Havarti Cheese Puff Pastry Sticks

The lovely folks at Arla Dofino contacted me to create a delicious holiday recipe and how could I refuse given its for one of my favorite cheeses, Havarti!

I decided to go with a classic appetizer that’s easy to eat and fun to serve! I tried the Havarti Inferno Cheese with Chipotle and Habanero.  If you follow my posts on Instagram, then you know my love of spice.  This cheese is the perfect balance of creamy and delicious with a kick of heat! Yum!

Puff pastry is easy entertaining and you can have these Havarti Cheese twists ready in no time. In addition to the cheese, I also added my favourite fresh herb, thyme and my current favourite spice, nigella seeds.  Nigella seeds are a mysterious spice with a crunchy texture and with a flavour of toasted onions.  They’re often used in Indian cooking and adorn the tops of flatbreads such as naan. If you cannot find them, you can leave them out and replace with black sesame seeds, but they’re well worth getting and really highlight the flavour profile of these cheeses.

Havarti Cheese Puff Pastry Sticks Recipe
Makes approximately 24 sticks

Ingredients:
2 sheets puff pastry, thawed
300 grams Havarti Cheese (any variety) I used a blend of Creamy and Inferno
6 sprigs fresh thyme
Sea salt
Fresh cracked pepper
Nigella seeds or black sesame seeds
Egg wash (1 beaten egg + 2 tblsp water)

Instructions:

Preheat the oven at 425°F and line 2 baking sheets with parchment or silpat mats.

1. On a dusted surface, roll out 1 sheet of puff pastry at a time and brush with egg wash.

2. Sprinkle the cheese over top evenly and gently

3. Sprinkle the fresh thyme, salt and pepper on top of the cheese.

4. With a sharp knife or kitchen scissors, cut 12 puff pastry strips.

5. Roll each strip gently starting from the top and overlapping to create a spiraled strip. Place on baking sheet and repeat with remaining strips.

6. Once you have all of your twists ready, brush them gently with egg wash and sprinkle the nigella seeds over top. You can add more salt and pepper if you’d like.

7. Bake at 425°F for 15- 20 minutes until golden.

Let cool before serving. Enjoy!