Carolina cheese bits

When I was in high school, one thing we read was “Oedipus Rex.” 

The main message seemed to be that whatever was coming thundering down the road might be going to roll right over helpless you, regardless of any  illusory thoughts about personal choices that you may have had — pretty much an idea that chimes in  pretty well with teenage angst, I now think. Anyway, I  liked it and so, a few years later, I signed up for a class in Greek drama.

The teacher, a true scholar, was also head of the ancient Greek language department, and had translated a lot of the works we read himself. Sometimes he would point out errors made in other translations and sometimes, he said, these wrong choices had perverted the original author’s work — go ahead, roll your eyes to the back of your head. It was interesting, but I wasn’t planning to go on “Jeopardy!” one day and it has all slipped away. I do remember one thing, though, which was his answer to his own question: What is a tragedy?

“Well,” he said, “Joe tells his wife he’s going out to buy a pack of cigarettes and off he goes. Unbeknownst to him, thieves on the third story of a building down the block have been unable to open a safe. ‘I know,’ one said, ‘let’s push it out the window, we can take it home and take our time with it.’ So they did, and when they got down to the sidewalk, they found the safe and Joe under it. They loaded up the safe and tossed Joe into the nearby river, and when he surfaced a few weeks later, the newspapers headlined his tragic end. But what happened to Joe was not a tragedy, our teacher said, because Joe Never Knew What Hit Him.

And so I offer you these simple words: Plan ahead; be prepared. But the holiday juggernaut is about to roll over all of us and, despite what I’ve just said, controlling every event and outcome is unlikely. It doesn’t hurt to have a few things in your back pocket to make some days a bit less frantic, however, and here is one, handy for drop-ins. 

CAROLINA CHEESE BITS

1 cup flour

8 ounces shredded cheddar — I buy a block of Cabot sharp cheddar

1 stick unsalted butter

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper. I use a heaped 1/2 teaspoon. For a double recipe, which is what I always make, I use a heaping teaspoon.

1 cup fairly finely chopped pecans. (See the photo to get an idea of the size.)

Put everything except the pecans into a bowl. Mix together with your washed hand. 

Add the pecans and mix them in. Form the dough into logs; I make them about the size of a 50-cent piece. If the dough is too warm this will be more difficult, so chill it a bit if you need to. 

I find it’s easier to form the rolls using the flat of my hand on wax paper. Wrap each roll in wax paper and refrigerate until ready to bake; a day or two is okay.

Slice the rolls into 1/4-inch, or slightly thicker, coins. Bake on ungreased baking sheets (mine are not nonstick) at 325 to 335 degrees. Use 10 to 15 minutes as a guide — it will depend on your oven, the heaviness of your baking sheets, etc. In my big oven, on a heavy sheet, it takes about 19 minutes. 

Do not brown; your first batch will be instructive. They’re still good if lightly browned, but better if not. Cool on racks. A single recipe makes about 100. A great thing about these is that they can be frozen for months, separated in layers with wax paper in tins. Make them now for the coming winter holidays; you’ll be glad you did.

Pam Osborn keeps her kitchen in Sharon.