What’s better than plain old cheese straws? Bacon and Cheese Straws, that’s what! These easy peasy puff pastry twists are made with streaky bacon, Dijon mustard and mature cheddar cheese for a delicious variation on classic cheese straws. They make excellent party nibbles or snacks. Adored by adults and kids alike, they are super easy to make and involve only 10 minutes hands on time!!
Well here at Easy Peasy Foodie HQ (AKA my dining room), I am in proper Christmas mode now. Yesterday I cooked, photographed and cleared up an entire Christmas dinner (more about that to be revealed soon) and today I am turning my attention to Christmas nibbles…because there can never be enough nibbly food at Christmas – am I right?
Not that you have to eat these Bacon and Cheese Straws exclusively at Christmas time – they would be perfect at any time of the year. But especially awesome at Christmas.
For me, with so much else going on at Christmas, nibbles need to be EASY!! The idea of spending hours on fancy pants nibbles when I have presents to buy, cards to write and an endless stream of Christmas events to ferry my children to, is beyond crazy.
In fact, if I am honest I often buy nibbles at Christmas time. But there are a few nibbly bits I always love to make…making mince pies is a Christmas tradition in our house – we make these cute little star topped mini mince pies that take just 35 minutes from start to finish. I also like making these gorgeous little turkey, cranberry and feta sausage rolls…which are practically foolproof and full of the flavours of Christmas. I also love to make these easy peasy star biscuits with the kids (who can mostly make them all by themselves these days)…and I ALWAYS make cheese straws, because I love them and because they are just SO EASY!!
But this year I decided I wanted to take my cheese straws up a notch and add some extra yumminess – so I’ve added bacon! Because everything tastes better with bacon IMHO 😀
Adding bacon really doesn’t make these yummy cheese straws any harder to make, and it honestly adds a whole extra layer of deliciousness. But if you prefer to make a veggie version, simply leave the bacon out and you will have some totally delicious vegetarian friendly cheese straws.
In fact, if you are catering for a party, why not make a tray of each? Then everyone’s happy!
Because they are made with shop bought puff pastry, these Bacon and Cheese Straws are an absolute cinch to make – they take just 10 minutes to prep, then into the fridge to harden up for 20 minutes, before baking for 25-30 minutes, meaning you can have a whole tray of them done and dusted in under an hour.
Alternatively, prep these ahead the night before and store them in the fridge until needed. Then all you need to do on the day is put them in the oven. Great for whipping out when your hungry guests arrive, or when you realise your Christmas lunch is going to be a bit later than planned!!
Honestly, you will feel like you are Nigella when you whip these little beauties out of the oven and collect all the oohs and aahs!!
And don’t just save these Bacon and Cheese Straws for Christmas! They make fab party nibbles all year round and a perfect snack to whip up for kids after school too….in fact add a few carrot and cucumber sticks and you pretty much have a meal going on there!
One little note on storage…These are best eaten piping hot straight out of the oven, but if you don’t happen to eat them all in one sitting…make sure you store them in the fridge. With regular cheese straws I just keep them in an airtight tin, but because these ones contain bacon, they need to be kept in the fridge…and used up within 3 days.
But the good news is you can easily reheat them – just pop them in an oven preheated to 200C and heat them up until they are piping hot all the way through (about 10 mins)….and it’s almost like you’ve made brand new ones! 😀
Bacon and Cheese Straws
Ingredients
- Oil for greasing or greaseproof paper
- Plain flour for dusting your worksurface
- 320 g pack ready rolled puff pastry see note
- 75 g mature cheddar cheese
- 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard optional
- 8 rashers (strips) streaky bacon
- 1 egg beaten
Instructions
- Lightly grease a large baking tray with a little oil or line with greaseproof paper.
- Lay out the ready rolled pastry on a floured surface, sprinkle the cheese all over the pastry and fold in half.
- Roll out the pastry to roughly 25 x 40cm (10 x 16 inches). It should be wide enough to place 8 rashers of bacon side-by-side and just a little longer than 1 rasher of bacon in the other direction (see picture above).
- Spread the pastry with the mustard and then lay out the bacon so the bacon is just touching but not overlapping.
- Cut down between the bacon, so you have 8 strips, then twist each strip several times and place on the prepared baking tray.
- Chill the twists for a minimum of 20 minutes in the fridge.
- Just before you plan on cooking the cheese straws, heat your oven to 220C / 200C / gas mark 7 / 425F.
- Remove the cheese straws from the fridge and brush with the beaten egg.
- Cook for 25-30 minutes, or until golden on top and cooked all the way through.
- Eat as soon as they are cool enough to hold.
- Store any uneaten cheese straws in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat for 10 minutes at 220C / 200C / gas mark 7 / 425F or until piping hot all the way through.
Notes
Get More Easy Peasy Christmas Recipes here…
Pin Bacon and Cheese Straws for later
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Honest Mum says
Wow, amazing. Every recipe you make looks so professional and drool-worthy! I predict a book for you x
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thank you so much sweetie – that’s so kind! If my food makes you drool, I know I’m doing my job right! Oh I’d love a book – I have so many ideas for one…or actually a whole series of books, really – haha! One day!! Eb x
Michelle Frank | Flipped-Out Food says
EVERYTHING’s better with bacon, isn’t it?! These look so crispy, flaky, and delicious. I’m definitely keeping these in the holster—not only for Christmas, but for party snacks year-round!
Eb Gargano says
It sure is! Well, there are probably one or two exceptions…but then did you see Jacqui(from Recipes Made Easy)’s dessert the other day? Pannacotta with bacon! (Well OK parma ham, but that’s just really fancy bacon, no?) I would never have thought of pannacotta with bacon…but now I can’t stop thinking about it 😀 Eb x
Jacqui Bellefontaine says
What a great simple and tasty recipe I could just eat one of those. (or maybe two or three!)
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Jacqui…that is rather the trouble with these…I ate FOUR after this photoshoot (admittedly it was my lunch…but still!) Eb x
Monika Dabrowski says
This is my boys’ dream food, bacon is a bit of a treat in my house as I don’t eat it so they only get to eat it if they remind me to buy it (they are very forgetful). It’s the perfect party food idea:) #CookBlogShare
Eb Gargano says
I think this is probably quite a few boys’ dream food…and quite a few girls too! It makes great party food. You can prep them in advance and have them in the fridge all ready to go and then just pop them in the oven when you need them. And even if you don’t eat bacon these are still good – just leave out the bacon and maybe add in a little extra cheese and mustard…or a touch of cayenne pepper or smoked paprika for a little extra flavour! Eb x
Jo / Jo's Kitchen Larder says
Does it get any better than cheese straws for a nibble? It does when you add bacon to the equation 🙂 These are dangerous as I could eat quite a few at one sitting without even realising but hey I think it’s ok in the run up to Christmas? 🙂 x
Eb Gargano says
Haha – my thoughts exactly!! Yes they are very dangerous – I had FOUR after this photo shoot…luckily I only made 8 or I would be giant sized Eb by now!! 😀 Eb x
Angela / Only Crumbs Remain says
Ooh how utterly tempting Flaky, butter pastry, rich tang of mature cheese and the aroma of bacon! Even as a vegetarian the smell of bacon is so tempting! I’ve not tried it, but I guess they’d also work too with a vegetarian ‘bacon’ instead.
Angela x
PS, you’d be more than welcome to link it up with #BakingCrumbs if you like 🙂
Angela x
Eb Gargano says
I know I’ve done my job well if I’m even tempting the vegetarians 😀 I reckon it’s definitely worth a try with a vegetarian bacon or ham substitute…or alternatively maybe adding something like smoked paprika? Oooh I had forgotten about Baking Crumbs…I will certainly do that (give me another nudge if I forget!) I had forgotten all about your linky as I don’t bake very often but…I make an exception at Christmas!! 😀 Eb x
Angela / Only Crumbs Remain says
Ooh a vegetarian ham alternative sounds a great idea too Eb – yum! Thankyou so much for linking up with #BakingCrumbs, Christmas is a great excuse to bake.
Angela x
Eb Gargano says
A pleasure! I do love to bake, I just don’t do it very often. But you are right…Christmas is a great excuse!! Eb x
Corina Blum says
These look just so good! I’d also find it quite hard not to eat a few while taking the pictures. Thanks so much for sharing with #CookOnceEatTwice
Eb Gargano says
Haha – it was a struggle! I did consider going for one of Angela’s trademark ‘nibble’ shots, but resisted…until the last photo was taken – then I ate FOUR!! 😀 Eb x
jenny paulin says
oooh these are a great take on a cheese straw. perfect to serve at ay gathering over Christmas – I would happily eat a few! x
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Jenny – glad you like them! They are perfect for Christmas parties 😀 Eb x
Clare says
Oh so my kinda food – and so easy – we love easy!
Thanks Cx
Eb Gargano says
We do indeed…and if it’s easy peasy – even better! 😉 Eb x
Kate - Gluten Free Alchemist says
Cheese Straws are made for Christmas! Cheese and Bacon Straws? Not sure they will make it to Christmas! Yum xxx
Eb Gargano says
Hahaha – I like your thinking there 😀 You are right, once you’ve started, it’s quite hard not to think ‘I’ll just have one more’…and suddenly there are no more! Eb x
Ronda says
Just a plain country girl here. I’m a lil embarrassed to admit, I had to Google ‘rasher of bacon’ to see exactly what that meant. By looking at your pics, throughout your recipe, it looks like 1 strip of bacon. However, Google defines it as anything from 1 thin strip to 6 thin strips. Just hoping to confirm, for your recipe here, you’re calling a ‘rasher of bacon’, as one thin strip. Correct?
Eb Gargano says
Oh yes – one rasher = one thin strip. In the UK, we always call a strip of bacon a ‘rasher’. I had no idea that not everybody called it that. I will amend the recipe to make it clear. Thanks so much for highlighting this and hope you enjoy the recipe! Eb 🙂
Sandra Cox says
I was wondering about the grease generated by the bacon. Also, could you cook the bacon before putting it on the pastry to make it crispy?
Eb Gargano says
The grease generated by the bacon shouldn’t be a problem in this recipe. I have never tried cooking the bacon first, but it’s certainly worth a go. Let me know how it goes if you do! Eb 🙂
Debbie says
I have never made cheese straws before so I gave it a go, was not disappointed. Delicious. I substituted the mustard for a sprinkle of cayenne pepper. Will definitely make again for Christmas.
Thank you.
Eb Gargano says
Yay! I am so happy to hear that. Thank you for this lovely review and the 5* rating! Eb 🙂
OhWow says
Family loved these, Thumbs Up Yummy!!
Eb Gargano says
Yay! That’s great to hear 😀