Old Fashioned Cheese Logs

These retro goodies reconfirm my theory that the more white trash the recipe and the more classic, the more people like them. I have my mom to thank for these. She found them in an old book of hers and brought them out of retirement this past holiday season with great success. What I love about them is that you can make them days ahead and keep them in the fridge. They actually taste better the more they sit, and the garlic mellows to a benign state that even garlic haters will find delicious.

Because they're brimming with all that tanginess from the cheeses and spices, these beg for a glass of wine - red or white - or an ice cold beer. (And sorry I don't have a picture of the finished product. The one I quickly took of them over the holidays, rolled in red chili powder, looked a little offensive...)

Old Fashioned Cheese Logs

Ingredients:
2 pounds shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon Worcheshire
16 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 cups pecan pieces
Chili powder - 3 or 4 tablespoons to roll the logs in, to coat

Assorted crackers to serve with.

Instructions:
Combine cheese, garlic, Worcheshire and cream cheese in a bowl; mix well. Stir in 2 cups pecans. Shape into 4 logs, 1 inch in diameter and 12 inches long. Chop remaining pecans. Roll each log in chili powder. Wrap each log in wax paper and cover with foil. Refrigerate overnight to blend flavors.

Serve with a butter knife, allowing guests to slice into rounds and smear on crackers.

Makes 4 logs.