling pin makes eye sockets
    halved olives make the eyes.
    olive halves are perfect eyes

    The teeth are sliced almonds and the serving knife provides the perfect accent for a straight, steely (and creepy) mouth.

    sliced almonds forming a mouth.
    sliced almonds form teeth
    serving knife inserted between the almonds.
    the serving knife accents the mouth

    I also played a little with the eyes, leaving the pimento in the olive at first, then removing and finally re-stuffing with a little Kalamata olive. They all look good to me, so pick your favorite and go with it!

    Pepperoni Cheese Ball
    Red pupils (pimento)
    Pepperoni Cheese Ball
    Hollow pupils
    Pepperoni Cheese Ball
    Black pupils (Kalamata)

    This Halloween Skull Cheese Ball is Spook-tacular!

    Pin for Halloween cheese ball
    Pepperoni Cheese Ball
    5 from 51 votes
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    Pepperoni Skull Cheese Ball

    Make a spooky shape for Halloween!
    Prep Time10 mins
    Total Time10 mins
    Course: Appetizer
    Cuisine: American
    Servings: 40
    Calories: 115kcal
    Author: Sula

    Ingredients

    • 8 oz pepperoni diced
    • 16 oz cream cheese softened
    • 3 cups Italian cheese blended shredded
    • 1 package 0.6 oz Italian dressing mix
    • ¼ cup green olives chopped (optional)
    • olives and sliced almonds for decorating

    Instructions

    • Soften cream cheese at room temperature for at least 20 minutes.
    • Chop pepperoni and olives in a food processor.
    • Add cream cheese, dressing mix, and shredded cheese. Process well to combine.
    • Form into a skull shape and decorate.
    • Refrigerate until ready to serve.

    Notes

    If the combined mixture is very soft, cover and refrigerate 30 to 60 minutes before shaping into a skull.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 115kcal | Carbohydrates: 1g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 24mg | Sodium: 245mg | Potassium: 36mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 195IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 89mg | Iron: 1mg

    Nutrition values are estimates only, using online calculators. Please verify using your own data.

    More holiday cheese balls

    • Turkey Shaped Cheese Ball for Thanksgiving
    • Green Onion Cheese Ball for Christmas
    • Football Cheese Ball for game day!
    « Instant Pot Split Pea Soup
    Jack O’ Lantern Stuffed Peppers »

    Filed Under: Appetizers Tagged With: appetizers, Snackatizer

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Sam Blake

      October 02, 2021 at 2:54 pm

      5 stars
      666? Spooky, but fun!

      Reply
      • Sula

        October 02, 2021 at 4:17 pm

        VERY spooky!

        Reply
    2. Leah

      September 18, 2021 at 11:33 pm

      5 stars
      Okay I’m definitely going to need to try this pepperoni skull cheese ball! My husband is going to be OBSESSED, all of his faves in one dish. It sounds pretty tasty to me too 😊

      Reply
      • Sula

        September 21, 2021 at 4:45 pm

        Oh yes its too fun and really yummy!

        Reply
    3. Addie

      September 18, 2021 at 9:24 pm

      5 stars
      So fun and festive for Halloween!

      Reply
      • Sula

        September 21, 2021 at 4:45 pm

        Just what Halloween should be!

        Reply
    4. Elizabeth Swoish

      September 18, 2021 at 5:22 pm

      5 stars
      Such a fun way to fashion a cheese dip! Thanks for sharing.

      Reply
      • Sula

        September 18, 2021 at 5:33 pm

        You're welcome - enjoy!

        Reply
    5. Shilpa

      September 18, 2021 at 5:05 pm

      5 stars
      Perfect for Halloween

      Reply
      • Sula

        September 18, 2021 at 5:33 pm

        It really is!

        Reply
    6. Cindy Mom the Lunch Lady

      September 18, 2021 at 4:08 pm

      5 stars
      Halloween is a big deal in our house! I love this idea of transforming a cheese ball into a fun Halloween snack. I definitely will be making this on Halloween to enjoy while we watch scary movies!

      Reply
      • Sula

        September 18, 2021 at 4:14 pm

        Oh this is perfect for scary movie night! Enjoy!

        Reply
    7. Kayla DiMaggio

      September 18, 2021 at 1:31 pm

      5 stars
      What a fun idea! I love that this cheeseball was so easy to make and it was stunning!

      Reply
      • Sula

        September 18, 2021 at 2:59 pm

        Thank you, it really is fun!

        Reply
    8. Amanda

      September 18, 2021 at 1:12 pm

      5 stars
      Love this. It’s so good and I can’t wait to make it for Halloween

      Reply
      • Sula

        September 18, 2021 at 2:59 pm

        I hope you enjoy it!

        Reply
    9. Emily Flint

      September 18, 2021 at 12:15 pm

      5 stars
      I absolutely love this idea for Halloween! I had to try it out first to make sure mine would look as good as your's and it turned out great. It's so easy to pull together and I know this is going to be the hit at the party.

      Reply
      • Sula

        September 18, 2021 at 2:58 pm

        Everyone will love it! Thanks for trying out my recipe!

        Reply
    10. Jill

      August 08, 2020 at 9:19 am

      5 stars
      So fun for Halloween. Great mix of flavors too!

      Reply
      • Sula

        August 08, 2020 at 2:56 pm

        Yes!

        Reply
        • Sarah

          September 18, 2021 at 8:15 am

          5 stars
          Cheese and pepperoni, how could you go wrong! Perfect for a spooktacular party 💀

          Reply
          • Sula

            September 18, 2021 at 2:58 pm

            Guaranteed to be a hit!

            Reply
    11. Jacqueline Meldrum

      August 08, 2020 at 9:18 am

      5 stars
      Haha that is brilliant. I make a cheese log but would never have thought of this. The kids will love it!

      Reply
      • Sula

        August 08, 2020 at 2:56 pm

        Popular with kids of all ages!

        Reply
    12. Peter

      August 08, 2020 at 8:38 am

      5 stars
      HAHHH, I LOVE your photo and how creative you made this look! But overall, you absolutely sold me on the pepperoni and the dice to really mix it in well with the cheese. I’m a big fan of cheese so I love that you have 3 different types of cheese in here! YUM. Perfect appetizer for friends!

      Reply
      • Sula

        August 08, 2020 at 2:57 pm

        Yes it really works, no matter what shape you choose to make!

        Reply
    13. Traci

      August 08, 2020 at 8:21 am

      5 stars
      So much fun, super easy, and guaranteed to disappear at the party. Thanks so much for this fun halloween recipe!

      Reply
      • Sula

        August 08, 2020 at 2:58 pm

        I think its just the right appetizer for any Halloween get-together!

        Reply
    14. Jen

      August 08, 2020 at 8:16 am

      5 stars
      This is perfectly spooky! My kids are going to love it!

      Reply
      • Sula

        August 08, 2020 at 2:57 pm

        Guaranteed!

        Reply
    15. Dawn

      July 25, 2020 at 11:21 am

      5 stars
      Will be bringing this to our next appetizer potluck at school!

      Reply
      • Sula

        July 26, 2020 at 12:43 pm

        Its perfect for a potluck!

        Reply
    16. Blake Moon

      July 15, 2020 at 3:22 pm

      5 stars
      This is scary good!

      Reply
      • Sula

        July 15, 2020 at 6:35 pm

        Well said!

        Reply

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