Cheese Straws
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You'll find this recipe in:
Good Housekeeping Everyday Cook Book
New York, 1903
By: Isabel Gordon Curtis, Associate Editor of Good Housekeeping
Historic Recipe:
Cheese Straws
Roll piecrust dough the same thickness as for pies. Cut in strips from six to ten inches wide and cut the strips into straws or sticks a quarter of an inch in width. Lay upon baking sheets, leaving a space between the straws a third of a width of the straws. Grate rich cheese, season to taste with salt and red pepper and scatter thickly over the straws and the spaces between them. Put in the oven where the greatest heat will be at the top and bake ten or fifteen minutes. Cut the cheese in the center of the spaces between the straws, remove from the baking sheet with a limber knife and pile tastily on a plate. -Emma P. Ewing.
Cheese Straws is an excellent recipe for making a delicious snack from the extra pastry when you’re making a pie. You could also make or buy pastry if you want a larger batch.
I made Short or Flaky Pastry (recipe coming soon to this blog). The recipe name doesn’t lie: it’s a very flaky pastry and is quite tasty when it’s baked with grated cheese on top. I love Cheese Straws, so I made a double batch of Short or Flaky Pastry. I ended up with 85 Cheese Straws and used 2 ¼ cups (260 g) grated cheese.
My recipe:
1) Grate cheese and season with salt and cayenne pepper. For every 1 cup (115 g) of grated cheese, I used ½ tsp salt and 1 tsp cayenne pepper, but you can adjust the amounts to taste.
2) Roll the pastry thin, about the same thickness as when you’re making a pie. Try to roll it into an oblong shape and cut the pastry into a large rectangle. The historic recipe instructs making the Cheese Straws anywhere from 6” - 10” (15-22 cm) long. I went with about 15 cm (6”) and the pastry was easy to work with.
3) Slice the pastry very thinly. The original recipe suggests cutting into strips that are ¼” or ½ cm thick. Line the strips up very closely on a baking sheet.
4) Sprinkle an even layer of the seasoned grated cheese all over the straws. Bake in a 400 F (220 C) oven for 10 – 15 minutes, until golden.
5) Allow to cool on the pan. Scrape the cheese straws off the pan with a lifter and slice the cheese between the straws with a knife to separate.
It’s my anniversary today! Three years ago today, I was furiously completing my first blog post, Cayenne Cheeses, which still is one of my favourite historic recipes. Each year ever since, I’ve made another baked cheesy recipe with cheese, butter, flour, salt and cayenne pepper in the ingredient list.
Have a look below for all the recipes I’ve made in this annual series so far. The recipes have spanned from the 1860s – 1960s and they all have different takes on combining the same ingredients. This year’s Cheese Straw recipe is very delicious and I can see myself making this recipe regularly to use up extra pastry.
If I was giving out prizes for scrumptiousness, Cayenne Cheeses from 2018 is still the clear winner. 2021’s Cheese Straws didn’t quite dethrone my beloved Cayenne Cheeses, but it’s not far behind in second place. 2020’s Cheese Straws sit in the bronze medal position, with Cheese Hooies dead last (although Cheese Hooies wins the prize for best name!).
