Crispy, Crunchy, Cheesy: Homemade Cheese Crackers Recipe Reviews

When we first saw this recipe, we thought, "Impossible." No way a cracker made with just a handful of ingredients in about three minutes using a food processor could possibly rival a certain fish-shaped one in the store. There had to be a trick in there somewhere!

I'll spare you the anticipation: these crackers are good. Way good. So good that they were gone about 10 minutes after I set them out for an appetizer at a recent dinner party. So good that no one believed they were handmade and I had to pull up the recipe to prove it.

I've never used our food processor to make a dough before, and it seemed unlikely that a few tablespoons of water would transform the crumbly mixture of cheese and flour into an actual dough. But it came together like magic. One second, crumbs - the next second, dough!

I know from experience that a well-chilled dough will puff better in the oven, so I let the this one chill for a good two hours before rolling out the dough. You could definitely make the dough the day before, if you wanted.

The dough was very easy to roll out. It didn't crack or feel too sticky. I used a bench scraper to first section the dough into strips and then cut each strip into small triangles. A rolling pizza cutter would also have worked well.

Into the oven the crackers went and I waited with eager anticipation. In about 17 minutes, the tops were puffed and shiny, the edges were starting to darken, and the bottoms (when I flipped a few over) were a golden brown. I called it good and took them out to cool.

It was so hard to resist eating them all right then. They really did taste like goldfish crackers - rich and cheesy, but not at all greasy, and perfectly wonderfully amazingly crunchy. So good.

The only slight snafu is that the crackers didn't stay this crunchy. I packed them away in an air-tight container for the dinner party, but by the next evening, they had lost a lot of their crispness. They were still flaky and airy, definitely still delicious, but much softer. My guests insisted they liked them just they way were, but I wished they had been able to try them straight from the oven.

This recipe is definitely a keeper, though. We're excited to experiment with other cheeses and additional spices. And if you've been looking for a homemade cheese cracker for your kids, give this one a shot!

• Get the Recipe! Cheddar Crackers from Home Cooking in Montana

(Images: Emma Christensen)

Comments (12)

Mmm, those look delicious! However, I do think one trick to making crackers that stay shatteringly crisp is Baker's Ammonia. It imparts a texture that no other technique or ingredient seems able to accomplish.

nom nom! how many crackers does this make?

@rebecca_f: The number of crackers would depend on the size you make them. As a point of reference, the rolled-out dough was about the size of two pie crusts. My crackers were about 3/4 inch on each side, and made about 3 cups of crackers.

@Slow Lorus: I've never worked with Baker's Ammonia! I'll see if I can find some and try it next time.

Maybe if you layer the dough on itself it will make them crisper. Also, maybe they were still slightly warm when they were put away? I could see how that might make them less crisp.

I have a similar recipe that I used to make a lot. Instead of rolling out the dough, I just shape it into a log, chill, slice and bake. Because they're bigger, they don't puff up quite as much, and are less reminiscent of goldfish crackers; maybe more like Ritz crackers (except way better). They're fabulous with a little paprika and sea salt sprinkled on the top before baking. Mmmm, my mouth is watering just thinking about them, gotta make another batch soon...

@Slow Lorus How much Baker's Ammonia would you recommend for this recipe?

Another suggestion for re-crisping slightly softened crackers: put them in a 200 degree oven for 10 - 20 minutes. Dries them back out without further browning or toughening them.

@EmmaC: There's this recipe at King Arthur Flour for Vermont Cheese Crackers that uses Baker's Ammonia but I've never tried it. Maybe a tweaked version marrying the Cheddar Crackers with the Vermont Cheese?

And open the windows if you use this leavener. It emits quite a whiff when baking but dissipates quickly and leaves no trace in the baked goods. I've made some excellent non-cheesy crackers, swedish cookies, and some crispy crunchy replica HobNobs with Baker's Ammonia. They always stock little jars of it at my Middle Eastern grocery store.

@VeryKerry - excellent re-crisping suggestion!

@Slow Lorus - Thanks for the link. I'll definitely try it soon!

I did these with Gruyere and romano instead of cheddar, and by my shoddy technique i did some about 1/8" thick as recommended, but some even thinner. Different cooking times for the two were a touch annoying (my fault) but the thin ones are incredibly crispy and the thick ones are a perfect balance of crispy and puffy! The sharper cheeses gave a great flavor and my house smells amazing. I think next time I may put in some sage or thyme and see where that goes :)

Thanks!

@VeryKerry - One of my cracker recipes uses 1/2 tsp of Baker's Ammonia to 2 cups of flour but another recipe I use adds 1 tsp of Baker's Ammonia for 1-3/4 c of flour and both are great...I'd start out with a lesser amount first.

I've also heard that it can be substituted 1:1 for cracker recipes that ask for either baking soda or powder.

That's unreal! I used to inhale Goldfish by the bagful. I sometimes make savory cheese crackers but I never thought of actively trying to mimic those beloved Goldfish.

The original recipe says to roll them thin, and in the comments she says that if you don't roll them thin enough they get soft like you mentioned.

Looks like your were just too thick before baking! :)