syt You guys!  I have the perfect holiday appetizer that is perfect if you have little kids around to help you – I mean, who doesn’t love to play with dough?  This cheesy Christmas tree is sure to be a hit around your holiday table.

It all starts out with . . . my skinny pizza dough.  I know – another recipe with the skinny pizza dough!  

Here’s the best part though – if you are traveling, or staying at a friend or families house and don’t want the hassle of making the dough from scratch (although, if you are driving – the dough does last up to a week so you COULD bring it with you – just sayin’) – you could easily use store bought dough.

My friends at Alouette Cheese challenged me to come up with a recipe using their spreadable garlic and herb cheese, besides just taking the lid off and eating it with a spoon.  Not that I’ve done that personally. 😀  You guys – this spreadable garlic and herb cheese is off the hook good – creamy, spreadable, full of garlic flavor.  

Look at all that goodness!  I mixed this around to get the garlic and herbs mixed in.  Although truth be told, I have been known to eat the garlic herb topping all by myself. 

Once I decided how big I wanted my tree to look (which ended up being 20, one ounce balls of dough), I just made an assembly line – roll out the dough, place a teaspoon of the Alouette cheese in the middle, then pinch and place pinched side down on your cookie sheet.

Then I started building my tree – I decided 5 across was big enough – but feel free to make or buy a double batch of dough – be creative!

For the top I just cut two balls into three pieces, and made sort of a “star” at the top.  I baked these at 400 degrees for 19 minutes, finishing off with 1 minute under the broiler for some color.

Once they came out of the oven, I brushed with butter (next time I’ll add a teaspoon of garlic salt to the melted butter – I am adding it to the recipe below) then garnished with fried rosemary and basil – and heated up some jarred pasta sauce for dipping.

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You guys – there are no words – the dough is fluffy, yet slightly crisp on the bottom since I baked it on my baking steel.  The cheese got al melty and that pop of flavor with the fried rosemary and basil just makes this appetizer.

Best part is that each ball is only 2 smart points!  Yum.

 

Please let me know if you make this – it’s really easy and a fun group dish – especially if you have little kids.  Carolyn – I think Paulie and Eddie would love making this!  (and Gretchen too!) 

What I love about Alouette cheese is that it is super affordable – between $2.99 and $3.99 a container, and I can find it pretty much everywhere – my local Walmart routinely has it on sale for $2.99 a container.  

This is a super easy dish to make – I promise it will get gobbled up at your holiday event.  This cheese is smooth, creamy, so flavorful – it has fresh ingredients you can actually taste.  

If you make this dish – tag me, send me a picture – I’d love to see your creations!

Happy Tuesday friends – make it a great day!