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Bring the flavours of Mexico to your party or picnic with these easy to make Mexican cheese twists.
As promised, I’m back with part 2 of my challenge from Old El Paso to create a new recipe using one of their Stand ‘N’ Stuff taco kits. As I explained before, I simply couldn’t resist splitting the kit up and creating two completely different Mexican inspired recipes.
Yesterday it was my grown-up dessert of Churro Taco Bowls with Mexican Hot Chocolate and Margarita Ice Creams using the tacos from the kit, and today I’m back with another quick, simple and delicious recipe using the tomato sauce and herb topping mix – Mexican cheese twists.
This one’s much more family friendly too, in fact I can’t seem to stop the boys polishing them all off!
As you can see I’ve once again stepped away from the more traditional Mexican cuisine (apparently I just can’t help myself!).
You see, we always enjoy the Old El Paso meals when all I do is simply whip up the recipe on the back of the box, and my boys tend to make their feelings very clear if I try and mess around with one of their favourites.
To protect myself from the risk of complaints from a 3 and 5 year old I decided it was necessary to make something including all of those flavours that they love but looking quite a bit different. With the weather starting to warm up, I also loved the idea of making something perfect for a picnic or party that could be made in advance to just grab and go when we wanted them.
These Mexican cheese twists are also perfect for dipping (in fact, in my opinion a bit of dipping makes them even better!) and we enjoyed testing them out with a few of the different dips and sauces in the Old El Paso range. We also added the herb topping mix from our kit into the sour cream for a little extra flavour.
These twists are made with a mild tomato sauce as my boys don’t like their food too spicy. If you wanted something a little hotter then I’d suggest finely chopping a few jalapeño peppers and adding them along with the sauce and cheese.
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Mexican Cheese Twists
INGREDIENTS
- 2 x 320g pack ready rolled puff pastry
- 40 g mature cheddar cheese
- 1 pack Mexican tomato sauce from the Stand 'N' Stuff Extra Mild kit - you could also use Old El Paso Mild Salsa instead
INSTRUCTIONS
- Pre-heat your oven to 220ºC/200ºC fan.
- Line a couple of baking sheets with greaseproof paper or a non-stick baking mat.
- Lay out 1 sheet of puff pastry.
- Spread the tomato sauce evenly over the puff pastry.
- Finely grate the cheese (40g) and sprinkle it evenly across the puff pastry.
- Place the 2nd sheet of puff pastry on top and gently press down with a rolling pin (not too hard, just enough to help hold everything together. Don't worry if a little filling squeezes out!).
- Using a sharp knife, carefully slice the pastry into thin strips about 1 cm wide.
- Take one strip and holding one end firmly, carefully twist the other end until it forms a spiral (like in the picture). Place it onto the baking tray and repeat until all of the strips are twisted - make sure you leave about a 2cm gap between the twists as they'll expand during cooking.
- Place into the oven for 10-12 minutes until golden brown and crisp.
- Remove from the oven and leave to cool on the tray of a couple of minutes before moving them to a cooling rack to cool completely.
NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION
Any nutritional information provided is the estimated nutritional information per serving. Please refer to my guide to Charlotte’s Lively Kitchen nutritional information if you would like to learn more about how this is calculated.
Free From/Suitable For…
- Suitable for Vegetarians
- Corn-Free
- Egg-Free
- Nut-Free
- Soy-Free
The ingredients for this recipe are easily available free from all these allergens. However, please ensure you double-check allergen information for all ingredients.
This post is an entry into the Foodies100 Cinco de Mayo recipe challenge sponsored by Old El Paso. The range of Old El Paso products is available in all major supermarkets To find out more visit www.oldelpaso.co.uk.
Kat (The Baking Explorer) says
Wow what neat twists! You’ve really made them all look so perfect! Thanks for linking them up with Treat Petite 🙂
Charlotte Oates says
Thanks Kat, it took a bit of trial and error to get the sizes right. It was tempting to make them too fat because when you cut them they look so thin but then expand a lot in the oven. I had a couple of monster batches (still tasted good though!).
Anca says
They look amazing and they are so easy to make. I have to remember the recipe next time I make snacks for watching movies.
Charlotte Oates says
Thanks Anca, I hope you enjoy them
Hayley @ Snap Happy Bakes says
Ooo I bet these are tasty! Yum! Thanks for sharing #CookBlogShare
Charlotte Oates says
Thanks Hayley. They’ve been really popular in my house over the past few weeks, the boys call them pizza twists and keep asking to have them as snacks. I’ve not really made this sort of thing before and they’ve gone down so well I’m sure I’ll be trying out other new flavours over the summer.
Kirsty Hijacked By Twins says
Oooh these look and sounds so good! We love Mexican food so these are a must try. Thank you for sharing with #CookBlogShare x
Charlotte Oates says
Thanks Kirsty. They’re very mild as the boys don’t like any too spicy but we all really enjoyed them.
Mel says
Brilliant idea! I love a quick puff pastry treat like yours but I generally make mine sweet (hello Nutella!!!). Great idea for the next get together with friends. X
Charlotte Oates says
I’ve not tried Nutella ones, but now I want to!
Angela / Only Crumbs Remain says
These sound so yummy Charlotte, and such a doddle to make. Bread/pastry sticks are always well received by on family on picnics or buffets.
Charlotte Oates says
They’re so simple aren’t they – although they always seem to take a little longer to twist than I think they should! My boys absolutely love them, Daniel’s really enjoyed having them in his packed lunch all week.
Honest Mum says
They look wonderful!
Charlotte Oates says
Thanks Vicki, the whole family has been really enjoying them.
Mandy says
These look fantastic Charlotte – I love how you’ve split the pack up and made it your own! Happy cinco de Mayo!
Charlotte Oates says
Thanks Mandy. I thought it would be fun to do something a little bit different!