Bacon Cheddar Horseradish Schmear

October 8, 2018 by Nicole Collins

I have a really serious question for you guys today.

Ok, here it goes.

When you guys encounter a word that you don't know, whether it's don't know how to say it, spell it, or what it means; do you just smile and nod? Or, do you look up the word and teach yourself something new?

What! That's a real question! Inquiring minds want to know!!

I'm asking for a reason. When I was at Renn fest two weekends ago, my friend, Alison, and I encountered a word we didn't know. We were at this photo op where you stuck your head through the guillotine and put a sign around your neck with an adjective that described your crime. The word we saw was “lech”, and neither of us had ever heard of that word before. So, I broke out my phone and entered it in my app.

Some people chuckle at me when I tell them I have that app on my phone, but I use it ALL of the time. If I don't know how I'm supposed to pronounce something, I'll let the dictionary man tell me. If I'm not quite positive how to spell something, I confirm it with the app. And, if I don't know what a word means, I look it up.

Sometimes, I still don't understand what the word means, but at least I tried.

I hate it, though, when the dictionary uses the word to define the word. If I new what the word meant, I wouldn't be searching, dictionary! Such was the case with the word “lech”. It was defined by the word “letch”. Thanks...

P.S. I did click around to find out what the word actually meant, and it's not family friendly. So if you're interested in knowing, download the app. #cliffhanger

Sometimes, I look up words that I do know out of sheer curiosity to see what the dictionary has to say about them. I did that with the word “schmear” today. I really wanted to know if it was a real, dictionary official word or if it was slang.

Well, guess what I found out. Not only is it a real word that describes a delicious edible spread, like we know it. But, it also means “to bribe”. Who knew?

Today's recipe really could be used as a bribe, because it's just that fantastic. Today, we're making Bacon Cheddar Horseradish Schmear!

This is another one of those recipes that's minimal on ingredients (only 4) and zero effort. But, the results are out of this world!

All we need to do is take some whipped cream cheese, shredded sharp cheddar cheese, prepared horseradish, and crispy cooked bacon; then run it through the food processor. That's it!

You guys know how I feel about whipped cream cheese. I like to use it in cream cheese mixes, because I don't have to wait for it to soften before I can use it. I usually give you the option to swap out regular softened cream cheese, but I'd really recommend sticking with the whipped cream cheese on this one. Though we're adding some extra ingredients, the whipped cream cheese stays easily spreadable after refrigeration (not quite the same as it's pre-refrigerated texture but still fairly soft). We don't want to have to add other softening ingredients to our schmear, because that will just muddy up the flavors. So, stick with whipped on this one.

Also, I highly recommend shredding your own sharp cheddar. Pre-bagged mixes have extra preservatives in them which prevent the cheese from clumping together in the bag, but we want our cheese in au natural form so it'll break down easily in the food processor.

Once the schmear is ready to eat, there's so much you can do with it! It's ideal when spread on a nice, jumbo bagel. But, you can also use it as a dip for potato chips or as a spread for sandwiches. It's totally versatile, and totally delicious! It's cheesy, and creamy, and salty, and then the subtle bite from the horseradish hits you in the end. Mmmmm...I love this spread so much!

Ok guys, now that I've schmeared you with schmear and utilized both definitions of the word in one sentence, it's time to bid you farewell for today.

Ok, I didn't really schmear you, but that's not the point. Or maybe I could schmear you by saying if you keep coming back I'll give you more schmear recipes. Ahhh...and, now I'm confused.

Just enjoy, and let's eat!

Bacon Cheddar Horseradish Schmear

Serves: about 1 ½ cups Print


  • 8 oz whipped cream cheese

  • 1 cup (4 oz) sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

  • 1 tbsp prepared horseradish

  • 3 slices bacon, cooked crispy and crumbled


  1. In the bowl of a food processor, combine cream cheese, cheddar cheese, and horseradish. Process until combined and smooth. Add bacon, and process just until mixed in. Store in the fridge for up to a week.

Recipe notes:

*I usually choose whipped cream cheese, so I don't have to wait for it to soften. But for this schmear, there's a bigger purpose. Your schmear will stay soft and spreadable without having to add lots of extra ingredients thanks to the whipped cream cheese, so I wouldn't sub out regular softened cream cheese for this one.

*At the store, you'll see prepared horseradish and horseradish sauce. Make sure you get prepared horseradish for this recipe.

*I'd recommend shredding your own cheddar for this recipe. Store bought shredded cheese has extra preservatives in it to prevent the cheese from clumping together in the bag. We don't want that. We want our cheese to break down in our schmear. So, shred your own.

*This schmear is great on bagels, as a dip for chips and pretzels, or as a spread for sammies. YUM!

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