Cheese Straws - The Bane of my Life.

Your cheese rocks sound brilliant, Whiff - I shall be trying them out soon!

I have posted this recipe before and people liked it . I can't use a rolling pin .

So these are my cheese rocks and there are never any left and very cheesy. Can be frozen . One poster made them and then baked then to reheat so twice baked and still tasted great .

Cheese rocks

200g plain flour
150g mature cheddar or extra mature cheddar grated . (Tasty with either cheese I use mature cheddar. )
150g spread or butter
1 medium egg

Oven 200° baking trays lined with non stick baking paper .

Rub fat into flour add cheese and egg and mix well.

I used a dessertspoon but use what size you want.

Put spoons of mix on tray spacing a little bake 10-15 mins. Until golden brown .
And enjoy 😋

This is how I make my cheese straws. They are always popular, quick to make and freeze well. Rub together 8 oz butter or marg with 1 lb plain flour. Add 1 lb mature grated cheddar cheese & mix together. Add 4 egg yolks & enough water to form a dough to roll out. Cut into straws, place well apart on baking trays & bake in pre-heated oven 190 degrees fan for about 15-20 minutes till lightly brown.

Add some finely chopped onion and herbs to the dumpling mix, place in a well greased dish, glaze with a little milk and bake for approx 30 mins till nice and golden.

Trex - I always used it in pastry and for roasting potatoes but I can no longer find it in any local supermarket

I make these but add a small amount of cayenne pepper but then I do have a tendency to add spice to just about everything.

I agree much better with shortcrust. Puff pastry goes limp very quickly I find. A good whack of Parmesan together with strong cheddar or very mature Gouda and always an egg to make the straws puff up.

I make the pastry, adding a fair amount of parmesan and cheddar before adding the water to bind the pastry together. Then I roll out, more cheese, roll out ,more cheese until I am satisfied with the pastry. I egg the surface, more cheese spread across the top then rolled lightly to make sure it's stuck before cutting into straws. Whatever method you decide on, hope you get a good result.

I make similar to the Moreish ones, but I add a rasher of flattened streaky bacon to each one and twist. Last time I used some Pecorino cheese, brought by my neighbour from Sardinia, it was lovely and strong.

Why on earth if you have not been able to make these cheese straws to your satisfaction for 25 years, have you not long since told the family that someone else will need to make the dratted things?

Go out and buy the cheapest packets you can find this year!

Thank you Madgran77. I have printed out your recipe and will definitely be trying.

Here's a link to Witzend's Moreish Cheese Straws. Funnily enough, I was looking at it earlier today!

www.gransnet.com/forums/food/1319038-Exceedingly-moreish-cheese-straws?msgid=30929962

I make mine with homemade shortcrust pastry with additions.
12 ozs plain flour
2 eggs whisked
7 ozs Trex.
8 ozs strong cheddar grated
1.5 teaspoons Coleman's mustard powder
Salt
2ozs grated cheddar for topping

Rub fat into flour to crumb texture.
Add mustard and grated cheddar plus salt. Add egg a bit at a time to mix to a dough (add a splash of cold
water if not enough liquid from egg)
Kneadblightly and wrap in foil and refrigerate 1 hour. Roll out to about 1/2 inch thick and cut out straws. Keep rolling and cutting - should make about 40 depending on size. I tend to make them 4 inches long. Put on lined baking tins. Brush each straw with milk. Top with a few strands grated cheese. Bake at 180 C (170 C fan oven) @ 20 -25 minutes
until golden.

Hope you enjoy them

M&S make tasty cheese straws, extra nice if warmed a little.

BlueBelle

Unless you buy expensive cheese most of it is pretty tasteless

I agree though what I'd like to know is how do they make cheap cheese so tasteless? Real question.

Thank you. I will look up your recipe.

Unless you buy expensive cheese most of it is pretty tasteless

If you search Exceedingly Moreish cheese straws, OP, my recipe from last year will come up.

Last year I posted my recipe for cheese straws - very easy, very cheesy and moreish! Should still be there, a few pages down I expect.

Since having Covid I can’t taste cheese, it sounds as though everyone loves them, so maybe it’s your taste buds?
Some people sprinkle paprika on the cheese straws as well, adds an extra taste. I’m going to try it this year.

If you get asked every year, perhaps they taste fine to everyone else?!