GIMQ Clue #5 and My Cheddar Cheese Ball Recipe

Now that the Christmas melee is over and we are coming back to earth, I am catching up with Bonnie Hunter's Grand Illusion Mystery Quilt.  Clue #5, we must be getting close to putting these all these bits together!  Anxious to see how it all turns out.  I love a good mystery!  If you haven't started yet, no worries, just jump in at clue five and then go back and pick up each of the other clues.  I would, however, suggest that you print out or download each of the clues as she will not keep them on her blog site forever.  They are up for a bit and then they will come down to be incorporated in an upcoming book release.  Her release dates currently are every 2 years, so you might have a bit of a wait if you don't go get it now.

Here's the link:  http://quiltville.blogspot.com/p/grand-illusion-mystery.html

Each week, on Monday, there is a linky and you can see what other people are doing, their fabric choices, colors, and where they are in the process.  You can even link your own progress on the mystery.

Linky: http://quiltville.blogspot.com/2014/12/mystery-monday-link-up-part-5.html

Yesterday was so beautiful!  My husband and I decided to go for an afternoon drive up Foresthill Road to see if we could find some snow.  It was very cold out but a beautiful sunny day!

This was the view from China Wall ORV area, looking down the canyon toward the west.  It was so clear we could see the coastal range!  We are up at 5000 ft here at China Wall and there was just patchy snow here and there in the shaded areas. But just a little further up the road and we scored some snow!

New Years is coming and I wanted to share this easy Cheddar Cheese Ball recipe with you.  You can make it up ahead of time and you will be all set to entertain effortlessly.  Put out some crackers, some sliced meats, pickles and olives...you're good!

You will need:

4 ounces sharp cheddar cheese cut into several chunks

2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

8 ounces of cream cheese

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 clove of garlic chopped

1/2 tsp of kosher salt

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper 

In your food processor, mix all the ingredients until fully blended.

Place the mixture in a bowl.

Wet your hands and pat the cheese mixture into a ball.

Roll in your garnish...which can be ground nuts, cooked bacon bits, ground crackers, fresh herbs.  I am fond of chopped pecans.

Wrap in plastic wrap and put in the fridge for 3 hours to firm up...

Place your cheese ball on a platter and surround with your crackers, use a small knife to allow people to cut into the cheese ball.

You can change up the cheese by swapping out a couple ounces of the cheddar for smoke cheddar or blue cheese or any other kind of cheese you love.

Have a Happy New Year!  I am enjoying a couple weeks off from the dental office and I plan on sewing up a storm!  Next week, my friend Brenda and I are going to hit a quilt shop way over in Winters, I will let you know all about our journey next week!  In the mean time...jump into the mystery quilt...you will have a ball!