Monday, August 20, 2012

Five seed cracker recipe




Are they all they’re “cracked” up to be?

Homemade crackers are easy and pretty impressive…after all how many times have you been served homemade crackers…not many I bet.

Generally, ingredients are minimal, simple and quick to come to together so if you are just beginning to make your way around a kitchen or want an easy recipe to make with the kids this is the way to (google homemade goldfish crackers for kids!).

This recipe is stuffed with nutritional goodness thanks to five varieties of seeds – pumpkin, poppy, sunflower,flax and sesame!

They are great topped with flavoured cream cheese and also go well with bits of fresh bococcini and basil leaves. But really the sky is the limit... of course, they are also good on their own.

Tip: If you don't need to make all the crackers at once, just freeze any unbaked dough. It will last at least a couple of months in the freezer.


adapted from LA Times recipe
Ingredients
¼ c hulled sunflower seeds
¼ c hulled pumpkin seeds, unsalted
¼ c ground flax seeds
¼ c sesame seeds – the tan coloured ones + more for garnishing – about an extra 2 tbsp
¼ c poppy seeds + more for garnishing – about an extra 2 tbsp
2 c whole wheat flour
¾ tsp salt
2 tbsp honey
2-1/2 tbsp vegetable oil
¾ c water

Egg Wash
1 egg
½ c water

What to do
  1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.
  2. Using a coffee grinder or blender, grind the sunflower, pumpkin seeds into a fine powder (but not so much it turns to nut butter).
  3. Using a stand mixer, combine all of the seeds (except for garnish), flour, salt, honey and oil on low speed to combine.
  4. Add the water and mix on low until the dough turns into a firm ball.
  5. Lightly flour your work surface and knead the dough for about 30 seconds to make sure everything is combined. The dough will be tacky but definitely not sticky. If it is, add more flour.
  6. Line three baking sheets with parchment.
  7. Divide the dough into three portions.
  8. Roll out one portion at a time so it is paper thin i.e. less than 1/8 of an inch! The smaller  the cracker, the crispier it will be.
  9. Tip: Keep moving the dough a little as you roll it out. If needed dust work surface with more flour to prevent sticking.
  10. Cut rolled dough into squares or diamonds… or any other shape you want!
  11. Move the cut dough onto the baking sheets.
  12. Tip: these crackers don’t spread so they can be placed very close together.
  13. Repeat with each portion of dough.
  14. Mix the egg with ½ c of water and brush over the tops of dough.
  15. Sprinkle lightly with sesame and poppy seeds.
  16. Bake crackers (you can bake each pan separately if needed) for 10 minutes.
  17. Rotate sheets and bake another 10 minutes.
  18. Rotate again and bake for another 5 to 10 minutes.
  19. The crackers should be golden brown, looking dry and crispy.
  20. Cool the crackers on their pans.
  21. They can be stored at room temperature for a week.

3 comments:

  1. They look amazing! I have seen such crackers only in the shops! I can imagine how lovely and addictive they are!

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  2. Oh WOW! These look so clever. I think I might use this recipe for the "Challenge" sshh...

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  3. these were delicious! Thank you for the terrific recipe!

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