Flaky Cheese Twists

Looking for an easy but elegant appetizer or bread?  These are it!  You are going to be amazed at how easy they are to make.  I've made traditional puff pastry and while I myself don't find it difficult, it can be time consuming.  The puff pastry for this recipe is  far from time consuming which is why it is called Fast and Easy Puff Pastry.  

This recipe has been featured on the King Arthur Flour web site during the holiday season.  I've been eyeing it, but just didn't get to it until after the holidays.  But this would be a beautiful accompaniment to your homemade Valentine's Dinner.  

First of all, you are going to make the puff pastry. Here's the recipe:

King Arthur Flour's Fast and Easy Puff Pastry

Ingredients:

 ·       2 cups (8 1/2 oz.) all-purpose flour

·       1/2 tsp. salt

·       1/2 tsp. baking powder

·       1 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into pats

·       1/2-3/4 cup (4-6 oz.) sour cream

Directions:

  Whisk together the flour, salt and baking powder.

    Add the butter, working it in to make a coarse/crumbly mixture.  Leave most of the butter in large, pea-sized pieces.

    Stir in the sour cream; the dough won't be cohesive.  Turn it out onto a floured work surface, and bring it together with a few quick kneads.

    Pat the dough into a rough log, and roll it into an 8x10" rectangle. 

    Dust both sides of the dough with flour, and starting with a shorter end, fold it in three like a business letter.

    Flip the dough over, give it a 90º turn on your work surface, and roll it into an 8x10" rectangle.  Fold it in three again. 

    Wrap it in plastic wrap and chill the dough for at least 30 minute before using. 

    Freeze the dough for prolonged storage, up to 2 months.  To use, thaw in the refrigerator overnight.

    The original recipe calls for 1/2 cup sour cream.  From the reviews I read, some people found it wasn't enough.  It's pretty dry here in Las Vegas, so I did end up adding more.  I would start with the smaller amount and work up to it. 

    I did use a technique I learned from a baking demo instead of kneading the dough.  It involves less direct handling which prevents the warmth of your hands from over-softening the butter which can lessen the flakiness of the dough. 

I now use this technique for all my pie dough and scone recipes or pretty much any dough that you want maximum flakiness.  Here it is:  Dump the dough onto a nonstick rolling mat.  You'll want a good sized one.  Take one side and fold over part of the dough onto itself.  Do this with each side of the mat.  If too dry, add more sour cream to the maximum amount.  After folding over all four sides and the dough is still too crumbly, take a spray bottle and finely spray some water on the dry and crumbly parts and fold over all four sides again.  Now proceed with the rest of the directions.

Now that you have allowed the puff pastry to rest, you are ready to make the twists.  Here is the recipe:  

King Arthur Flour's Flaky Cheese Twists

Ingredients:

·       Fast and Easy Puff Pastry, chilled and ready to roll

·       3/4 (2 5/8 oz.) cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

·       1 tsp. paprika, for color

·       1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper, optional

·       1 large egg beaten with 1 tbsp. water, for glaze

·       sea salt

Directions:

    Preheat the oven to 400°. Ready a baking sheet by lining with parchment, if you have it; otherwise, just get out a baking sheet, no need to grease it.

    Place the pastry on a well-floured work surface, and roll it into a 12x24" rectangle, about 1/8" thick.

    Brush some of the beaten egg/water over the dough, saving the remainder for later.

    If you're using the paprika and/or cayenne, mix with the grated cheese. Sprinkle the cheese over half the pastry (12x12" piece of pastry).

    Fold the dough without filling atop the piece with filling, to make a 12" square.

Gently roll till the two halves stick together; you'll now have a rectangle about 12x13".

    Cut the rectangle in half lengthwise to make two rectangles, each 6x13".

    Cut each rectangle crosswise into 3/4"-wide strips; you'll cut about 17 strips from each piece of dough, about 34 strips total.

     Pick up a dough strip and twist each end in opposite directions until the dough is a spiraled cylinder. Place it on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough strips, leaving about 3/4" between them.

    Brush with the remaining egg wash. Sprinkle very lightly with salt, if desired.

    Bake the twists for 12-15 minutes, until they're golden brown. Remove them from the oven, and cool slightly on a rack before serving.

Servings:  30-34 twists

If you decide to bake all of the twists, you are going to need two baking sheets.  Remember, it's going to make 30-34 twists, so if you are just making them for a few people, freeze half of them.  I wished I did.  To freeze them, lay them on the sheet but just don't worry as much about spacing.  Place in freezer (no need to cover them) and set a timer for 1 hour.  Once time is up, place them in a freezer bag, label it and date it.  When you are ready to use, take out of freezer just before baking.  No need to defrost and baking time may be a minute or two longer.  They should keep 2-3 months depending on your freezer.

The paprika really gives them a beautiful color and the cayenne gives it just a slight zip.  You barely know it's there unless you are extra sensitive.  I like to use sea salt for the final sprinkling because it has a delicate flavor which works out if you have sprinkled a little too much.  

When you are brushing the twists with the egg wash, don't worry about covering every bit of the surface.  You will just end up unraveling them.  Also, when you are twisting, don't worry about it being perfect.  As you see from the pic before baking, mine are kind of misshapen but they bake up beautifully.  

I really hope you try these.  They are so easy and so beautiful.  Everyone will think you are a pro!  Enjoy!