Pesto Straws

We have had many experiences with Pesto Straws. Sometimes we burn them, sometimes they stick. But now we got the hang of it!

We got the recipe from H's cook book, 'Cook Book for Girls'.

Homade Pesto:

To start the Pesto, add 2/3 cup of basil to a mixing bowl.

 Fresh basil if possible, but we didn't have any so we used dry basil. It works fine too, fresh basil would just taste better. But, if you DO have fresh basil, chop it up in a food processor.

Then add 1/3 a cup of olive oil.

A 1/3 a cup of parmesan...

And a teaspoon or a clove of garlic.

Add 1/2 a teaspoon of salt and 1/8 a teaspoon pepper.

Whisk it all up...

And you're done! And the pesto in the next pics will look like peppery mud, like it does in the photo above. It only looks like that becuase all pics are taken from an iphone. Please don't be too grossed out by the pesto to not make these. Thank you.

Pesto Straws:

To start these, cut butter down the middle lengthwise. Then cut it to chunks by slicing it across the line.

Then add 1 1/2 cups of flour...

Then squish and squash the mixture with your hand till' it resembles...

Breadcrumbs!

Then add 1/2 cup of cheddar and parmesan cheese.

Mix a egg and egg yolk...

And add that to the bowl along with two tablespoons of mud pesto.

Then mix it up! You should be able to form the dough in a ball like the photo above.

Flour the surface you're using...

Then flatten the dough with a rolling pin. But in our case, we packed our rolling pin, so we used H's arm instead. It worked surprisingly well! After you flatten it, cut a square shape and remove the access bits to use the next batch.

Cut the made square down the middle...

Then slice across.

Line them on a baking sheet...

And sprinkle some cheddar cheese lightly on them, and make sure that big clumps of cheese aren't touching because then the sticks stick together.

Then bake for 13 minutes.

Mmmmm... they're done! They should be light and crispy, and snap in half easily.

The Pesto recipe makes enough extra for dipping! 

See?

Belive me, if you set this on a table surrounded by hungry people, the only evidence of food will be a few scant crumbs.  

They're that good.

So try these and see what you think! They're worth the time!!

Thanks for reading! Daisy Ray

Pesto Straws:

Pesto:

2/3 cup basil
1/3 cup parmesan
1/3 cup olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon garlic

Directions for Pesto:

You really just dump everything in a bowl and whisk! So simple!

Pesto Straws:

1 1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup chilled butter, cut in small cubes
1/2 cup cheedar cheese
1/2 cup parmesean cheese
1 egg, plus one yolk
2 tbsp pesto


Directions for Pesto Straws:

Preheat the oven to 350. Add flour and pinch of salt to a bowl, plus butter.  Stir in 3/4 cup of the cheeses. Squish together flour and butter mixture with you're fingers. Mix egg and egg yolk and add to flour and butter mixture. The mixture should have a consistency where you can roll it in a ball. Flatten dough out on a floured surface and cut out a square shape. Cut the square down the middle and then across the middle to form strips. Put strips on a baking sheet with parchment paper and sprinkle with remaining cheese. Then bake for 12 to 15 minutes.