Classic Southern Cheese Straws

Southern Cheese Straws are a timeless and highly addictive classic. Crispy and buttery, Southern Cheese Straws are amazing when paired with dry sherry or just by themselves. It's impossible to eat just one!

These homemade cheese straws make great gifts for the upcoming holiday season. In addition, these delicious cheese straws are a southern cocktail party staple and a crowd favorite for special occasions.

Short answer: This classic Southern cheese straws recipe is a crispy, buttery baked cheddar cracker piped from a six-ingredient dough and baked at 350°F for 14 to 16 minutes. It makes about 12 dozen 3-inch straws.

Jump to:

• Quick Look at the Recipe
• Ingredients - Here's What You'll Need to Make These Southern Cheese Straws
• Steps: Here's How to Make the Southern Cheese Straws
• PudgeFactor's Test Kitchen Tips
• In Case You Were Wondering
• Other Delicious Appetizers
• Recipe

Quick Look at the Recipe

• Prep time: 15 minutes
• Cook time: 16 minutes per sheet pan

• Makes: 12 dozen cheese straws, about 6 per serving
• Difficulty level: Easy to moderate - moderate because of the piping
• Make-ahead: Yes. Store baked, fully cooled cheese straws in an airtight container for up to one week.
• Edible gift: Yes. Package in decorative container for a thoughtful gift.

Ingredients - Here's What You'll Need to Make These Southern Cheese Straws

This classic cheese straws recipe uses ingredients you probably already have.

• Unsalted Butter: These cheese straws get their buttery crispiness from unsalted butter.

• Cheese: I like to use finely shredded extra sharp cheddar cheese for the cheese.

• Dry Ingredients: I used all-purpose flour with the addition of baking powder, fine sea salt, and cayenne pepper.

Steps: Here's How to Make the Southern Cheese Straws

With just a few steps, you can make this amazing crunchy snack.

1. Initial prep: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two half-sheet pans with parchment paper and set aside.
2. Cream butter and cheese: Add room-temperature unsalted butter and room-temperature shredded cheddar cheese to a large bowl. Beat on high with an electric mixer for several minutes to cream the butter and incorporate the cheese.

3. Add the seasonings: Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Then add the baking powder, salt, and cayenne pepper, and beat until fully incorporated.

4. Add the flour: Scrape down the sides of the bowl again, and then add the flour. Beat the mixture on medium speed for about 5 minutes, until the cheesy dough is smooth and pipeable.

5. Pipe the straws: Transfer the cheese straw dough to a pastry bag fitted with a 1M star tip and pipe 3-inch-long strips onto the baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

6. Bake: Bake the spicy cheese straws in a preheated 350°F oven for about 15 minutes, until they are golden brown. After removing the cheese straws from the oven, transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.

I ended up with about 12 dozen incredibly delicious Southern Cheese Straws-about 144 three-inch straws. The recipe card's 24 servings work out to approximately six straws per serving.

These are the best cheese straws that I've ever tasted. They were buttery and crispy and totally addictive. The Master Taste totally agreed. Yum!

PudgeFactor's Test Kitchen Tips

• Weigh the butter, cheese, and flour: I've learned over the years that weighing ingredients is key to consistent success. This recipe is no exception. I include butter, cheese, and flour weights in the recipe below. If you don't own a scale, do yourself a favor and get one. They are quite inexpensive.
• Start with room-temperature butter and cheese: This recipe calls for room-temperature butter and room-temperature cheese. Room temperatures can vary widely. For example, I generally keep my house at 73°F in the warmer months and at 68°F in the colder months. You want the dough to have the consistency of a thick buttercream. Therefore, you may need to warm the dough a bit before piping it. I like to do this in the microwave on power level 1 for several minutes. Watch carefully - you don't want to cook the dough; just warm it enough to be able to pipe it easily.

• Halve the recipe if you want fewer: This recipe makes a lot of cheese straws. This isn't a problem in my house because they don't last long. However, you can easily cut the recipe in half as follows: 1 stick unsalted butter, 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese, ½ tablespoon baking powder, ⅜ teaspoon salt, ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper, and 1 cup (5 ounces) all-purpose flour.
• Package them as gifts. Cheese straws make a perfect holiday gift for your family, friends, and coworkers. Package them in clear cellophane bags tied with a decorative ribbon, or in clear plastic cups with dome tops for added protection. (See Tip 5 in the recipe card)

• Convection ovens: The temperature and time listed in the recipe are based on a conventional oven. If you use a convection oven, adjust the temperature and time accordingly.
• What went wrong: If your straws spread too much, the dough was likely too warm. Place the piped straws in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes before baking.

In Case You Were Wondering

Other Delicious Appetizers

Appetizers are one of my favorite things to make. Here are some of my all-time favorites:

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