I hate buying stuff that has more mystery ingredients than I can count (or any at all), but I am a slave to some products like Cheez-it's. I had never thought to make my own until a pal suggested it, then I knew what had to be done (thanks, Jessica!).
You will not regret this - it doesn't take long and tastes just like a Cheez-it without all the chemical mystery icky stuff. These can be arguably cheaper than Cheez-it's, as well. The recipe is SO easy, I'm actually typing this up from memory! And I only dirtied a pan, bowl, rolling pin, and paddle. Now you're out of excuses.
I got this recipe from In Katrina's Kitchen and adapted it just slightly. Here's how I did it:
What I used:
8 oz. block of cheddar shredded (preferably sharp - but you could have fun with this... pepper jack mix??)
4 TB of unsalted butter at room temp
1/2 tsp. salt (garlic or seasoning salt even? yum)
1 Cup flour
1-2 TB cold water
Coarse salt for sprinkling afterwards
How I did it:
Throw your cheese, butter, and salt into a stand mixer and use the paddle to mix up those ingredients. Add flour slowly. Once flour is fully mixed in, start to add little bits of water slowly - JUST enough to get the dough to stick together without making the dough wet. I only needed about 1 1/4 TB.
Divided into two halves, make into balls, then squish them down into fat circular disks. Wrap 'em up in wax paper and chill in the freezer until they're more cold and solid - about 20 minutes.
Roll out each disk with a rolling pin to about 1/8 inch thick or less on wax/parchment paper or a silicone mat. I used a pizza cutter to cut out my crackers in the irregular shapes you see above. Poke little holes in the middle of each one with a toothpick. Transfer to an UNGREASED cookie sheet. If the dough ever becomes too difficult, put it back into the freezer for a few.
Bake @ 375 for 10-15 minutes and watch them closely. They'll be puffy with some light golden browning around the edges.These must reach the point of crunchy crispy, but will very quickly burn after that point.
This recipe will make about 7 dozen.
You will not regret this - it doesn't take long and tastes just like a Cheez-it without all the chemical mystery icky stuff. These can be arguably cheaper than Cheez-it's, as well. The recipe is SO easy, I'm actually typing this up from memory! And I only dirtied a pan, bowl, rolling pin, and paddle. Now you're out of excuses.
I got this recipe from In Katrina's Kitchen and adapted it just slightly. Here's how I did it:
What I used:
8 oz. block of cheddar shredded (preferably sharp - but you could have fun with this... pepper jack mix??)
4 TB of unsalted butter at room temp
1/2 tsp. salt (garlic or seasoning salt even? yum)
1 Cup flour
1-2 TB cold water
Coarse salt for sprinkling afterwards
How I did it:
Throw your cheese, butter, and salt into a stand mixer and use the paddle to mix up those ingredients. Add flour slowly. Once flour is fully mixed in, start to add little bits of water slowly - JUST enough to get the dough to stick together without making the dough wet. I only needed about 1 1/4 TB.
Divided into two halves, make into balls, then squish them down into fat circular disks. Wrap 'em up in wax paper and chill in the freezer until they're more cold and solid - about 20 minutes.
Roll out each disk with a rolling pin to about 1/8 inch thick or less on wax/parchment paper or a silicone mat. I used a pizza cutter to cut out my crackers in the irregular shapes you see above. Poke little holes in the middle of each one with a toothpick. Transfer to an UNGREASED cookie sheet. If the dough ever becomes too difficult, put it back into the freezer for a few.
Bake @ 375 for 10-15 minutes and watch them closely. They'll be puffy with some light golden browning around the edges.These must reach the point of crunchy crispy, but will very quickly burn after that point.
This recipe will make about 7 dozen.
© 2011 Price Snobs