Whether your friends are winding down from holiday festivities, just cranking up the party-attending and party-hosting, a gift of cheese straws is sure to please.
If you make long cheese straws (typically made with puff pastry), choose a similar-shaped container. Consider a pretty box that fireplace matches come in. Line it with tissue paper or parchment paper and fill with cheese straws. Tie a ribbon around it and attach a label.
For shorter-shaped cheese pastries, fill a cellophane bag with them, tie with ribbon and add a sprig of holly or rosemary for a seasonal touch.
Any kind of cheese straws can also be packaged in a good-looking box. Decoupage last year's Christmas cards for a collage effect or go with a simple white bakery-style box. Line with pretty tissue paper (waxed tissue papers are available from some gourmet retailers, such as Williams-Sonoma) and pile in a generous pile of cheese straws.
Another gift idea, especially appropriate for a hostess gift, is to accompany a small batch of cheese straws with a gift of wine. After all, cheese and wine go together perfectly. While Christmas is now less than 72 hours away, remember that cheese straws make great little gifts for New Year's, birthday or for no occasion at all. Have you ever known anyone who didn't enjoy them?
They are easy to make, keep well and are practically always welcome for any occasion.
Try these recipes courtesy of Gourmet magazine:
Pepperoni Cheese Straws 2 cups all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 pound extra-sharp Cheddar, grated (about 3 3/4 cups), 1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, cut into bits, 5 to 6 tablespoons ice water, a 2 1/2-ounce package sliced pepperoni, a pinch of cayenne
In a food processor blend the flour, salt, Cheddar, and butter until the mixture resembles meal. With the motor running add 5 tablespoons of the water and blend the mixture, adding more water if necessary, until it just forms a dough. Do not over-blend the dough. Transfer the dough to a sheet of wax paper and halve it.
In the food processor grind fine the pepperoni with the cayenne, add half the dough, reserving the other half, chilled, and blend the mixture until the pepperoni is just distributed throughout the dough. On the sheet of wax paper halve the pepperoni dough and divide 1 of the halves into thirds, reserving the other half, wrapped and chilled. Roll each third into an 8-inch rope. Repeat the rolling procedure with half of the reserved plain cheese dough.
