Trencitas - Bread Plaits with Cheese

On hot summer days in Sydney when the thought of a big meal was too much Mum would make small bites that we could pick at. One snack favourite was always the cheese plaits. The cheese plaits are a slight variation of the Argentinean 'Trencitas' which are actually fried instead of oven baked...and the trencitas mum made had cheese sprinkled in the mixture - which made it awfully yummy! I remember quite vividly helping to grate the cheese whilst mum made the trencitas mixture and I couldn't wait until it was time to make the plaits - it was something I could really help with I had so much practice with my dolls! And of course - I made sure my hair was plaited when I help make them...(!)


Trencitas with Cheese


Ingredients

• 125g butter, melted
• 2 1/4 cups of self raising flour
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 1 tablespoon of castor sugar
• 90g grated tasty cheese
• 1 cup of evaoporated milk

Pre-heat oven to 220 degrees.
Pour melted butter into a square cake tin. Place to the side.
In another bowl combine self raising flour, salt, sugar and cheese. Add evaporated milk and mix together to make a stiff dough. If you find that your dough is too moist or not stiff enough, add a little more of the flour until just right.
Roll out on a lightly floured surface to roughy 1 cm thickness. Cut into slices of 4 (about 10 cm wide).
Take each slice and cut into 3 strips within 1 cm of the end (leave a little at the end to hold the plait together).
Plait the strips.
Dip the plaits on both sides in the melted butter then arrange side by side in the baking tin. Bake the plaits in the pre-heated oven for 15 minutes, until golden brown and cooked through.

You can see this recipe made live on Cocina de Mama's YouTube channel.

Cocinar, comer y ser feliz!
Leticia