Baked

Happy Tuesday! Hope your week is off to a good start. 

I made some straight-up crackers over the weekend, that were quick and easy to make with only a few simple ingredients. Perfect for dipping, with cheese and chutney and, of course, soup. By the way, they cost about 50 cents to make as well. Gotta love that. 

Cheese Crackers - makes about 5 dozen

1 cup all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

1 tablespoon melted butter

6-7 tablespoons water

a little extra melted butter for tops of crackers

a little coarse salt for sprinkling on tops of crackers

Preheat oven to 400f. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

In a large bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder and parmesan cheese. Add the melted butter and combine. Add the water, a tablespoon at a time, and mix well until a smooth dough forms. 

On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to about 1/8" thick, and cut out shapes. I made a few batches, so I make 1.5" round crackers, and some tiny soup crackers. If cutting out square shape crackers, transfer rolled out dough to baking sheet and score with a pastry cutter. If using a round cutter, cut out shapes then transfer to baking sheet. Brush tops with a little melted butter and sprinkle coarse salt over top. You could also sprinkle a little extra parmesan on top - so good. 

Nothing like a quick recipe that's super simple to make. If you give these a whirl, let me know!

Have a great day. 

janis

Baked

Did you have a good weekend? Hope so. Right now, I'm sitting in the wine country region of British Columbia. Such a beautiful (and delicious!) part of the province.

I baked some of these tasty crackers for a bit of a "potluck" picnic, and brought some on our road trip. They are beyond addictive. Please try these ones out, and let me know what you think!

Peppercorn & Parmesan Cornmeal Crackers - makes, well, a lot. I ended up with about 100 mini crackers.

3/4 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup cornmeal
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons packed golden brown sugar
4 teaspoons dried peppercorns (I used a mix), coarsely crushed and divided
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, chopped into small cubes
2/3 cup well shaken buttermilk
1/2 cup finely grated parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon course sea salt
1 large egg, beaten

In a bowl, whisk together the flours, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, brown sugar, 2 teaspoons peppercorns, and table salt. Blend in butter, using a pastry cutter or your fingertips, until mixture resembles coarse meal.  Add buttermilk and stir just until a dough forms. Gently knead dough, about 6 times, on a lightly floured surface. Divide dough in two, flatten slightly, and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill in refrigerator for 10 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350F/180C. Mix coarse sea salt and remaining peppercorns in a small bowl.  Roll out one half of dough, on a floured surface, to about 1/8 inch thick. Cut out whatever shapes you like (I used hearts, stars, and circles about 1" in size), and place on a parchment lined baking sheet. Brush each cracker with egg and sprinkle the salt and peppercorn mix on each. Bake for about 15-20 minutes, until golden brown and crisp. Repeat with remaining dough. Cool completely on a wire rack. Try not to eat them all immediately!

I mentioned that I took some to a picnic, and the following pics are how I "packaged" them....

That's it for now. Have a lovely Monday! 

Back soon!

Janis