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Southern Appetizercheese twists

Cheese Twists
(Makes 24-30 pieces)

Cheesy, crunchy delicious little pastry sticks. Fun to make and fun to eat.


1 C flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
pinch of cayenne (or to taste)
4 T butter (softened)
1/2 C cheddar cheese (shredded)
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 T sour cream

Blend all the ingredients together in a food processor. Form into a log, wrap in plastic, chill in the refrigerator for an hour or more.

Heat oven to 425. Roll dough on a floured surface to an 1/8” thickness. Slice into individual strips about 4 ” x 1/2 ” (or a little longer) and twist them gently. Lay them on an ungreased baking sheet and bake for 8 minutes till golden.

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Tips & Glossary

Basic southern cuisine differs from its Cajun, Creole, and Southwestern cousins in its lack of hot spices. As a result, it's rich but mild—the ultimate in comfort food!

Crabmeat: meat from the body, legs or claws of numerous varieties of crab. Most prized is jumbo lump from the hind leg. But for crab cakes and casseroles, use regular lump, as well as finback from the body. Claw meat is brown and stronger flavored, though also good for crab recipes. Buy it fresh if you can.

Greens: a staple in Southern cooking, they're in the cabbage family and include kale, collards, turnip, spinach, and mustard greens. Usually served with black-eyed peas and cornbread to sop up the pot likker.

Grits: another staple of Southern cooking: coarsely ground corn, cooked as porridge. Once cooked, grits are served plain, baked in a casserole, fried or deep-fried as a fritter. (Think polenta.)

Pie Crust: store bought crusts are fine. But for the skilled (or more daring) among you, make your own. Here's our recipe—Noel's Pie Crust.

Yams: a type of sweet potato with an elongated shape and deep orange flesh. A true yam is grown in Africa and Asia is actually quite different from what Americans call yams.