Whether you’re getting ready for New Year’s Eve or bowl games, these cheese straws are super simple and guaranteed to please a crowd.

We bagged these snacks in cellophane for our neighbors and friends, handed them out as host and hostess gifts over the holidays. In the house, we filled silver Revere bowls with them and placed them around our bar and sitting areas during the holiday party. If you’re looking for an easy project to take on while family is in town, this is it!

It’s a simple recipe to master, but it takes two things: a mixer and a cookie press.

I grew up making Spritz cookies with my mom’s and grandmother’s cookie presses and finally snagged one of my own this year. They make the most beautiful cookies that you – literally – press through different metal patterns to create trees, wreaths, stars, and so on – a drizzle of royal icing and sprinkle of nonpareils are optional. Confectioner’s sugar takes the place of granulated sugar in the batter for a light and crisp cookie and almond extract gives it a hint of classic wedding cake. We used this recipe for our cookies.

The best news is that a cookie press is super versatile, so you can use it on…you guessed it: cheese straws!

We worked off of the recipe below from Trisha Yearwood on Food Network. She swears you can use the star shape to press through for straws. We tried this a few times, but I just couldn’t get it to form the way I wanted it to, so I decided to do cheese crackers instead, which were a hit and much easier to package and transport.

It makes a few dozen and your mixer does most of the work. I’m talking ‘mixing the cheese “batter” for about 20-25 minutes almost non-stop until you get the right texture, work’. Pick a few of your favorite patterns (the OXO cookie press that I have comes with several metal discs with patterns), squeeze the batter through, bake, cool, and bag in cellophane bags with a wired ribbon or set them out in dishes for your guests.

Pro tip: if you don’t have a cookie press, you can roll the dough into logs and twist them for cheese straws. You can also roll them into small balls, flatten them, then use the times of a fork to create a pattern on top.

Here’s what you need:

30 oz sharp cheddar cheese, softened (you can buy this pre-packaged or grate a brick or two of fresh cheddar cheese – just make sure it’s sharp cheddar)

1 cup (2 sticks) of butter, softened

4 cups sifted all-purpose flour

2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

1/4 tsp (or more) cayenne pepper

1/4 tsp garlic powder

Cooking spray

How to pull it all together:

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees F and lightly spray cookie sheets with cooking spray. I found that using 2-3 cookie sheets sped up the process. They only take a few minutes to cook, so you can get the next batch ready while the first batch is cooking.

Add the softened cheese and butter into the bowl of your mixer. Beat until the mixture has the consistency of whipped cream, about 15 to 30 minutes. I found mine took about 20-25 minutes.

Sift 3 cups of the flour with the salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper, and garlic powder in a large bowl. Gradually add the seasoned flour to the cheese mixture 1/4 cup at a time, making sure each 1/4 cup has been mixed in before adding the next. Add the remaining 1 cup of unseasoned flour in portions until the dough is somewhat stiff but still soft enough to be pushed through the cookie press. You may not use all of the flour.

If you’re making the straws, add a portion of the dough into the cookie press fitted with the star pattern and press the dough onto a cookie sheet in long strips that run the length of the pan. If you’re making the crackers, press your dough through your desired pattern and squeeze it onto the cookie sheet. Repeat until the pan is full. Bake until straws are golden brown and crisp, about 15-20 minutes.

If you made the straws, cut them with a sharp knife until they are at your desired length. Cool on a cooling rack. For the crackers, simply remove them from the cookie sheet and set on a cooling rack to cool. Enjoy!

Outfit details:

Kate Spade blouse (old; similar here)

Theory shift (similar here)

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