Saucy Rossy BBQ
Snacks & Sides

Smoked Ritz & Babybel Bites with Haskap Jelly

Ritz crackers topped with creamy Babybel cheese, smoked at 200°F, then finished with haskap jelly and a drizzle of Stingin' Hot Honey.

Time~30 min Prep10 min YieldMakes about 24 bites CategorySnacks & Sides Watch3:26
Smoked Ritz & Babybel Bites with Haskap Jelly — watch on YouTube

Watch the full cook on YouTube

Method

  1. 1Set the pellet smoker to 200°F with a blend of hickory, oak, maple, and cherry pellets.200°F is deliberately low. You want the cheese to soften and take smoke, not melt and run off the cracker.
  2. 2Top each Ritz cracker with a round of Babybel cheese.Unwrap the Babybel completely, including the thin wax coating. One round per cracker is the right proportion.
  3. 3Smoke the crackers for 30 minutes, until the cheese softens and takes on a rich smoky flavour.Thirty minutes at 200°F softens the cheese and puts real smoke into it. Watch it — if the cheese starts slumping, it is going too far.
  4. 4Finish each bite with a dollop of Tyler's Hot Stuff Haskap Jelly and a drizzle of Stingin' Hot Honey.Jelly and honey go on after the smoke, off the heat, so they stay bright and glossy rather than cooking down.
  5. 5Serve warm as a sweet, smoky, spicy party snack.Serve warm, because that is when the cheese is at its best. They are still good at room temperature but noticeably less so.

Watch it on YouTube

What each ingredient is doing

Babybel
A semi-soft cheese in individual rounds, which is exactly the right size and shape for a cracker. Unwrap the wax completely — all of it, including the thin inner coating.
Ritz crackers
Buttery and salty, and sturdy enough to hold a round of cheese through thirty minutes in a smoker. They soften if they sit too long, so serve promptly.
Haskap jelly
Haskap berries are tart and grow well in Nova Scotia. The jelly's acidity is what stops this bite being flatly sweet.
Hot honey
Sweet heat over smoky cheese. Added off the heat so it stays bright and glossy rather than cooking down and going dull.
A mild pellet blend
Cheese takes smoke fast, so a mixed blend with fruit woods is far easier to get right than a single heavy wood.

Temperature guide

StageTempWhat it means
Smoker temperature200°F / 93°CLow enough that the cheese softens rather than running off.
Time30 minutesSoftened and smoky, not melted.
Watch forSlumping cheeseThat means it is going too far.
ToppingsOff the heatSo the jelly and honey stay bright.
ServeWarmThis is when the cheese is at its best.

Pitmaster tips

  • Keep the smoker at 200°F. Any hotter and the cheese melts and runs off the cracker rather than softening.
  • Unwrap the Babybel completely, including the thin inner wax coating. It is easy to miss.
  • Watch for the cheese slumping. That is the signal it is going too far, and it happens faster than you expect.
  • Use a mild pellet blend. Cheese takes smoke readily and a heavy single wood will make it bitter in thirty minutes.
  • Add the jelly and honey off the heat. Cooked jelly goes dull, while a fresh dollop stays bright and glossy.
  • Serve them warm. They are still good at room temperature but noticeably less so.
  • Assemble them on a tray or in a rack so they can go straight into the smoker and come straight out.
  • Do not make them too far ahead. Ritz soften under warm cheese within about twenty minutes.
  • The jelly's acidity is what keeps this from being flatly sweet. Do not skip it in favour of honey alone.
  • This is the easiest thing on any barbecue table and reliably the first to disappear.

If it goes wrong

The cheese melted off the cracker
The smoker ran too hot. 200°F is the target — much above and Babybel liquefies.
The crackers went soggy
Held too long, or the cheese released moisture. Serve promptly.
It tastes bitter
Too heavy a wood. Cheese takes smoke fast — stick to blends with fruit woods.
There is a waxy texture
The thin inner wax coating was left on. Unwrap it fully.
The jelly went dull
It was added before smoking. Toppings go on off the heat.
It is too sweet
Too much honey relative to jelly. The jelly's tartness is doing the balancing work.

Ways to change it up

Different cheese
Brie rounds, aged cheddar or Gouda all smoke well. Firmer cheeses hold their shape better.
Add prosciutto
A small piece under the cheese. Salt against sweet.
Different jelly
Pepper jelly, red pepper jelly or fig jam all work.
Add a nut
A toasted pecan on top for crunch.
Skip the smoker
Warm them in a 200°F oven with a smoke tube alongside, or just serve them unsmoked with jelly.

What to serve it with

  • Warm, straight from the smoker.
  • As a passed appetizer.
  • On a board with other snacks.
  • With something sparkling.
  • Made in quantity, because they go fast.

Storage & reheating

These are best made and eaten the same day. Assembled, they keep at room temperature for a couple of hours before the crackers soften under the cheese.

If you have leftovers, they keep 2 days refrigerated but the crackers will have gone soft. Reheat briefly in a 250°F oven, which recovers some of the texture but not all of it.

Better to smoke the Babybel rounds on their own and store them refrigerated for up to a week, then assemble on crackers as you want them. Smoked cheese improves with a few days of resting anyway, so this is the better plan in every respect.

FAQ

What temperature should I smoke cheese on crackers at?

200°F. It is a compromise: cool enough that Babybel softens and takes smoke rather than melting and running off the cracker, but warm enough to serve them hot. Above about 220°F the cheese liquefies.

How long do these take?

Thirty minutes at 200°F. Cheese absorbs smoke very quickly through its surface, so this is not a case where longer is better — watch for the cheese starting to slump, which means it has gone as far as it should.

Do I remove all the wax from a Babybel?

Yes, including the thin inner coating that is easy to miss under the red outer wax. Left on, it gives the finished bite a distinctly waxy texture that nothing else in the recipe will hide.

Can I make these ahead?

Not assembled — Ritz crackers soften under warm cheese within about twenty minutes. What works far better is smoking the Babybel rounds on their own, refrigerating them for up to a week, and assembling on crackers when you want them.

Why add the jelly after smoking?

Cooked jelly goes dull and loses its glossy set. Added off the heat right before serving, it stays bright and its tartness is at its sharpest — which is what stops the whole bite reading as flatly sweet.

What wood should I use for cheese?

A mild blend, ideally with fruit woods in it. Cheese takes smoke much faster than meat does, so a single heavy wood like hickory or mesquite can make it unpleasantly bitter within the same thirty minutes.

Know your cook

More information, cause recipe back stories are stupid

No 500-word life story — just the good-to-know stuff on what’s actually in this cook. Here’s the rundown on every real ingredient, health and nutrition wise.

Cheese
Cheese is a good source of protein and calcium and pairs naturally with smoke, but it's also high in saturated fat and sodium — a little delivers big flavour, so treat it as a rich accent.
Honey
Honey is a natural sweetener that adds gloss and flavour; it's still sugar, so it's used sparingly. In raw form it carries trace antioxidants and beneficial compounds.

General nutrition info only, not medical or dietary advice — portions, brands and add-ons change the numbers.

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