Easy Peasy Cheese Straws – this recipe contains no peas!

WARNING THIS IS A RECIPE FOR SERIOUSLY ADDICTIVE CHEESY NIBBLES

This is a very simple recipe to produce mouth-watering, addictive bar snacks or party nibbles, puff pastry Cheese Straws. Unlike American cheese straws when a flavoured cheese pastry is piped on to baking trays, these straws are made with puff pastry. Puff pastry, as I posted previously, is one of those items where I think the shop bought item is pretty damn good and you are hard pressed to make such a uniform pastry at home. That is what makes this Cheese Straws recipe really easy peasy, they are great for parties or as a garnish for French Onion soup instead of the classic toasted croute, but be warned make a seriously generous amount as you will eat loads of these.

Puff Pastry Cheese Straws     makes 30 to 40

350 gr frozen Puff Pastry

60 gr very finely grated Cheddar Cheese

30 gr very finely grated Parmesan Cheese

Smoked Paprika

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 fresh free-range Egg

30 ml  fresh Milk

Preheat your oven to 375 F / 190 C / Gas mark 5. On a clean floured worktop roll out your pastry into a rectangle about one eighth on an inch thick. Whisk the egg and milk together and brush over half the pastry. Cover with three quarters of the Cheddar and Parmesan and a generous sprinkle of paprika and black pepper. Fold over the other half of the pastry and roll out again until just over half a centimeter of an inch thick.

Using a sharp knife or pastry cutter, cut the pastry into thin strips about the width of a finger. Working quickly place the strips on to a baking tray covered with baking parchment. Then hold a straw at each end gently twist three or four times and replace onto the tray.

Repeat until all the straws are twisted. Brush with the remaining egg wash and carefully cover with remaining grated cheese. Sprinkle with more paprika and a little salt. Place in oven and bake until the straws are puffed up, light golden brown in colour and crispy.

You can vary the recipe by replacing the Cheddar with Gouda or Gruyère and finishing the straws before you bake them with any of the following; freshly cracked black pepper, sesame, poppy and fennel seeds, smoked sea salt ( this is delicious ), freshly chopped thyme or rosemary and finally if you like heat cayenne pepper or chilli pepper flakes.