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Vermont Cheese Crackers


Crisp and wonderfully "cheesy," these crackers are delicious with soup, and a great snack all on their own. Read our blog about these crackers, with additional photos, at Bakers' Banter.

Ingredients

Directions

1) Whisk together the flour, cheese powder, yeast, salt, and baking powder. If you're using baker's ammonia in place of baking powder, set it aside.

2) Add the shortening, working it in to make an unevenly crumbly mixture.

3) If you're using baker's ammonia, dissolve it in a tablespoon of the ice water, and sprinkle it over the dry mixture before adding the remaining ice water. Whether you're using baking powder or baker's ammonia, stir and toss in enough of the ice water to make a cohesive (but not sticky) dough.

4) Divide the dough in half, and shape each half into a small rectangular slab.

5) Cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 30 minutes, or up to a couple of hours; don't chill longer than that. Preheat the oven to 400°F.

6) Very lightly flour a piece of parchment, your rolling pin, and the top of the dough. Working with one piece at a time, roll the dough about 1/16" thick, or slightly thicker. If you don't have parchment, roll on a lightly floured work surface or silicone rolling mat. The dough will have ragged, uneven edges; that's OK. Just try to make it as even as possible.

7) If you've used parchment, gently slide the parchment and crackers onto a baking sheet. Cut the dough into 1 1/4" squares; a rolling pizza wheel works well here. Don't separate the squares. If you haven't used parchment, gently fold the rolled dough in half, pick it up, and place it on a lightly greased cookie sheet, THEN cut it.

8) Prick each square with the tines of a fork.

9) Bake the crackers for about 8 minutes, till the ones on the outside are starting to brown around the edges. Remove them from the oven, and transfer the browned crackers to a cooling rack or piece of parchment; they're done. Quickly and carefully pull the remaining crackers apart to separate them. Return to the oven.

10) Bake for an additional 3 minutes or so, or until the remaining crackers are a very light golden brown. You'll need to watch these closely at the end; don't walk away from the oven. They go from golden to dark brown very quickly.

11) Remove them from the oven, and cool right on the pan. When completely cool, store in an airtight container.

Recipe summary

Hands-on time:
20 mins. to 30 mins.
Baking time:
11 mins. to 12 mins.
Total time:
1 hrs 1 mins. to 1 hrs 12 mins.
Yield:
about 100 crackers
Rate recipe
****+
Recipe comments (9) »

Tips from our bakers

  • Italian-Style Flour rolls out very easily; it's a good choice for crackers, where you need to roll the dough thinly. It also makes a lovely, crisp cracker. If you use all-purpose flour, you may need to increase the water by a teaspoon or so; and you may not be able to roll the dough as thinly.
  • This is a great recipe for baker's ammonia, which makes light, ultra-crisp cookies and crackers. Note that using baker's ammonia may shorten the baking time just a tad, so be attentive while the crackers are baking.
  • Can you use freshly grated soft cheese instead of cheese powder? No, not if you want the same crisp result. Can you use freshly grated Parmesan? No, not if you want the same result, but you'll probably get some tasty crackers anyway; give it a try.

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Reviews

Page:   1  
*****

07/02/2009

Laura from Chesapeake, VA

I used this recipe and a cookie cutter to make "goldfish." They were too cute, loved by kids and adults! Served as an accompaniment/garnish with chowder. Fantastic

*****

05/07/2009

Mercedes from MD

Turned out awesome! Just have to make sure you roll it thin enough to get the cracker crisp to them!

*****

04/21/2009

Judith from Troy, MO

Totally yummie. I didn't feel like rolling it out by hand so I used my pasta machine. Works like a charm.

*****

02/07/2009

Annie from

My family loved these crackers. I have two little ones we go though a lot of snacks. I used butter and whole wheat flour and they turned out great. I think next time I will try mixing in some sesame seeds. Thanks for the recipe.

*****

02/03/2009

Karen from Cincinnati, OH

Just made these (snowed in, good baking weather!). Delicious. Addictive. Super easy. I added a very light sprinkling of fine sea salt over the top before tossing them in the oven. I also used a scalloped pastry cutter, which made really cute edges on the crackers. Next time, I'm going to try it with baker's ammonia to see what effect that has (first, I have to buy some!). (I might also try it with some chopped, dried rosemary added to the dough before refrigeration.) I predict yumminess.

*****

01/29/2009

Liz from Mableton,GA.

I do wish that I had check this recipe on line , rather than the recipe on page 2 in the catalogue. I do appreciate the visual illustrations and detailed instructions. I did over browned some of the crackers on the bottom, however my husband and I enjoyed the taste. God bless you, KAF bakers!!!

*****

01/26/2009

from

These were so easy and so delicious! I would cook them longer next time, they came out like a thin biscuit, and not very crackery. They were great in soup and eaten in hand.

*****

01/20/2009

Chad from NC

Needs work. The recipe as printed in the KA catalog goes from almost done to burnt in a very short period of time. The recipe here -- 400° for a slightly longer baking time -- makes more sense, as does removing the outer crackers earlier. The crackers are somewhat bland and would greatly benefit from a dash of hot sauce and/or Worcestershire sauce in the dough and another 1/4 cup of cheese powder. Worth a 2nd try, though.

*****

01/06/2009

June from Arkansas

This weekend I made these crackers using the recipe that was in the KA catalog that recently came in the mail. YUM!!! I had no cheese powder (and was too impatient to wait until I received it in the mail) so I substituted finely grated parmesan cheese in the recipe. The flavor was subtle but yummy. Next time I will use the powdered cheese and butter instead of shortening. I can see all kinds of variations- sesame seeds, poppyseeds, garlic powder... Great recipe!

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