Keto Three Cheese Balls

Keto Three Cheese Balls may just be the next big thing.

Guys, I'm serious, if you want to impress someone with a low carb food or keto recipe of some sort..these are it.

These are a great keto appetizer or keto snack you can share with everyone, keto or not and they will love them!

These go great with a side of low sugar ketchup for dipping.

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These Fried Cheese Balls are surprisingly easy to make. It's more the process of putting them together and frying that takes time. But it's so worth it!

These taste like they shouldn't be legal on a ketogenic diet, lol.

These Keto Cheese Balls are the type of recipe that make you think “wow so much is possible with keto food and no one has even gone there yet!”.

There are so many possibilities with this dough!

But these low carb cheese balls were something I wanted to create first.

Perfectly crunchy exterior, soft, gooey and cheesy filling. Amazing.

With this keto version I wanted to make them as similar as I could to the kind you get at M&M's or other frozen cheese ball appetizers.. but minus all the carbs of course..and I think I did quite a good job!

These are just as crispy as any other fried dough ball. You'd never know they were low carb. These are also super cheesy with the combination of cream cheese and cheddar along with the mozzarella based dough.

The coating of these fried keto cauliflower Mac and cheese balls is similar to fat head dough..but better.

Trust me on this. I was once a fathead dough hater but this dough is like fathead dough's prettier, young cousin, lol.

The base of the dough is a combination of almond flour, mozzarella and egg.

Then we add some xanthan gum, baking powder and spices to improve the texture and flavour even more.

The filling I used is simply cream cheese and old cheddar cheese but if feel free to get creative and try brie or gouda or havarti..or whatever cheeses your heart desires!

You can use avocado oil, coconut oil or vegetable oil for the frying of these.

Whichever oil and cheeses you choose to use, I promise these will be delicious.

A keto recipe you will never forget!

Ingredients In Low Carb Keto Three Cheese Balls

Almond Flour
Xanthan Gum
Coconut Oil (for frying)
Mozzarella (See my tips on choosing your mozzarella and how it can affect your recipe)
Arrowroot Starch

How To Store Low Carb Fried Keto Cheese Balls

Store these in a ziplock in the fridge for up to 2 days, re-heat in the oven at 400*F on an uncreased baking sheet for 10-15min or until crispy and hot again.
OR freeze in a ziplock between layers of parchment or wax paper and re-heat from frozen on an un-greased baking sheet at 400*F for 15-20min or until crispy and hot again.

Tools I Used To Make The Best Keto Cheese Balls

Low Carb Substitution Guide – This is totally optional but if you like my recipes, I now have a $5 guide available with all of the substitutions I use to create every recipe on my site. You can use this to convert old traditional recipes and create new keto recipes! You can purchase it here and/or read more if you are interested. I appreciate your support so much guys!
Nutritional Food Scale – AKA my best friend. This little buddy has been with me for over 4 years and never fails. Perfect measurements and only needs the batteries replaced maybe once a year!
Candy Thermometer – SUPER helpful when frying! The temperature can really make or break your donuts so I highly recommend investing in one.
Rolling Pin
Parchment Paper
Slotted Ladle – To pick up your donuts out of the hot oil
Wok – To fry your cheese balls in

Tips For Making Keto Fried Three Cheese Balls

Feel free to get creative with your cheeses in this recipe. I used two cream cheese and old cheddar but you can always try gruyere, havarti, asiago..etc.
If you can't get your dough to come together and find the mozzarella is separating, microwave the dough for 10-15s, knead it well with your hand, add another tablespoon of almond flour if it's still not coming together. Repeat this process until it does come together. (Do not microwave for more than 10-15s at a time or you may end up cooking your dough.
When choosing your mozzarella for this recipe, pay attention to the moisture content. A higher moisture content means you'll need more almond flour, a lower moisture content means you'll need to add less almond flour to get your dough to form correctly. This isn't a big deal, it just means starting with less almond flour and adding a tablespoon or two more, as needed to get your dough to come together.
DO NOT use pre-shredded or the traditional fresh mozzarella you can buy. Only use block mozzarella for this recipe or it will not work as well.
The mozzarella I used for this recipe had a higher moisture content than others I typically use so 1 cup of almond flour is on the higher side already. Be sure to start with 3oz or 85g (~3/4 cup) and work your way up.
When frying your cheese balls, it's best to use a thermometer to make sure the oil is between 340-370*F, this range results in the best texture and fully cooked cheese balls after cooking for about 1min per side.
If you don’t have xanthan gum it’s TOTALLY okay, you can still make these! I just add it because I feel it improves the texture of the dough just slightly.

How To Store Low Carb Cheese Balls

Store these in a ziplock in the fridge for up to 2 days, re-heat in the oven at 400*F on an uncreased baking sheet for 10-15min or until crispy and hot again.
OR freeze in a ziplock between layers of parchment or wax paper and re-heat from frozen on an ungreased baking sheet at 400*F for 15-20min or until crispy and hot again.

Can I make these fried keto three cheese balls with coconut flour instead of almond flour?

The best answer I can give is..you can try!

I always make this dough with almond flour but I'm sure it would work with coconut flour to a degree.

The taste may not be quite as nice, but they'd probably still be tasty!

If you are going to try to substitute coconut flour for almond flour, I'd start with 1/2 cup (56g) coconut flour in place of the almond flour and add another tablespoon or two if needed. You may also need a little more egg.

Keto Three Cheese Balls Recipe

Serves: 14 cheese balls

Ingredients:

Filling

2/3 cup shredded cheddar cheese, 75g or 2.6oz
3 tbsp cream cheese, softened

Dough

1 cup, almond flour, 112g (see my tips on why you may want to start with less flour, say 85g and add more if needed)
1 tsp xanthan gum
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp paprika
pinch of tsp salt, cayenne pepper and black pepper
1 egg, room temperature, whisked
1 1/4 cups shredded mozzarella, 140g/5oz (see my tips on mozzarella)
1 1/2-2 cups coconut, avocado or vegetable oil for frying

Directions:

Mix together your filling ingredients in a bowl and set aside.
Add your oil to a large Wok or pot and begin heating it over medium heat.
Add all of the dry ingredients to a bowl and whisk them together. (This includes almond flour, xanthan gum, baking powder, paprika, cayenne, pepper and salt).
In another microwavable bowl, add your shredded mozzarella and microwave for 30s at a time, stirring in-between until fully melted. (It took me about 1min total but I have quite a terrible microwave, lol so yours may take less time).
Once the mozzarella is well-melted, add your whisked egg and mix (it's okay if these two don't fully combine).
Add your dry ingredients and mix again until a thick dough starts to form.
Use your hands as the dough comes together to continue mixing the mozzarella with the rest of the ingredients. You'll need to knead the dough for a couple minutes to get it to blend together. If you are still having difficulty blending the mozzarella with the other ingredients, see my tips above to help you out!
Once you can form a pretty even dough ball, transfer it to two large greased pieces of parchment or wax paper.
Roll your dough out to be thin but still sturdy enough that you can easily bend and fold it without breaking it (see photo).
Use a glass, greased with oil and with a large opening to cut circles out of the dough.
Place a spoonful of the cheese filling in the center of the dough and press the edges together as if you were making a pot sticker. Then pinch all the edges inwards as if making a dumpling, to form a circle. Do your best to keep the dough in a ball shape (a small tear won't mess up the frying, just make sure it's not completely falling apart. You can just make these into oval or pot sticker shapes and fry them like that if you find this too difficult). Use the photos for reference!
Repeat this process with the rest of the dough. Continue cutting circles and adding filling. Re-roll any scraps you have to make more circles.
Once you've got all your cheese balls ready, make sure your oil is between 340-370*F (350*F is best!) and fry 3-4 cheese balls at a time, depending on your pot size. (You can also just drop one in to test the oil, it should start sizzling almost immediately. This dough is quite forgiving if you aren't at the perfect fry temperature)
Fry for 1-2min per side or until a dark golden brown colour. Then remove with a slotted spoon and place on a paper towel lined plate. (You may want to try one early on to determine how long to fry them. We liked ours fried to be quite crispy!)
Serve warm with a side of sugar-free ketchup and enjoy your keto three cheese balls!

Store these in a ziplock in the fridge for up to 2 days, re-heat in the oven at 400*F on an uncreased baking sheet for 10-15min or until crispy and hot again.

OR freeze in a ziplock between layers of parchment or wax paper and re-heat from frozen on an ungreased baking sheet at 400*F for 15-20min or until crispy and hot again.

Nutrition for 1/14th of recipe (1 cheese ball): 120 calories | 10g fat | 1g NET carbs | 4.9g protein | 1g fiber

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Keto Three Cheese Balls Recipe

Prep Time35

Cook Time12

Total Time47

Course: keto cheese balls, keto fried cheese balls, keto three cheese balls

Servings: cheese balls

Calories: 120kcal

Ingredients

Filling

2/3 cup shredded cheddar cheese 75g or 2.6oz
3 tbsp cream cheese softened

Dough

1 cup almond flour, 112g (see my tips on why you may want to start with less flour, say 85g and add more if needed)
1 tsp xanthan gum
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp paprika
pinch of tsp salt cayenne pepper and black pepper
1 egg room temperature, whisked
1 1/4 cups shredded mozzarella 140g/5oz (see my tips on mozzarella)
1 1/2-2 cups coconut avocado or vegetable oil for frying

Instructions

Mix together your filling ingredients in a bowl and set aside.
Add your oil to a large Wok or pot and begin heating it over medium heat.
Add all of the dry ingredients to a bowl and whisk them together. (This includes almond flour, xanthan gum, baking powder, paprika, cayenne, pepper and salt).
In another microwavable bowl, add your shredded mozzarella and microwave for 30s at a time, stirring in-between until fully melted. (It took me about 1min total but I have quite a terrible microwave, lol so yours may take less time).
Once the mozzarella is well-melted, add your whisked egg and mix (it's okay if these two don't fully combine).
Add your dry ingredients and mix again until a thick dough starts to form.
Use your hands as the dough comes together to continue mixing the mozzarella with the rest of the ingredients. You'll need to knead the dough for a couple minutes to get it to blend together. If you are still having difficulty blending the mozzarella with the other ingredients, see my tips above to help you out!
Once you can form a pretty even dough ball, transfer it to two large greased pieces of parchment or wax paper.
Roll your dough out to be thin but still sturdy enough that you can easily bend and fold it without breaking it (see photo).
Use a glass, greased with oil and with a large opening to cut circles out of the dough.
Place a spoonful of the cheese filling in the center of the dough and press the edges together as if you were making a pot sticker. Then pinch all the edges inwards as if making a dumpling, to form a circle. Do your best to keep the dough in a ball shape (a small tear won't mess up the frying, just make sure it's not completely falling apart. You can just make these into oval or pot sticker shapes and fry them like that if you find this too difficult). Use the photos for reference!
Repeat this process with the rest of the dough. Continue cutting circles and adding filling. Re-roll any scraps you have to make more circles.
Once you've got all your cheese balls ready, make sure your oil is between 340-370*F (350*F is best!) and fry 3-4 cheese balls at a time, depending on your pot size. (You can also just drop one in to test the oil, it should start sizzling almost immediately. This dough is quite forgiving if you aren't at the perfect fry temperature)
Fry for 1-2min per side or until a dark golden brown colour. Then remove with a slotted spoon and place on a paper towel lined plate. (You may want to try one early on to determine how long to fry them. We liked ours fried to be quite crispy!)
Serve warm with a side of sugar-free ketchup and enjoy your keto three cheese balls!

Notes

Store these in a ziplock in the fridge for up to 2 days, re-heat in the oven at 400*F on an uncreased baking sheet for 10-15min or until crispy and hot again.

OR freeze in a ziplock between layers of parchment or wax paper and re-heat from frozen on an ungreased baking sheet at 400*F for 15-20min or until crispy and hot again.