Southern Cheese Straws

You need something to put out when people come over for a drink. Or when you need something savory in the afternoon when you wish someone was coming over for a drink. You can roll the batch into a couple of logs, freeze and slice and bake off a dozen or so at a time.

Ingredients

• 1 ½ cups flour
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
• ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
• ½ pound sharp orange Cheddar, room temperature
• ½ cup (1 stick) butter, room temperature

• Nutritional Information

  • Nutritional analysis per serving (60 servings)

    40 calories; 2 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 0 grams monounsaturated fat; 0 grams polyunsaturated fat; 2 grams carbohydrates; 0 grams dietary fiber; 0 grams sugars; 1 gram protein; 7 milligrams cholesterol; 63 milligrams sodium

  Note: Nutrient information is not available for all ingredients. Amount is based on available data.
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About five dozen

Preparation

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Grate cheese.
2. In a food processor, pulse dry ingredients until combined, then add cheese and butter. Process until dough becomes smooth and has the texture of Play-Doh. Alternately, make the dough in a stand mixer by creaming cheese and butter until smooth. Then combine dry ingredients in a bowl and combine with butter mixture at low speed until smooth.
3. Shape the dough into a cylinder, wrap with plastic wrap or parchment and allow to rest for 20 minutes. Or store in the refrigerator until ready to bake.
4. Bring dough to room temperature and pack it into a cookie press fitted with a star disk. Pipe long ribbons of dough across the baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone mat, about an inch apart. Then cut into six-inch lengths. Repeat with remaining dough. Dough may also be hand-rolled into long ropes and cut to size, or shaped into a cylinder and sliced into rounds and baked.
5. Bake for about 13 minutes or until the edges just begin to brown. Store between sheets of parchment or waxed paper in an airtight container. Will keep for up to three weeks.

About 1 hour