Holidays 2016: Cheddar Olives

Green olives wrapped in a cheesy dough and baked until golden brown.  The result is a delicious appetizer for your upcoming holidays.  A huge plus for this recipe- other than the taste - is they can be made ahead of time.  Yes, you can freeze these delicious nibbles.

The dough for this recipe is made in a food processor which makes it come together quickly.  Once the dough is made you take 2 teaspoons and pat it into a 2-inch circle.  An olive is placed in the center and the dough is them formed around the olive.   Put in the fridge for 1 hour up to 24 hours.  If you plan to use them at a later date, pop them into the freezer.

When you are ready to bake your Cheddar Olives, place them in a 350 degree F oven for 16-18 minutes.  When baked, remove from oven and let them cool before serving.

Your family and friends will enjoy these tasty bites:)

Cheddar Olives
From Cook's Country Magazine 

Use regular-size, not colossal or queen, cocktail olives. The cheddar olives must chill for at least 1 hour before baking.

INGREDIENTS

40 pimento-stuffed green olives, rinsed
1 cup (5 ounces) all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
8 ounces extra-sharp cheddar cheese, shredded (2 cups)
7 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 7 pieces
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon water
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Spread olives on dish towel and roll around to dry. Pulse flour, paprika, pepper, and cayenne in food ­processor until combined, about 3 pulses. Add cheddar and butter and pulse until mixture resembles coarse crumbs, about 12 pulses. Add egg, water, and Worcestershire and process until dough ball forms, about 20 seconds.

2. Working with 2 teaspoons dough and 1 olive at a time, pat dough into 2-inch circle; place olive in center of dough; form dough around olive; and roll cheddar olive between your hands to make uniform ball. Place cheddar olives on large platter, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 1 hour or up to 24 hours (or freeze to bake later).

3. Adjust oven racks to upper-middle and lower-middle positions and heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Space cheddar olives evenly on prepared sheets. Bake until bottoms are well browned and tops are golden, 16 to 18 minutes (if baking from frozen, increase cooking time to about 25 minutes), switching and rotating sheets halfway through baking. Transfer cheddar olives to wire rack and let cool for about 30 minutes before serving.

MAKES 40 WRAPPED OLIVES

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