These are J.T.’s favorite crackers and he eats them every
day as a mid-morning snack. When we
first started the real food challenge, I assumed that crackers and cereal would
be my biggest obstacles to recreate in the kitchen. I was right.
Dozens and dozens of these cheese crackers have been produced in my
kitchen and it took many, many batches before I finally created the perfect
consistency and flavor for J.T. His
favorite store bought crackers are Hot & Spicy Cheez-It’s, so I was attempting
to make something that was similar.
These cheese crackers are very easy to make, but I always have a game
plan when it comes to making my life simple.
There are four ingredients in these cheese crackers and everything
revolves around the cheese. I solely
purchase Cabot Cheese, because our store does not sell Organic Valley cheese
and this is the next best option. Cabot is farmer owned and operated and produces high quality products. About once a month Publix runs an 8 ounce
block of Cabot cheese on sale for $2.50.
This sale normally lasts two weeks and I purchase one or two blocks each
week. The next three ingredients rarely
ever go on sale, so I just bite the bullet and purchase these whenever there’s
room in my budget. Once I have all my
ingredients together, I get to work and double the recipe listed below. This gives me four cracker logs, or enough
for four weeks. Every weekend I defrost
a log, slice, and bake. It literally
takes less than ten minutes. On
Saturday, I wrote about purchasing these containers. The crackers fit perfectly and I will be
ordering another set soon. I divide the
24 crackers into six individual portions, and every morning before work one
gets popped into J.T.’s lunch bag. I
have a confession. I feel as though I
have been holding back some of my most frequently made recipes. This post will begin a mini-series of pantry
staples that I make week in and week out.
Next week’s topic is cereal, so stay tuned!
Ingredients
·
2
cups whole wheat flour, preferably King Arthur
·
1
(8 oz.) block Cabot Vermont sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
·
10
tablespoons cold unsalted butter, diced into cubes
·
1
teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (decrease or omit for less heat)
Directions
1.
Place
the flour, cheese, butter and crushed red pepper flakes into a food
processor. Pulse until the dough comes
together into a ball. Dump the dough
onto a pastry mat or dough board and shape into a round disk. Use a knife to divide the dough in half. Roll each half into a log that is approximately 9 inches long (if freezing for later, 9 inches fits perfectly into a Ziploc
bag).
2.
Slice
each log into 24 cracker rounds. I use a
ramekin to flatten each cracker slightly.
Be sure to lay a piece parchment or saran wrap over the dough before
pressing down with the ramekin. Place the sliced cracker dough onto an ungreased baking sheet.
Bake for exactly 15 minutes at 375 degrees. Remove the baked crackers to a wire rack and
cool completely. Store in an airtight
container for up to one week. Yields 48
crackers.
Note: These crackers
freeze beautifully. Each dough log can
be wrapped in saran wrap and placed in a Ziploc bag. Be sure to defrost the dough overnight in the
refrigerator before baking. I set mine
out of the refrigerator for a few hours before I bake it. The dough is much easier to slice at room
temperature.
