It’s that time of year where I start thinking about snack box fillers for days out, picnics and camping weekends, and one snack type that we all like is a puff pastry cheese stick. Now, you can buy these pretty cheaply, but they’ve been in a box for weeks and have an almost human-lifespan shelf life, in some cases! They are so quick to make, and they are delicious. Kept in an airtight container they also last well – if you hide them away so no one can eat them, that is.
Now, I’d like to be all pious and tell you I made the pastry myself, and for budget reasons, I’d make large batches, but actually when I’m doing quick snacks, bought pastry is perfect. If you buy a roll of pastry, go for the most expensive one you can find. An all-butter pastry is delicious, whereas the cheaper ones with oil can have a bitter after taste.
You can vary and adapt the filling to your heart’s desire. Remember a lot of it will fall out when you’re twisting, so make sure to have a bowl or something you can ‘mess’ into so you can reuse it again.
Tip: It’s also useful to fill and slice the pastry on the tray you’ll put in the oven. It just cuts down on the spillage.
For this recipe I’ve used parmesan and smoked paprika. You can also use a combination of herbs, and a melting cheese. Great flavour combinations are:
- Cheddar and chives
- Parmesan, rosemary & thyme
- Cheddar & Onion Salt
- Parmesan and Smoked Paprika
- 1 Roll Puff Pastry
- 40g Parmesan Cheese
- 2 tsp Smoked Paprika
- Roll out puff pastry
- In the Thermomix® (or using a cheese grater) finely chop the parmesan (speed 10, 30 seconds) and add the seasoning - in this case smoked paprika. Mix speed 5 for a couple of seconds to combine.
- Sprinkle the cheese mixture over one half of the puff pastry, then fold the unsprinkled side over the sprinkled side so that it covers itself completely (like folding a page in half, basically!)
- Use a sharp knife to cut slits through from one side to the other, about 10 -12 all in.
- Take an end in each hand and twist in opposite directions and place on a baking tray.
- Bake at 180C for 20 - 30 mins till it's golden brown and delicious