Tailgate Tastes: Unicoi Preserves’ Smoked Cream Cheese

Unicoi Preserves’ Smoked Cream Cheese

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 2 hours

Ingredients:

• 2 (8 oz.) blocks Laura Lynn cream cheese
• Your favorite barbecue rub
• Apple wood and hickory chunks for smoking
• Laura Lynn aluminum foil
• 2 (4 oz.) jars Unicoi Preserves Cherry Jalapeno Spread

1. Slice each block of cream cheese into 2 equal pieces. Lightly score the top of the cheese in a diamond pattern, just don’t cut too deep. This allows the rub and smoke to penetrate the interior of the cheese easier.

2. Generously dust each edge of the cheese with your favorite barbecue rub on all sides.

3. Set up your grill for indirect cooking. We use a kamado style grill and lump charcoal. Place several chunks of apple wood and one chunk of hickory in your charcoal. Milder fruitwoods are better here, as too much hickory overpowers the other flavors.

4. Light your grill and keep the temperature very low. If you are using a kamado style grill, put in your heat deflector before placing the grill grate in. Place a piece of aluminum foil on your cooking grate, and place your cheese on top of the foil. Make sure to leave a bit of room between pieces so the smoke can get to all sides. Place the blocks of cheese on the grill once it reaches around 150 degrees and keep the temperature at or just below 200 degrees.

5. The longer you leave the cream cheese on the grill, the more smoke it will take on. We like the flavor of the cheese after it has smoked for 1.5 - 2 hours, but feel free to experiment with times and different types of wood chunks.

6. Remove the cheese from the grill, it will be very soft. I just pull the whole sheet of aluminum foil off the grill onto a sheet pan and allow it to cool. It will firm back up as it cools. Serve at room temperature, or cover and refrigerate for a later date.

7. To serve, top with Unicoi Preserves Cherry Jalapeno Spread, crusty bread from Ingles bakery, your favorite Laura Lynn crackers or pita chips.

Copyright 2022 WHNS. All rights reserved.