Food and Recipes Dairy 20 Appetizer Recipes You Can Make With Cream Cheese By Jenna Sims Jenna Sims Jenna is a Digital Editor for Southern Living and joined the team in 2014. She writes, produces, and assigns content with a focus on email growth and commerce content. She covers a range of topics in the lifestyle space from holiday gift guides to new product launches to tips for cooking with your air fryer. Southern Living's editorial guidelines Published on April 22, 2023 Share Tweet Pin Email Trending Videos Photo: Caitlin Bensel; Food Styling: Torie Cox Cream cheese is perhaps one of the most versatile cheeses you can buy. From casseroles to desserts to side dishes, it's used in a wide variety of recipes. While cream cheese is a very versatile ingredient, appetizers are perhaps one of our favorite ways to make use of the refrigerator staple.While we'll always love pouring a jar of pepper jelly over cream cheese for an instant appetizer, we've rounded up a list of other easy and delicious appetizer recipes you can whip up with the block of cream cheese in your fridge. 01 of 20 Shrimp on Seasoned Crackers with Pepper Jelly and Cream Cheese Antonis Achilleos; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall; Prop Styling: Kay E. Clarke The classic appetizer of cream cheese and pepper jelly gets an upgrade with the addition of jumbo shrimp and seasoned crackers. 02 of 20 Party Poppers Hector M. Sanchez Styling: Caroline M. Cunningham A filling made with cream cheese and chicken offers a nice contrast to the spicy jalapeno chiles. 03 of 20 Baked BLT Dip This recipe turns the flavors of the classic sandwich into a crowd-pleasing dip. 04 of 20 Party Cheese Ball Caitlin Bensel; Food Styling: Torie Cox No party is complete without a cheese ball. Just make sure your cream cheese is softened before you begin making it. 05 of 20 Kentucky Beer Cheese Photographer: Antonis Achilleos, Prop Stylist:Christine Keely Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer This cheesy dip comes together in just 10 minutes and doesn't require any cooking. 06 of 20 Stuffed Okra Poppers Antonis Achilleos; Prop Styling: Kay E. Clarke; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall We swapped the traditional pepper base for okra in this stuffed poppers recipe. 07 of 20 Cream Cheese Sausage Balls Victor Protasio; Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer; Prop Stylist: Christine Keely This recipe gives sausage balls a creamy upgrade thanks to the addition of a block of cream cheese. 08 of 20 Jalapeño Popper Dip Photographer: Jennifer Causey Food Stylist: Melissa Gray Prop Stylist: Kay Clarke In addition to a block of cream cheese, this ultra-cheesy dip also calls for 6 ounces of sharp Cheddar cheese and 6 ounces of Pepper Jack cheese. 09 of 20 Slow-Cooker Buffalo Chicken Dip This slow-cooker dip couldn't be easier. Simply dump all of the ingredients into the crock and you'll have a warm, cheesy appetizer in about 2 hours. 10 of 20 Pizza Pepper Poppers Caitlin Bensel; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall; Prop Styling: Christina Daley These pepper poppers come together in just 30 minutes with 5 ingredients. 11 of 20 Cranberry-Jalapeño Cream Cheese Dip Photographer: Greg DuPree, Food Stylist: Emily Neighbors Hall Prop Stylist: Christine Keely Whipped cream cheese is the ideal base for a homemade cranberry-jalapeño salsa. 12 of 20 Skillet Beer-Cheese Dip With Pretzel Bites Antonis Achilleos; Prop Stylist: Lydia Purcell; Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn Frozen pretzel bites help this dish come together easily. 13 of 20 Cheesy Artichoke Dip With Spring Crudités Victor Protasio; Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer; Prop Stylist: Christine Keely As shown, crisp vegetables are great for scooping up this cheesy dip but pita chips are a good option as well. 14 of 20 Ham Cheese Ball Victor Protasio; Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer; Prop Stylist: Christine Keely Deli ham and pecans add an extra layer of heartiness to this classic cheese ball. 15 of 20 Corn and Jalapeño Dip Hector Manuel Sanchez Make sure to reserve the scallions to add once the dip is finished cooking. 16 of 20 Mini Pimiento Cheese Balls James Ransom, Prop Stylist: Christine Keely, Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn Serve these miniature cheese balls with extra crackers in addition to the cracker that's placed on top of each one. 17 of 20 Baked Goat Cheese Spread with Pepper Jelly Antonis Achilleos; Prop Styling: Kay E. Clarke; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall Think of this baked dip as a slightly elevated version of cream cheese and pepper jelly. The goat cheese mixture can be made ahead and stored in the refrigerator. 18 of 20 Cheesy Chorizo-Stuffed Chiles Victor Protasio; Food Styling: Ruth Blackburn; Prop Styling: Christine Keely Chorizo sausage adds some extra spice to this stuffed chile appetizer. 19 of 20 Benedictine Spread Antonis Achilleos; Prop Stylist:Christine Keely; Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer This Kentucky staple is a refreshing spread that's made with cream cheese and cucumbers. 20 of 20 Feta-Olive-Fresh Herb Cheese Ball Hector Manuel Sanchez In addition to cream cheese, this cheese ball recipe also calls for feta cheese as well. Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit