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Sweet-and-Spicy Straws

By America's Test Kitchen

Published on October 28, 2011

Yield

Makes 14 straws

Sweet-and-Spicy Straws

Ingredients

1 sheet frozen puff pastry (½ box), thawed on counter for 10 minutes2 teaspoons chili powder ⅛ teaspoon ground cinnamon 1 tablespoon sugar

Before You Begin

Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry, sold in the supermarket freezer case, works well with this recipe. Thaw the puff pastry on the counter as you preheat the oven and measure the spices. This recipe requires parchment paper, available next to the plastic wrap in the market. Completely cooled straws can be stored in an air-tight container at room temperature for up to 3 days--but they won't last that long.

Instructions

  1. Adjust two oven racks to upper-middle and lower-middle positions and heat oven to 425 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. Place puff pastry on sheet of parchment and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon chili powder, 1/16 teaspoon cinnamon, and 1/2 tablespoon sugar. Place another sheet of parchment over spices and, using rolling pin, press spices into dough by gently rolling pin back and forth. Without removing parchment, carefully flip dough over, spice-side down. Remove top layer of parchment and sprinkle pastry with remaining chili powder, cinnamon, and sugar. Cover pastry with parchment and continue to roll out, if necessary, to form 10 1/2-inch square.
  2. Remove top sheet of parchment and, using sharp knife or pizza cutter, cut dough into fourteen 3/4-inch-wide strips. Holding each end, gently twist strips of dough in opposite direction and transfer to parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing strips about 1 inch apart.
  3. Bake immediately, until fully puffed and golden brown, about 10 minutes, reversing positions of baking sheets from top to bottom halfway through baking time. Cool on wire rack for 5 minutes before serving.
Sweet-and-Spicy Straws

Sweet-and-Spicy Straws

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By America's Test Kitchen
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Yield

Makes 14 straws

Ingredients

1 sheet frozen puff pastry (½ box), thawed on counter for 10 minutes
2 teaspoons chili powder
⅛ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon sugar

Ingredients

1 sheet frozen puff pastry (½ box), thawed on counter for 10 minutes
2 teaspoons chili powder
⅛ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon sugar

Ingredients

1 sheet frozen puff pastry (½ box), thawed on counter for 10 minutes
2 teaspoons chili powder
⅛ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon sugar

Why This Recipe Works

Crispy straws at any gourmet store can be pricey. We wanted a recipe for crispy straws that would be simple and easy to make at home. We used store-bought puff pastry dough to create twisty, crispy straws. In this recipe we sprinkled them with cinnamon and chili powder, which turned them into Sweet and Spicy Straws.

Before You Begin

Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry, sold in the supermarket freezer case, works well with this recipe. Thaw the puff pastry on the counter as you preheat the oven and measure the spices. This recipe requires parchment paper, available next to the plastic wrap in the market. Completely cooled straws can be stored in an air-tight container at room temperature for up to 3 days--but they won't last that long.

Instructions

  1. Adjust two oven racks to upper-middle and lower-middle positions and heat oven to 425 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. Place puff pastry on sheet of parchment and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon chili powder, 1/16 teaspoon cinnamon, and 1/2 tablespoon sugar. Place another sheet of parchment over spices and, using rolling pin, press spices into dough by gently rolling pin back and forth. Without removing parchment, carefully flip dough over, spice-side down. Remove top layer of parchment and sprinkle pastry with remaining chili powder, cinnamon, and sugar. Cover pastry with parchment and continue to roll out, if necessary, to form 10 1/2-inch square.
  2. Remove top sheet of parchment and, using sharp knife or pizza cutter, cut dough into fourteen 3/4-inch-wide strips. Holding each end, gently twist strips of dough in opposite direction and transfer to parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing strips about 1 inch apart.
  3. Bake immediately, until fully puffed and golden brown, about 10 minutes, reversing positions of baking sheets from top to bottom halfway through baking time. Cool on wire rack for 5 minutes before serving.

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