This was a fun idea that I picked up from Food Network Magazine. Simply flavor cream cheese with shredded cheddar, salsa, and nacho flavorings and then roll into a ball and refrigerate.
When it is firm, roll it in crushed nacho flavored chips to give it a pumpkin color. The hardest part was finding a bell pepper stem to use on the top. If you have peppers in your garden, this should not an issue, but my supermarket did not have a lot of pretty stems to choose from. I was happy with the festive look anyway.
Happy Fall!
PUMPKIN CHEESE BALL
16 ounces room-temperature cream cheese
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar
3 tablespoons minced onion
2 tablespoons salsa
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon minced jalapeno
Nacho-flavored tortilla chips, crushed
Bell pepper stem
With a mixer, blend the first 6 ingredients together. Scoop into plastic wrap and use the wrap to form the mixture into a 5-inch pumpkin-shaped ball; chill at least 2 hours. To serve, unwrap, roll in crushed nacho-flavored tortilla chips and press a bell pepper stem into the top.