Cheese sticks

These cheese sticks are irresistible. Their salty taste is welcome on the table with a bowl of soup, with a glas of beer or inbetween two spoons of sweet dessert. Recently I hosted a ladies' party with lots of sweet treats and I was looking for something which will act as the coffee beans in the perfume shops, something which cleans the previous tastes and gives vent to another ones. I made these sticks. 

One portion at first. 

Second portion after I ate the whole first batch still hot. 

Believe it or not, these sticks became the stars of the party. 

The recipe is from one of my very favorite blogs - Alexandra cooks. 

Usually the first time I prepare somebody else's recipe, I follow the amounts of ingredients strictly and next time I adjust them to my taste. This time there is no need of such adjustments - these sticks are perfect, so I recommend you to follow the exact amounts of the ingredients, as follows:

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups Cheddar cheese, grated fine
• 4 Tbsp (50 g) butter, cut into small pieces
• 3/4 cup flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes (sweet or hot, according to your taste)
• 1 Tbsp heavy cream

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 180° C (350°F). Line a baking tray with a parchment paper. In a large bowl put the grated Cheddar cheese, the flour, butter, salt and red pepper flakes. Mix well with your hands until the dough gets smooth and all the butter is incorporated into the mixture. Add heavy cream and knead until the mixture gets smooth and easy to handle. Sprinkle some flour onto your working surface and roll the dough into 1/8 inch thick rectangle. Cut in long sticks (about 8 inch) which are not more than 1/3 inch wide (they will puff slightly while baking). 

Put the baking tray on medium position and bake until the ends of the sticks get slightly brown (about 15 minutes). Remove from oven and let cool at room temperature.