three-cheese crackers
I’ve been staring at the word “cheese” for the last 10 minutes and it’s starting to look funny.
Does that ever happen to you? You look at a very normal, everyday word like “where” or “hotel” and if you look at it long enough, it starts to look like a different word or like a weird, foreign word. And then you wonder if you’ve been misspelling it all your life, or mispronouncing it (like how Elliott says “roon” instead of “ruin” and totally DENIES it, even though everyone knows he does). And then you realize you just spent a whole paragraph telling the interwebs one of your many quirky quirks.
So anyway — CHEESE. More specifically, homemade cheese crackers. Let’s talk about it.
I intended to make these crackers like a grown-up, fancy-pants version of homemade Cheez-Its with garlic powder and three different kinds of cheese (I almost made it four because I had an extra cup of coffee today and was feeling adventurous, but then I thought, “whoa, Steph. Let’s not get too crazy.”) and whole wheat flour — for the health, you know. But truthfully, they came out just tasting like Cheez-Its. Which isn’t really a problem, anyway, because those things are delicious.
I mean, OK, they taste a little different than the stuff you buy at the store. For one thing, they’re homemade, so you know exactly what’s going into them. For another thing, I did add a sprinkle of sea salt on top and that was a very good idea — a little something extra that the storebought cracker doesn’t have. And finally, their texture is puffier and heartier than their storebought counterparts. All in all, I liked these more than the storebought version very much, and the time it took me to make them was the same amount of time it takes me to get dressed, get in my car and buy the box at the grocery store. Except with these, I didn’t even have to get dressed. WIN.
And in case you’ve read through this entire post now in hopes that I might, at some point, sound a little less like a crazy person, I apologize. I blame the moving boxes scattered all over my apartment right now. And maybe that extra cup of coffee.
Three-Cheese Crackers
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen
Yields: About 40 to 50 crackers
Ingredients:
6 ounces (about 1 1/2 cups) shredded cheese (I used a blend of cheddar, mozzarella and Parmesan)
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
4 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
Sea salt, for sprinkling
Directions:
Combine all ingredients except for sea salt in the bowl of a food processor. Run food processor for about 2 to 4 minutes until a dough forms.
Pat dough into a flat disk, then roll out on a lightly floured baking sheet to 1/8-inch thickness (mine were a little thicker and therefore less crunchy as a result, but still tasty). Pat edges of dough to form a rough square or rectangle. Cover with plastic wrap and chill 30 minutes.
Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Cut dough into squares or shapes (using a cookie cutter). Transfer squares to a parchment paper-lined baking sheet, spacing them about 1/2-inch apart. Use a skewer to poke a couple holes in each cracker. Sprinkle with sea salt. Bake 10 to 12 minutes until just lightly browned on the edges.
Cool crackers completely on baking sheet placed on a cooling rack. Crackers can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to one week.
Yummy! These look like the perfect snack! Love them.
These have got to be the best snack! Way better than processed cheez-its! Yum!
These make me so happy! And good luck with your moving – I know it can be hectic! xoxo
crackers have been on my to do list for a while, these look great!
What is the internet for if not to expose our crazy quirks? My husband has a problem with how I say “tv.” Is that even possible? Apparently I put the emphasis on the wrong syllable. Either way now I’m hungry for crackers, so good work!
I always forget how easy it is to make your own crackers.
I’ll take a couple of boxes of these here crackers..
Hahaha I would love to try these!! I hope I don’t ROON them 😀
I have wanted to try and make crackers. You have made it easy and look great.
My weird word is polk-a-dot…I mean who pokes dots?! Any who…I am obsessed with these crackers!! One handful just won’t do!
Audra — Thanks, dear!
Tieghan — They were WAY more addicting, that’s for sure (not sure if that’s a good thing or not, though :)). Thanks!
Marie — Thanks! These crackers will get me through 🙂
Kelly — They are so easy to make and way more delicious than the stuff you buy at the store; I’m hooked on making my own. Thanks!
Lindsay — Now you have me wondering if I say it correctly, lol! Oh well… yay for crackers! 🙂
Meagan — I know, me too! And then I wonder why I suffered through so many storebought boxes in the meantime. 😉 Thanks, friend!
Erika — I’ll send you some boxes of crackers to go with your moving boxes. It’s the only way we’ll both get through this! 😉
Anna — LOL; not possible 🙂 Thanks, dear!
Peter — It is so easy and they taste so much better; definitely worth a try at least once! Thanks!
Steph — Oh haha, yeah, that’s a tough one! Poke-a-dots… polk-a-dots…? Ugh, I give up. 🙂 Thanks, dear!
Umm. Yum.
I really love this recipe for cheese crackers. good old fashion ones not with ton of different herbs and special salt. I am not sure about polka dot obsession… I have have a slight phobia of them. They remind me little ants>__<
Thanks for bring us great recipes
How cute are these?! Love your recipe!!! 🙂
You KNOW I approve of anything that means NOT having to put on pants.
Also, I totally do that. The word thing. ALL THE TIME. Except I like to think that it’s because I majored in Spanish and therefore am bilingual and therefore am just SO sophisticated that I can’t keep my Spanish and English worlds apart….I’m full of shit.
Yes, that happens all of the time to me with certain words! Roon- haha.
I adore this recipe! I am currently listening to the audiobook, “Sugar, Salt, Fat” and how food corporations put a ridiculous amount of salt in processed food to hook us. So I love that you made them from scratch! They look delicious and perfect with a glass of tea. 😉
Catie — Ha! Agreed. 🙂
Belinda — Thanks, friend! Good old-fashioned ones really are the best. 🙂
Kelly — Thank you! 🙂
Stephie — Oh I know. I figured you’d appreciate that. 🙂 And dude, I took 8 years of Spanish and used to be fluent, too (though I stopped speaking it after high school and now I remember only like “escuela” and “biblioteca”… and I don’t even know if I spelled those right) so maybe that’s why? I dunno.
Sarah — Haha, they are SO oddly good with a glass of green tea. 🙂 Thanks, dear!
I want to eat these at snack time today!
Did you say three-cheese crackers?! I think #yesandamen is appropriate here ;).
I was having trouble with the word “fantastic” the other day…I kept staring at it and wondering what on earth was wrong with me! Glad to hear you go through the same thing too! Also, these sound awesome!
Ashley — I had an extra snack time today just so I could have more of these. 🙂 Thanks, friend!
Laura — I could not agree more. 😉
Katrina — Haha, I’m glad we can talk about this word thing together. 🙂 Thanks, dear!
Love cheese crackers! Wish I were snacking on some right now to get me through the afternoon!
Yes I know exactly what you’re talking about–sometimes words just don’t seem quite right. But the crackers look great, and how fun to make your own homemade Cheez-Its. I bet they taste even better than the store-bought kind.
Oh my goodness, this looks fantastic! I love cheese, this is perfect for me!
Yum! These look delicious! I’ll definitely have to try them soon.
These are such a great way to use up the leftover bits of different cheeses I always seem to have in the fridge, and they’ll be a perfect snack to throw into my kids’ lunchboxes when school starts again!
Jessica — Me too! 🙂
Tiffany — Oh good, I’m glad I’m not the only one 🙂 Thank you, dear!
ATasteOfMadness — Yay for cheese! 🙂
Faygie — That’s exactly why I made them — I had little bags of extra cheese needing to be used. Hope you like them!
These look soooo good! I love cheese (I’m Dutch, so that’s why ;-)) and I love anything that has dough involved. I think I’m making them for a picnic this weekend, they look perfect for that. Thanks for sharing this recipe!
Ellen — Oooh yes, they would be perfect for picnicking! Enjoy! 🙂
The not getting dressed is a total win for me 😉 I need to make these!
Nic — Haha, I love that part, too 🙂 Thanks!
These look so scrumptious. I love a good cheese cracker or cheese straw as my momma calls them. 🙂 Cheese straw. No that I think about it that’s a goofy word. And you are absolutely right, any day you don’t have to get dressed to go out is a huge win.
Maria — Cheese straw? That sounds kind of amazing, actually. And hooray for not having to get dressed! 😉 Thanks, friend!
These are flawless! Such a fun and delicious recipe, Steph!
So I actually had this same conversation with a co-worker the other day about words starting to look funny and he looked at me like I am crazy. He denied that this ever has happened to him, and I think he’s lying. It seems to happen to me on almost a daily basis. I was convinced it might be like a little mini seizure or something…..anyways, the good news is that I am not alone in this and your crackers look delicious.
Georgia — Thank you so much, dear!
Shanon — RIGHT?? I’m so glad I’m not alone in this, either. 🙂 Thanks, friend!
This is so much better than the processed stuff. Thanks for sharing!
Oooh- a fun thing to try at home! My kids devour Cheez-its!
Rayna — Thank you!
Lisa — Um, we totally do, too. 🙂 Good thing these are healthier! Thanks!
I love that Smitten Kitchen recipe! I make them all the time. I definitely agree that these are so much better than store bought. I also love skipping the having-to-get-dressed-do-my-hair-or-even-shower thing to go to the store. I love this cheese and flavor combo.
Stefanie — So good, right?? And the crackers are tasty, too 😉
These are genius! For some reason all I could think is “these would be perfect for a road trip”! Random, right? but it totally works!
Mackenzie — Ooooh, total road trip snack, for sure!
My old roommate used to say “roon” also. Needless to say…she got made fun of for it every once in a while. 😛
Three cheeses! Always better than one. I’d never be able to stop popping these crackers into my mouth.
Joanne — You mean there’s someone else out there who says “roon”? What is the world coming to? 😉
And yes. Three cheeses = always better than one. That’s pretty much my life philosophy. 🙂 Thanks, dear!
You are ruling with this recipe, ruling! Crackers are a favorite snack, I can just eat them forever! Now I will be because this is definitely being made!
Pamela — Thank you! 🙂 Hope you like them!
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