Cheese puffs were invented by accident in the 1930s when a man noticed that moistened corn came out of a flaking machine in long clumps. The first cheese puffs were created by adding flavoring to these puffed corn sections. Today, cheese puffs come in a variety of shapes, flavors, and textures, including baked and fried versions.
Cheese puffs are a popular treat made with puffed corn and covered in a coating of powdered aged cheese. They come under many different brand names and come in a variety of styles, including round, corkscrew, freeform, and straight. The most common flavor for beignets is cheddar cheese, but there are other flavors as well to add spice and variety.
Bites of cheese were discovered by accident in the 1930s by a man named Edward Wilson. He was working on a flaking machine at the Flakall Company, producing flaked corn for cattle feed. Workers were pouring moistened corn into the hopper to keep the machine from clogging. Wilson noticed that the moist, ground corn came out in long clumps, cooked by the heat of the running car. He took a few of these puffed corn sections home, added some flavoring, and in doing so, created the first cheese puffs.
In the early 1950s the Adams Corporation manufactured cheese puffs, then called Korn Kurls, for sale to the snack market. Many other companies followed, with varying degrees of success. Companies have experimented with extruding corn through different molds to create snack foods of different shapes and sizes.
The main ingredients in cream puffs are still the same as when they were first created: cornmeal and water. Different sprays are used to add texture and flavor and to hold the coatings. Such sprays include cottonseed oil, soybean oil, and coconut oil. Each batch will normally only have one of these oils sprayed on it.
As soon as the puffs are sprinkled, they are covered in cheese powder, to add the characteristic flavor of the cheese. This flavoring can include cheddar cheese powder, artificial cheese flavor, whey powder, salt and other spices, as well as food coloring to give the beignets their distinctive orange color. Manufacturers looking for ways to increase their sales of this crunchy snack have created many different types of cheese puffs by adding additional flavors and cooking them in a variety of ways.
Cheese puffs can be purchased in a range of flavors beyond the familiar orange cheddar. Choices, which vary by manufacturer, include white cheddar, Asiago peppercorn, hot pepper, jalapeño, picante sauce, chili cheese, and many more. In addition to being made in different shapes and flavors, they’re also sold in baked and fried versions, offering significantly different textures. With so many different choices, it might take a fan of these cheesy snacks a long time to try them all.
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