Cheddar Cheese Coins
I’m gonna come right out and say it: These are better than Cheez-Its.
I don’t say that lightly. As someone who is married to a Cheez-It hound, I could be murdered for uttering that phrase since, in the eyes of anyone who loves them as much as her, nothing can compare to Cheez-Its. [Not even my love.]
You can substitute whatever cheese you like. Regular cheddar? Sure. Gruyère? Oui. I’ve mixed both of them with Piave and it was amazing. A funky cheese might be weird, but I won’t judge [I will]. If you go rogue and use a soft cheese you may need more flour to tighten it up.
Feel free to omit the cayenne if you can’t handle a tinge of spice [weakling].
Double or triple this batch. They go down fast.
Ingredients
Makes 45 coins
150 g all purpose flour
2 g smoked paprika
.5 g cayenne pepper
2 g kosher salt
100 g butter
15 g thyme, leaves left on stems
200 g Vermont Cheddar cheese, grated
Recipe
Thyme Butter
100 g butter
15 g thyme, leaves left on stems
Add to a small saucepan on medium low heat. Remove from the heat when the butter begins to boil, but before it starts to brown, about 10-15 minutes. Strain through a mesh strainer, discard solids, and reserve thyme butter.
To Complete
150 g all purpose flour
2 g smoked paprika
.5 g cayenne pepper
2 g kosher salt
200 g Vermont Cheddar cheese, grated
Thyme butter, from above
Olive or canola oil, as needed
Heat the oven to 350˚F and set the rack in the middle of the oven.
Spray three 9.5” x 13” baking sheets with oil. Alternatively, put a teaspoon of oil on each sheet pan and wipe with a paper towel.
Mix the flour, paprika, cayenne pepper, and salt in a small bowl. Set aside.
In a large bowl, mix cheese and butter. Add flour mixture and mix to combine. Squeeze dough together into a firm ball. Set the bowl on a scale and tare. Remove 10g of dough, shape into a ball, and place on the sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough. You should have 15 balls on each sheet, arranged in a 3 x 5 pattern.
Bake for 20 minutes or until crisp and golden brown. Rotate each pan 180 degrees after 10 minutes.
Note
This is part of a cookbook proposal that’s out on submission right now. If you’d like to see what a book proposal looks like, click here.
