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A pile of cheese crackers on an old metal grater.
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4.84 / 6 votes

Cheese Crackers

Cheese crackers—just like Cheez-It crackers—that are relatively healthy and homemade with real ingredients that don't include artificial colors, preservatives, hidden sugars, or multi-syllabic factory-made flavor enhancers.
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time10 minutes
Total Time25 minutes
Course: Appetizers
Cuisine: American
Servings: 70 crackers
Calories: 14

Ingredients

  • 4 ounces grated sharp Cheddar cheese
  • 1/2 cup white whole-wheat flour or whole-grain spelt flour, plus more for the work surface
  • 1/4 cup all-purpose or white spelt flour
  • 2 tablespoons (1 oz) unsalted butter, cold
  • 2 tablespoons milk, preferably whole milk, plus more for brushing
  • 1/8 teaspoon onion powder, (optional)
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
US - Metric

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F (176°C). Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
  • Combine the cheese, wheat or whole-grain spelt flour, all-purpose or white spelt flour, butter, milk, onion powder, if using, and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the dough blade. Pulse to form a ball, 1 to 2 minutes. If the dough appears oily from the cheese, wrap it in plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes.
  • Turn the dough out onto a well-floured surface and roll it to 1/8 to 1/16-inch thickness. Lightly brush the dough with the milk. Using a pastry wheel or knife, cut the dough into 1-by-1-inch squares. Prick the center of each cracker with a skewer. Place the crackers on the prepared baking sheets, leaving at least a 1/2 inch between crackers.
  • Bake the crackers, rotating the baking sheet halfway through baking, just until the crackers are slightly brown at the edges, about 10 minutes.
  • The crackers will crisp up as they cool, so be careful not to overbake them, although if you like your crackers extra crunchy, leave them in the oven for 11 to 12 minutes. Gently move the crackers to a wire rack and cool completely.

Notes

Cheese Cracker variations

Non-Cheddar Cheese Crackers
You can go a little crazy and use a stronger cheese, like Camembert, as the author suggests. Although we also think the recipe would work well with all manner of other cheeses, including a nice aged Manchego or maybe even a salty Pecorino or…well, you get the idea.
Gluten-Free Cheese Crackers
You can substitute an equal amount of all-purpose gluten-free flour blend for the all-purpose and spelt flours. You can use store-bought or homemade gluten-free flour blend but be certain that it does not contain xanthan gum. Roll out the dough between 2 sheets of parchment paper to prevent sticking.
Vegan Cheese Crackers
Not surprisingly, cheese crackers don’t work well without real cheese. Do not attempt to make a vegan version of them.

Nutrition

Serving: 1cracker | Calories: 14kcal | Carbohydrates: 1g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 3mg | Sodium: 19mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g