Smoked Cream Cheese
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Warm, smokey cream cheese is the BEST appeziter for any party…or even just to enjoy by yourself! Let me show you how I make this deliciousness on the smoker.
First off, I LOVE my Z Grill Pellet smoker for this recipe. So easy to use and in just 2 hours it is ready to enjoy.
Don’t mind the messiness of the smoker. The past 2 weeks I have been using it none stop smoking over 80 pounds of pork butt for pulled pork for my father’s celebration of life service in a few weeks. Keep a look out for a post later about all the tips and tricks I learned along the way doing that much smoked pork.
Back to the cream cheese. First, preheat your smoker to 225° F. This is where I make sure the hopper for the pellets is completely full. The smoking time for this cream cheese is 2 hours, which at completely full will last that long.
Ingredients
1 - 8oz block of cream cheese
Oil - I use olive oil but you can use a liquid oil of your choice
Seasoning of your choice - see below for more seasoning options
small aluminum foil pan - I found that these grease drip pans for our grill worked great.
Next, take your cream cheese out of the package (box and foil) and place on a plate. This can get a little messy so I prefer a plate to season it on then transfer to the foil pan. When you have the cream cheese block on the plate you will need a knife and cut diagonal slits in the top. Don’t do it entirely through but just about 1/4 inch through the top.
Once you have your slits cut grab your oil and drizzle a little on top. Rub it over the tops, sides, and bottom of the block of cream cheese. It doesn’t have to be a lot but just enough to allow the seasoning to stick to it.
With the oil all over the cream cheese you can season it now. Simply pour some seasoning on the block, rubbing it in a little to get it to stick. Make sure the top, sides, and bottom have seasoning. Place seasoned block of cream cheese into foil pan.
Lets talk about what seasoning to use. Honestly, you can use whatever seasoning you like. I have a lot of rub seasonings which work great. What I use really depends on the mood I am feeling that day.
Kick’n Chicken seasoning for when I am little for a little spice!
Garlic Parmesan seasoning for a good garlicy flavor.
Gourmet Burger seasoning tastes like a really amazing burger!!
Boss Rub from Pit Boss is great too, paired with the smokiness makes for an amazing combination.
Once your smoker has been heating up for about 10-15 minutes (depending on how cold it is outside for you), place the pan of cream cheese on the smoker. For optimal flavor it is best to let it smoke for at least 2 hours. If it happens to smoke for long then that it shouldn’t hurt it.
The waiting is the worst!!
After 2 hours you can take the cream cheese off the smoker. I like to use a little sheet pan to take it back into the house just so I don’t drop it!! It will be super hot when I comes out so let it sit for approximately 10 minutes…or until you feel you can handle the temp.
Now it time to enjoy with your favorite tortilla chips. I love the bite sized round tortilla chips. If you are looking for a lower carb options these Quest Protein Chips are great. I LOVE these Zero Net Carb tortillas. Pop them in the microwave for 1 minute and they are crispy enough for dipping!
Storage
Typically I like to leave my cream cheese out for 2 hours or so while I go back and forth to snack on it. After those 2 hours put it in the fridge in an airtight container. It is still amazing cold or pop it in the microwave for 30 seconds or so until soft.
I have never had to worry about how long it would last in the fridge since it is eaten up within a couple of days but I would say if after 5 days it is not eaten then it should be thrown away.
ENJOY!!!
