Persian cheese ball

January 2, 2013  •  Category:

This is another Persian recipe from Najmieh Batmanglij that appealed to me; it contains lots of walnuts and herbs so it could easily be a light  lunch or stuffed in a flour tortilla for quesadillas. Hope y’all had good holidays, personally I am relieved that they have come and gone. 

Najmieh’s original recipe calls for specific herbs like fresh basil and tarragon; I substituted what is available locally, namely two varieties of zaatar (oregano); I also used feta instead of the Persian farmer’s cheese. 

  • 1 cup of white farmer’s cheese or FETA 
  • 2 cups of walnuts, toasted briefly 
  • 2 Tbsp each of green onions, basil, tarragon and mint
  • 1 clove of garlic mashed
  • salt, pepper, to taste
  • Juice of a lime (I added sumac instead)
  • 3 Tbsp olive oil (skipped)
METHOD: 
  1.  If using feta, place it in a bowl with cold water to cover and change the water every 20 minutes until the salt is reduced. Drain the cheese; place the walnuts in the bowl of a food processor and chop fine; add the cheese, herbs and all other ingredients and chop till the cheeese is smooth. Transfer to a bowl and serve with crackers or toasts or stuff in a flour tortilla and bake. 


Comments

14 Comments  •  Comments Feed

  1. Ahu says:

    I love her book… It’s the Persian cooking bible! Great recipe, we also made it with dill.

  2. Belinda @zomppa says:

    I could eat this with almost anything!

  3. Rosa says:

    Delicious! A tasty combination.

    Cheers,

    Rosa

  4. Devaki@weaveflavors says:

    Hi Joumana,

    First off, HAPPY NEW YEAR to you and your lovely family! Secondly, love all your recipes but this one loaded with good fresh cheese, nuts and herbs is impossible to resist!

    Looking forward to our continuing friendship on and off the blogosphere.

    hugs! Devaki

  5. Sarah G says:

    This looks so good. I suppose it would also be good with some fresh homemade ricotta or yogurt cheese mixed with the feta. Happy New Year! Love your recipes.

  6. Oui, Chef says:

    How pretty….and I bet it tastes just amazing with the nuts and herbs. So nice to make this fresh.

  7. josé antonio says:

    It looks amazing. It’s the best way to start a meal.
    Happy new year.

  8. Susan says:

    Delicious combination of cheese, nuts, garlic and lime! Such simple, delicious flavors.

  9. PJ says:

    Happy New Year Joumana.The cheese ball looks very tempting. I prepare something similar using Indian cottage cheese…

  10. Jamie says:

    A very very Happy New Year to you, Joumana! And I love this recipe! We all love feta (although I can see this baing made with fresh goat cheese, too) and I love what you did to it. Even the crunch of the walnuts is brilliant!

  11. Isabelle says:

    Quelle belle et délicieuse recette ! Certainement sur la liste des recettes à essayer en 2013. Merci et Bonne, Heureuse Année.

  12. domi says:

    Voilà une bien délicieuse recette fromagère qui me donne envie de rejouer à la ” ball-ball “. Je te souhaite une merveilleuse année remplie de superbes surprises.

  13. Heavy Hedonist says:

    Sumac makes anything better. This is so fresh I can practically taste it on the page.

  14. michelle says:

    I want to try this variation next time I make a cheese ball- it looks so different and delcious!! We love feta.

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