These wafers are also known as Cheddar Cheese Shortbread. They are great for parties and make excellent gifts.
Ingredients
1 cup flour
1 stick butter (8 Tbsp.)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
1/4 to 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
5 oz. sharp cheddar cheese, grated (about 1 1/2 cups)—sharp white cheddar works great too!
1/2 cup finely chopped pecans (optional—if you cannot eat nuts or just don’t like them, you can leave the pecans out but increase the cheddar to 6 oz.)
1 Tbsp. fresh rosemary, chopped (optional, but really good!)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment.
- Beat butter and grated cheese in a mixer until the butter and cheddar adhere together. You will need to stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spoon or spatula and then mix more to make sure that the butter and cheddar are evenly distributed in the mixture.
- Add the flour, rosemary, salt, black pepper, and cayenne. Beat on low until incorporated.
- Add the pecans and mix on low until evenly distributed.
- Form the dough into two logs about 1 inch to 1 1/4 inches in diameter. Wrap in parchment and plastic wrap. Refrigerate until ready to bake.
- These cheddar logs can be kept in the refrigerator for 3 days or frozen. If frozen, thaw the logs in the refrigerator overnight or on the counter for about an hour before slicing and baking.
- When you are ready to bake the wafers, slice the logs into 1/4 inch thick rounds and place them on the parchment-lined baking sheet. They will spread slightly so leave about an inch between wafers.
- Bake about 15-22 minutes until lightly browned on the edges.
- Remove them from the baking sheet and let them cool on a wire rack. These are best served at room temperature.
Note: You can decrease or increase the amount of cayenne pepper depending on how spicy you like your wafers. 1/4 tsp. is enough to give them a little kick but not too much for most people. However, some people cannot handle much spice at all, so you may want to experiment a little. Let me know what you decide. Also, you can freeze the logs and then thaw, slice, and bake them later.
© 2014 FoodieOasis
