These Pesto Parmesan Pastry Straws make a super easy snack or party appetizer for the festive season!
Christmas quite often means lots of guests and loads more hungry mouths to feed! To make your life a little easier I have a super quick and easy festive snack to share with you that you can whip up when you know you have guests on the way.
A baking tray full of these golden brown cheese twists are super easy to make but will have the whole family thinking you have spent hours slaving away in the kitchen!
Ingredients For Pesto Cheese Straws
Pastry
I use ready made puff pastry rolls for this recipe. To be honest I can’t remember the last time I made my own pastry.
If you enjoy it and have the time then by all means go ahead and make your own.
But if you’re in a rush like me then a ready made sheet of puff pastry is a fantastic option!
I also use these ready rolled pastry sheets for these Turkey, Cranberry & Brie Rolls which is another of our favourite Christmas Recipes!
Pesto
I also used two types of pesto in this recipe – half the straws are made with red pesto and the other half with green basil pesto.
But you can use whatever type of pesto you prefer. If you are making these for adults then I highly recommend chilli pesto – it tastes incredible!
I’ve used shop bought pesto in this recipe, but it is actually really easy to make your own pesto.
I’ve created a recipe for this Spinach Pesto which tastes absolutely incredible as well as one for Wild Garlic Pesto too.
Parmesan Cheese
Any parmesan cheese will work for these and you only need a small amount. I often buy the ready grated packets from the supermarket as they do save me a bit of time and as we make a lot of Pasta Recipes I always find it useful to have in the fridge.
It is slightly more expensive to buy it this way, so a cheaper option would be to buy a block and grate it yourself as and when you need it.
Storage Instructions
These pesto twists are delicious straight from the oven, but they can also be stored for up to two days in a sealed airtight container. Or why not make a big batch and pop a few into lunch boxes during the week?
For the full recipe check out the video or written instructions in the recipe card below (and don’t forget to subscribe to my YouTube Channel to stay up to date on all my Christmas videos!).
And if you try this recipe please do let me know what you think. Or tag me in a picture on Facebook or Instagram . I love seeing all your pictures!
And if you have any other ideas for really easy but impressive festive nibbles to serve guests this Christmas then let me know in the comments below!
Pesto Parmesan Pastry Straws
Prep Time: 5 mins- Cook Time: 10 mins
- Total Time: 15 minutes
Yield: 16 1x
Category: Snacks
Method: Baked
Cuisine: Christmas- Diet: Vegetarian
Print Recipe
Pin RecipeDescription
These Pesto Parmesan Pastry Straws make a super easy snack or party appetizer for the festive season!
Ingredients
- 1 sheet puff pastry
- 2 tbsp red pesto
- 2 tbsp green pesto
- 1 tbsp grated parmesan
- To garnish: 1 tablespoon grated parmesan and ½ tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200c and line two baking trays with parchment paper
- Unroll the pastry and cut it into 4 width ways so that you have 4 equal sized rectangles.
- Spread the green pesto onto one rectangle and the red pesto onto another.
- Grate on about a tablespoon of parmesan.
- Fold the remaining pastry pieces on top and gently press down.
- Cut each of the pieces of pastry into 4 long strips. Cut them in half and then twist and place on the baking tray.
- Bake in the oven for 10 minutes.
- Garnish with more parmesan and chopped parsley
If you liked this recipe you might also like:
Raspberry Jam Straws
Raspberry Jam Puff Pastry Straws! Delicious sweet treats that the kids will love and are so easy to make!
Mona says
My toddler really liked these (and she will not even try everything I offer to her). This was the first time she tasted pesto.
★★★★★
Vicky says
Great news Mona, we have lots of other toddler recipes you may want to try, here are a few links :
https://www.myfussyeater.com/week-lunch-ideas-toddlers/
https://www.myfussyeater.com/how-to-deal-with-toddler-food-refusal/
https://www.myfussyeater.com/25-best-finger-foods-babies-toddlers/
https://www.myfussyeater.com/banana-orange-oat-toddler-bites/
Enjoy!
Beth says
Hello! Just found your website and frantically saving vegetarian recipes to try out, I was wondering if the parmesan used in this was vegetarian friendly? I’ve not been able to find any in my local supermarkets
Fran says
I cannot recommend these enough. They were really eating to make and they were totally delicious!!!
★★★★★
Ellen says
I can’t wait to try these for my book club next week. Thank you for the recipe and video!
Aria says
This pestos looks cute and delicious, I’m going to try this snacks for my kids !!!Thanks for sharing!!
JULia says
can u replace the red pesto for red mirianra sauce?
Ciara Attwell says
Yes you can!
Kim Watson-clarke says
Amazing
★★★★★
Ciara Attwell says
Thank you!
Matilde Barrett says
Can I make, and bake them the day before, and what would be the best way to store them??
Ciara Attwell says
Yes, wrap in parchment paper and put into an air tight tin!
Brenda says
How long will they keep? I want to give them as gifts to co-workers and plan to use lined pastry or candy bags.
Ciara Attwell says
They really should be eaten the same day or max 24 hours as the pastry will start to go soft
Cal says
Have you ever tried freezing them and then thawing them later? I’m wondering how they will hold up.
Patricia whyte says
I freeze my cheese straws Cal , never come out soggy, but haven’t made these twists
Stacey says
These look delicious, Ciara! I can’t wait to make a batch. I’m always looking for new snack ideas for my toddler. She happens to love pesto, so these will be a great addition. Plus they are something my husband and I can enjoy as well! Thanks for the great idea!
Ciara Attwell says
Thanks Stacey, I hope you all enjoy them!
Ulpiano says
They will surely be a hit in parties! They look so fun and delicious.
★★★★★
Ciara Attwell says
Absolutely. And super easy to make too!