These Crispy Rosemary Cheese Twists are embarrassingly easy, but people go crazy for them. They are a great appetizer to have on hand for guests and make great snacks for kids. They are jam-packed full of flavor and literally take a handful of ingredients to make. Most importantly they are made with puff pastry. Puff pastry is made of hundreds upon hundreds of thin layers of dough and butter. In the oven, these layers puff up into beautiful puffy crunchy layers of dough. Add some cheese to those layers, and you have got the perfect flakey, cheesy, crunchy snack.
What you will need to make Crispy Rosemary Cheese Twists
Variations
Make these your own, adjust them to whatever flavors you and your family enjoy. We have opted for a blend of three accessible cheeses, and one type of herb. Here are some ideas to get you started:
- Cheeses: You can substitute any cheese you like. Try some spicy Gouda, Pecorino Romano, or if you are feeling fancy try some truffle cheese.
- Herbs: Fresh or dried herbs go great with cheese. Good options are thyme, sage, rosemary. oregano.
- Spices: Go crazy, try some paprika, cayenne, chili powder, za’atar, curry powder. Whatever you like.
How To Make Rosemary Cheese Twists
The Prep:
- Take the puff pastry out of the freezer to thaw. This will take some time, do not force it open it or you will crack the sheets.
- Grate your choice of cheeses.
- Very finely chop your herbs( almost a powder).
- Mix your egg yolk with a tablespoon of water.
- Prepare your working surface with a dusting of flour, and flour your rolling pin.
Once the pastry dough has thawed, preheat your oven to190°C. Blast your favorite music and let’s get started on these cheese twits.
The Process:
Lay down the first sheet of thawed puff pastry, brush it all over with the egg wash.
Next, sprinkle your cheeses. We sprinkled 30 grams of cheddar, 30 grams of gruyere and 7grams of finely grated parmesan cheese. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and your choice of herb (in our case rosemary).
Using the floured rolling pin, gently press down the cheese mixture into the dough to make sure it sticks. It should almost look like it is part of the dough.
Cover with your second piece of thawed puff pastry and brush with the egg wash. Layer it with the same amounts of cheeses. Again roll a dusted rolling pin over the cheese to press it into your dough. Using a pizza cutter or sharp knife, trim along the edge of your puff pastry to remove any extra pieces of dough.
Measure and cut out 2 cm strips of dough (use the photo below for reference). Ours made 14 strips.
Place 7 of your strips on a baking sheet lined with baking paper. If your baking sheet is large you can put more, just make sure to leave about 3-4 cm between each.
Hold both ends of your cheese twist. and twists in opposite directions. If they keep unraveling you can press the ends into the baking paper to help them hold their shape. Place in your fridge for 10 minutes to chill the dough.
Remove your baking sheet from the fridge and proceed to brush the non-cheesy areas with your egg-wash. This will help bake up nice and golden in the oven.
The Baking
Place your twists in the oven and bake for around 16-20 minutes. Or until the twists are browned and bubbly. (Reference overrides time, time is just an indicator).
Resist the temptation to try one, and allow your cheese twists to properly cool. These are best eaten fresh from the oven with-in a couple of hours. We still like them the next day but they are not the same. Use the freezing option below to make sure you always have them on hand.
Can i freeze my cheese twists?
These freeze perfectly. Follow the instructions above but instead of placing them into your fridge to chill, cover your baking sheets loosely with some cling film and allow them to freeze in the fridge for about 4 hours or overnight. Remove and place in a freezer-safe container or freezer storage bag. When ready to eat, bake them frozen at 190°C, you will need to add extra minutes to properly cook through.
Crispy Rosemary Cheese Twists
Ingredients
- 60 grams cheddar freshly (grated on large hole)
- 60 grams gruyere freshly (grated on large hole)
- 14 grams parmesan finely grated
- 1.5 tsp finley chopped rosemary (almost powder)
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 tbsp water
- 2 sheets puff pastry thawed
- salt
- pepper
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 190°C
- Whisk egg yolk with one tablespoon of water. Set aside
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Lightly dust your work surface with flour and flour your rolling pin.
- Lay down the first sheet of thawed puff pastry onto your floured work surface. Using a pastry brush, brush the puff pastry with the eggwash we prepared earlier.
- Sprinkle half of your cheese onto the puff pastry (30 grams of cheddar, 30 grams of gruyere, and 7 grams of finely grated parmesan cheese. Add a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Add on the rosemary.
- Using the floured rolling pin, gently press down the cheese mixture into the dough to make sure it sticks. It should almost look like it is part of the dough.
- Cover it with your second sheet of thawed puff pastry, brush with the eggwash again. Layer it with the same amounts of cheeses as above (but not the salt pepper and herbs). Again roll a flour-dusted rolling pin over the cheese to press it into your dough.
- Using a pizza cutter or sharp knife, trim along the edge of your puff pastry to remove any extra pieces of dough.
- Measure and cut out 2 cm strips of dough (use the photo in our blog for reference). Ours made 14 strips.
- Place 7 of your strips on a baking sheet lined with baking paper. If your baking sheet is large you can put more, just make sure° to leave about 3-4 cm between each.
- Hold both ends of your cheese twist. and twists in opposite directions. If they keep unraveling you can press the ends into the baking paper to help them keep their shape.
- Place in your fridge for 10 minutes to chill the dough.
- Remove from the fridge, and brush the non-cheesy areas with your egg-wash.
- Bake for 16-20 minutes or until the twists are browned and bubbly. Make sure your oven is at the right temperature, so these cook all the way through.
- Remove your cheese twists from the oven and allow to cool. These are best eaten fresh out of the oven or within a couple of hours. If you would like to prep these beforehand check the freezer instructions below.
