I love this little guy. I call him Queso Diablo. I think that translates as Cheese Devil. He’s a fun way to decorate a Halloween cheese ball, and he’s made with my Habanero Cheese recipe (get the printable recipe below).
Frugal recipe updated 10/30/2023
How to decorate the Halloween Cheese Ball Devil:
- Okra for horns
- Bay leaves for ears
- Giant pimento-stuffed green olive slices for eyes
- Red bell pepper strips for eyebrows
- Habanero pepper for nose
- Pepitas (pumpkin seeds) for teeth
Serve the Halloween Cheese Ball Devil with veggies and crackers. Our family’s favorite vehicle for Habanero Cheese is super unhealthy (ingredients include MSG, GMOs and soy), but a perfect pairing: Chicken in a Biskit crackers. Nope, this is not an ad for Nabisco—-they are just the best crackers to serve with Habanero cheese!
How to make the Halloween Cheese Ball Devil:
This Halloween Cheese Ball Devil is the perfect make ahead Halloween party appetizer! You can make the Habanero Cheese up to a week ahead.
- Prepare a double batch of Habanero cheese (get the printable recipe below).
- Transfer the Habanero Cheese to a piece of plastic wrap. Pull the plastic wrap into a bundle and twist to close, forming the Habanero Cheese into a ball. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
- Remove plastic wrap and set the cheese ball on small plate (so you can set the cheese ball on a serving tray and it won’t make a mess as people dig into it) and decorate it. Use toothpicks to attach the features.
- Refrigerate the decorated cheese ball until ready to serve. Transfer to a serving tray and arrange crackers and veggies on the tray. Check out the adorable Halloween & Dia de los Muertos serving trays below!
- Warn your guests that the Habanero Cheese is spicy! I stab a whole habanero pepper on a wooden skewer, attach a “Spicy!” tag, and poke the skewer into a lemon half (lay the lemon half face down on the serving platter to make a sturdy stand).
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Here’s the printable recipe for Habanero Cheese:
- 3 raw habanero peppers, stems removed
- 8oz brick Philadelphia cream cheese
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 4 oz sharp white cheddar cheese
- In a food processor, pulse habanero peppers to mince.
- Add cream cheese and salt; pulse until mixed.
- Using a Microplane, grate sharp white cheddar into the food processor.
- Pulse until mixed; scrape the sides of the food processor as needed.
- Transfer the Habanero Cheese into a serving bowl and refrigerate.
Special Tools to Make the Habanero Cheese Recipe:
To make perfect Habanero Cheese you’ll need two special tools:
- A food processor: This is the food processor I use every single day. It’s cheap and out-performs Cuisinart and Kitchen Aid food processors!
- A Microplane grater. You can grate the cheese using the fine grating disk on your food processor, but the cheese will not blend in as well as it does when you use a Microplane.
