cheese straws in a glass

Merry day-before-Christmas-Eve, friends! I’m going to keep this post short in case you are in the throes of last-minute gift shopping, menu planning, working (boo) or, more hopefully, sitting by the fire with your friends and family enjoying copious amounts of nog and good cheer.

If you’re the kind of people who like to snack throughout the holiday (my family are those people), I highly encourage you to add these smoked gouda cheese straws to the spread. They’re ridiculously simple to make, they taste like cheese and a little like bacon (YES) and you may want to just go ahead and quadruple the recipe below because man, they go fast. As in, I brought them to our Bible study Christmas party last week and left with one straw (which I promptly devoured myself, natch).

smoked gouda cheese straws dough on parchment paper

rolling out smoked gouda cheese straw dough on parchment paper

cut dough for cheese straws on parchment paper

Serve these straws on their own, or with a yummy dip on the side. I also thought about dipping them in chocolate for a millisecond — too much? I might still try it. Cheese + chocolate = one very merry Christmas.

smoked gouda cheese straws on a baking sheet and in glass cup

I wish you all glad tidings this Christmas and dreams of sugar plums and cheese straws.

close up cheese straws in glass cup

Print
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smoked gouda cheese straws

Smoked Gouda Cheese Straws

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  • Author: Adapted from Smitten Kitchen
  • Prep Time: 15 mins
  • Cook Time: 15 mins
  • Total Time: 30 mins
  • Yield: 20 to 30 straws 1x
Print Recipe

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 1/2 cups (about 6 oz) shredded smoked Gouda cheese
  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened and cut into quarters
  • 3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
  • 1 tablespoon heavy cream

Instructions

  1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F.
  2. In the bowl of a food processor, pulse together shredded cheese, butter, flour, salt and red pepper flakes until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add cream and process 10 to 20 seconds until a dough ball forms.
  3. Unroll a piece of parchment paper (big enough to fit a baking sheet) on a countertop and lightly dust with flour. Roll out dough to an 8-by-10-inch rectangle about 1/4-inch thick.
  4. Using a sharp knife or pizza cutter, slice dough into thin strips about 1/4-inch wide. Dust off excess flour and carefully transfer dough, on parchment paper, to a baking sheet. Line another baking sheet with parchment paper. Divide strips between baking sheets, setting them about 1/4-inch apart on the sheets.
  5. Bake 15 minutes until straws are slightly puffy and lightly golden on the ends. Transfer baking sheets to cooling racks to cool straws completely.
  6. Serve cheese straws at room temperature.