Puff Pastry Cheese Straws are a classic French appetizer and are much easier to make than you’d think. Cheesy and crispy with lots of buttery layers, these cheese straws are completely irresistible!
Table of contents
Why Make This Recipe
- Only 3 Ingredients: These cheese twists have only 3 ingredients, most of which you may well have on hand in your refrigerator or freezer.
- Easy to Make: If you can roll out dough, you can make these cheese straws. Just brush with egg wash and cover with cheese, roll again, then slice, twist, and bake! These can be on your table in under 30 minutes.
- Elegant and Delicious: These parmesan twists add a touch of class to your meal, whether you serve them for an easy happy hour paired with a glass of wine or include them in a full appetizer spread. For more ideas, read on below in Expert Tips.
🥗 Ingredients
- Puff Pastry Dough: Look for all-butter puff pastry dough—it is slightly more delicate to work with than vegetable oil-based puff pastry dough, but so much more delicious! If you’d like to try your hand at making your own puff pastry dough, I highly recommend Cathy Barrow’s Quick Puff Pastry recipe.
- Parmesan Cheese: I always recommend grating your own cheese rather than buying pregrated cheese, and this recipe is no exception. You will always get a better flavor and texture from your cheese if you grate it yourself. If you don’t have parmesan cheese, you can make this recipe with all sorts of other hard cheeses, including cheddar, romano, asiago, gruyère, or manchego cheese.
🥣 Instructions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit/200 degrees Celsius. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Sprinkle flour over a large cutting board. Roll out puff pastry dough into a 10 x 12-inch rectangle. Dough should be ⅛-inch thick.
Make egg wash by whisking together egg, 1 tablespoon of water, and a pinch of salt in a small bowl. Use a pastry brush to brush the egg wash in a thin layer all over the rolled out dough. (I prefer a silicone pastry brush when working with egg wash.) Sprinkle half the dough with half of the shredded cheese.
Fold the uncovered side over the cheese-covered side, and roll out again to 10 x 12. Brush dough again with egg wash. Now, sprinkle with the remaining shredded cheese. Roll your rolling pin gently over the top, pressing in the cheese.
Line up the dough so that the long edge is on the top and bottom (horizontal). To make long breadsticks, cut dough vertically into slices that are close to 1-inch wide. Pick up each strip, hold each end, and twist in opposite directions several times.
To make short breadsticks, cut the dough in half horizontally (so you will have two 5 x 12-inch rectangles). These are the perfect size for this French Jarcuterie recipe!
Place twists on baking sheet, leaving an inch of space between them. (You may need to bake these in two batches if they don’t all fit on your baking sheet.)
Paint the exposed pastry (not covered in cheese) with more egg wash. Bake for 15 minutes, until puffed and golden.
🧐 Recipe FAQs
Yes, you can freeze cheese straws both before you bake them and after. To freeze before baking (recommended), follow the instructions up through making the twists, then lay each twist on a parchment-lined small baking sheet. (They don’t need to be 1-inch apart, but they shouldn’t be touching.)
Move the baking sheet into the freezer and freeze until twists are completely firm. Then, you can move the twists into a freezer-safe ziplock bag and keep frozen for up to 3 months. Bake straight from the freezer—you may need to add a couple of minutes to the baking time. You can also freeze baked cheese straws.
They are at their most crunchy and delicious right after baking, and up to 1-2 hours afterwards. After that, they lose a little crunch. That said, they will keep well at room temperature for a few days (stored in an airtight container), and can be reheated in a 375-degree oven for 3-5 minutes to bring back some of their crunch!
Puff pastry needs to be cooked at a high enough temperature to cause the butter in it to melt, which causes the puff pastry to expand and creates its famous layers.
But baking at too high a temperature will result in the pastry browning before totally cooking through. Baking at 400 degrees F (200 degrees C) will give you the best rise on your pastry without burning it.
👩🍳 Expert Tips
The key to working with puff pastry is making sure that it is at the right temperature. If your dough came in a sheet that is folded in thirds, make sure you wait until the dough is defrosted (but not too soft) to unfold it. Unfolding the dough when it is still quite cold can cause it to break or tear.
Then, don’t wait too long to begin working with your defrosted dough. If it is out too long at room temperature and becomes too soft to work with, just put your dough into the refrigerator to firm it up.
For best results with the cheese straws, take care to not cut them too thin. Very thin strips stretch easily when you twist them, becoming even thinner. When baked, they may brown more than you’d like and won’t have the same fluffy layers as a slightly thicker strip.
As for the length, you can choose whether to make short or long strips, but keep in mind that the longer the strip, the harder it is to handle when you are twisting it. Finally, try using a pizza cutter to cut the puff pastry dough strips—easier than a knife!
Once you have the basics down for making puff pastry cheese straws, you can make lots of delicious variations. Here are a few of my favorite ideas:
- Sprinkle the egg washed dough with dried herbs (basil, oregano, Italian seasoning, or Herbes de Provence)
- Spread a little bit of Dijon mustard over the egg wash, before adding the cheese
- Replace the cheese with seeds: sesame seeds, poppy seeds, or everything bagel seasoning
- Spread dough with olive tapenade or pesto instead of egg wash and cheese
- Add spice like cayenne pepper or smoked paprika or piment d'espelette on top of the cheese before twisting
What to Serve with Cheese Straws
Serve them on their own with a glass of wine or a cocktail like this Hanky Panky Cocktail or this White Wine Sangria with Strawberries. Or, serve them as part of an appetizer spread along with Baked Crab Dip, this Sour Cream and Chive Dip, or these crispy Boudin Balls. You'll find even more ideas in my Top French Appetizers post!
Parmesan twists are also fantastic served with a bowl of soup. Try them with a bowl of my French Lentil Soup, my Vegan Potato Leek Soup, or my Tuscan Tortellini Soup. Delicious!
Other Delicious Appetizers
Looking for more appetizer inspiration? Check out these favorites:
Puff Pastry Magic eBook
20 no-fuss recipes for savory and sweet dishes that will wow your guests!
If you try this Puff Pastry Cheese Straws recipe, I would love to hear from you! Leave a comment below—I read them all, and your feedback is invaluable to me. And please follow along on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook or subscribe to my newsletter. I'd love to inspire you with more delicious, healthy, and seasonal recipes!
📖 Recipe
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Easy Puff Pastry Cheese Straws
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour for rolling out dough
- 1 sheet puff pastry dough thawed (8.8 ounces)
- 1 egg
- 1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese about 3 ounces
- Kosher salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400° Fahrenheit.
- Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Sprinkle flour over a large cutting board.
- Roll out puff pastry dough into a 10 x 12-inch rectangle. Dough should be ⅛-inch thick.
- Make egg wash by whisking together egg, 1 tablespoon of water, and a pinch of salt in a small bowl.
- Use a pastry brush to brush the egg wash in a thin layer all over the rolled out dough.
- Sprinkle half the dough with half of the shredded cheese, then fold the uncovered side over the cheese-covered side.
- Roll out again to 10 x 12.
- Brush dough again with egg wash, and sprinkle with the remaining shredded cheese.
- Then roll your rolling pin gently over the top, pressing in the cheese.
- Line up the dough so that the long edge is on the top and bottom (horizontal). To make long breadsticks, cut dough vertically into slices that are close to 1-inch wide. To make short breadsticks, cut the dough in half horizontally (so you will have two 5 x 12-inch rectangles) before slicing into strips.
- Pick up each strip, hold each end, and twist in opposite directions several times.
- Place twists on baking sheet, leaving an inch of space between them. (You may need to bake these in two batches if they don’t all fit on your baking sheet.)
- Paint any exposed pastry (not covered in cheese) with egg wash.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes, until puffed and golden.
Notes
Nutrition
Instagram Users: Now that you've made this recipe, tag me @vanillabeancuisine or #vanillabeancuisine because I'd love to see your results!
More About Molly
Cooking healthy(ish) meals with seasonal ingredients is my passion. Trained as a French pastry chef, I spent over 10 years as a personal chef. Here you'll find well-tested recipes that you and your family will love!
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