These pretty Pear, Pecan and Goat Cheese Appetizers are easy, delicious and perfect for the holidays! They're also 21 Day Fix approved and gluten-free!
Happy Sunday! It's actually Saturday as I'm writing this and the fam and I just got back from Breakfast with Santa. 🙂 It was today's Advent calendar activity and SO cute and fun - the girls loved it! The Grinch made an appearance as well, looking extraordinarily creepy, he pretended to steal a present (and quite possibly my ability to sleep tonight).
Did you guys have lots of festive fun this weekend?? Probably after I write this post, we're going to head out into the snow because it's freaking gorgeous today!
On that note, please forgive me if today's post is a little short, mama wants to go sled riding 😉
If you've been reading along for a while, you already know that one of my very favorite things about a holiday dinner is the hors d'oeuvres table. Ya know, because I love food and variety and good times. Plus, there are usually cocktails involved. I also love cocktails. And the color green. Are you feeling like you're really getting to know me today?
In my family, we make a metric crap ton of appetizers and call them our lunch. I highly recommend it. I have to say, aside from my grandma's brown sugar-glazed mini bacon-wrapped hot dogs (OMG), everything else is relatively healthy. We usually have a fruit tray, shrimp cocktail, Italian stuffed mushrooms, a veggie tray and cheese and crackers, but I'm always thinking about something new and different to bring (because variety, remember?).
These little cuties are freaking DELICIOUS. They're basically all of my favorite flavors in one bite of awesomeness. You really can't go wrong when you put together pears, pecans, goat cheese, sage and honey, can you? Exhibit A: this pita pizza (well, it's similar in flavor anyway, it just uses apples instead of pears).
I love that these can be made ahead, because Christmas time is busy, folks. I've made these a couple of days ahead and they were still amazing. Plus they look kind of fancy, right? And how adorable are my mini appetizer plates and forks that I found at the grocery store?? Here they are on Amazon in case you're interested. (<-- affiliate link)
If you have plates like these, you can do what I did and put the honey on the bottom of the plate - if not, you can set up a little honey-ing station like this:
I hope you guys love these as much as we do and try them out at your holiday dinner this year! I'm hoping to get another post out before Christmas, but in case I don't, Merry Christmas!!
If you make these Pear, Pecan and Goat Cheese Appetizers be sure to snap a pic and tag me @thefoodieandthefix on Instagram so I can check it out! It makes me ridiculously happy to see what you guys are making 🙂
📖 Recipe
Mini Pear, Pecan and Goat Cheese Appetizers
Ingredients
Mini Cheeseballs:
- 8 oz goat cheese
- ½ cup 1% plain Greek yogurt (or 2% or nonfat)
- 1 Tbs finely chopped green onion
- salt and pepper
- 10 pecan halves, chopped (about ¼ cup)
- 1 cup fresh pear (I used a bosc, but any pear you like will do!) peeled, and chopped small
- 2 Tbs finely chopped fresh sage
Topping:
- 45 pecan halves, finely chopped (about 1 ¼ cup) - I did this with a knife, but you can also use a small food processor
- honey for drizzling, I used about ¼ teaspoon per cheeseball
Instructions
- In a large bowl, use a fork to mix together the goat cheese, yogurt, green onion, a small pinch of salt and as much black pepper as you like.
- Gently stir in ¼ cup chopped pecans, the chopped pears and the sage until well blended.
- Use a tablespoon to measure out the mini cheeseballs, roll each into a ball and then into the remaining chopped pecans. Repeat with the rest of the mixture.
- Serve with your favorite whole grain crackers or toasted baguette!
Notes
21 Day Fix Container Counts per Serving: 3 mini cheese balls = 1 Blue - Don't forget to count whatever you put them on!
Weight Watchers Freestyle Points: 3 mini cheese balls = 6 points
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 9 Serving Size: 3 mini cheeseballsAmount Per Serving: Calories: 153Total Fat: 12g
Jenna Burkman says
I used these for our Easter appetizers and they were amazing! I even have some family members that aren't fond of goat cheese and they loved it. It was so easy and quick to make. We did need to put the balls in the fridge for a bit because they had softened up too much. But they were amazing.
The honey is the key...it totally makes it spectacular and brings all the flavors together!
Thank you for this-we will be making it again! 🙂
Stephanie says
Ah! I'm so glad you guys loved it!! This is one of my family's very favorite appetizers and we have a couple of goat cheese haters, too!
Muna Kenny says
This looks so elegant and delicious! The lighting and the sharpness of the clicks are just amazing. I love how I can see the details in each picture. Awesome Job 🙂
Stephanie says
Thanks so much, Muna!!
Dawn @ Girl Heart Food says
OMG, it has been seriously way too long since I was on a slide! If I think back to all the crazy places we would go, I must have been nuts! All kinds of rocks under the snow, but we would have a blast, lol 😀 You know that i could honestly make a meal out of bits and bites like this? They are the BEST! Bacon wrapped hot dogs? Whoa!! Often hubby and I do bits and bites for dinner on Friday night with some vino and I couldn't be happier! These look SO good, Stephanie! I love a good cheeseball and these are something like that only better 'cause they are little and they are bite sized and I could totally eat, like, 6 and not feel guilty cause they are little 😉 Love the pear in there too! Pinning! Looking forward to trying this over the holidays. Hope Santa is good to you and your family. Have a wonderful Merry Christmas, my friend! XO
Stephanie says
Thanks, Dawn! Yes!! Sled-riding is SO much fun, you really never get too old (though it definitely hurts more...lol)! I love nothing more than appetizers for dinner, it's the best! We always do that for our New Year's Eve dinner and I'm definitely looking forward to that this week. I hope you had a wonderful holiday, my dear! Thanks for pinning! XOXO
Amanda @ The Pretend Baker says
LOVE THESE! We do the same thing for lunch at our place: nacho dip, veggies, fruit, cheese and crackers, various other finger foods and unhealthy things haha. These would be such a fantastic addition to the snack table!