Graham Crackers

Holy Whoppers, I am coming close to 100 Ventures, I just might have to do something special for it...I will have to put a good think on that, maybe I will do another giveaway or something, stay tuned :)

On to regular blogging business, earlier this week I shared my favorite yummy Bean Fudge (Dip) that goes excellent with these yummy graham crackers.

In my daughters constant snacking stage and always wanting crackers or something in the "independent" realm (aka foods she can eat without making a HUGE mess around the house) I wanted to try making crackers. So in my Pintrest browsing I found these jewels from Smitten Kitchen's blog. I am not nearly as particular with the crackers "looking" just the real deals, I just wanted it to somewhat taste like them, or at least taste pretty yummy.

 Thus the easy star shape from one of my cookie cutters won me over. If you want to make it look more like the real ones, check out the Smitten Kitchen's blog where this recipe came from, or if you just want the basics, read on for the recipe.

So here it is, I cut and pasted right from her blog. And of course added my own two bits in purple.
Enjoy!

Home Made Graham Crackers

Makes 10 4 x 4.5-inch graham crackers or 48 2-inch squares (with my small star shape cutter (that is about 1inch-ish, I ended with over a 100 crackers)

2 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons (375 grams) unbleached all-purpose flour (a swap of 1/2 cup with whole wheat flour or 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour works well here, too)
1 cup (176 grams) dark brown sugar, lightly packed
1 teaspoon (6 grams) baking soda
3/4 teaspoon kosher or coarse sea salt (4 grams)
7 tablespoons (3 1/2 ounces or 100 grams) unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch cubes and frozen (we used about 5 tbs of butter, and 2 tbs applesauce)1/3 cup (114 grams) mild-flavored honey, such as clover
5 tablespoons (77 grams) milk, full-fat is best (we used our regular low fat milk)2 tablespoons (27 grams) pure vanilla extract
Topping (optional) (We didn't do any sort of topping and it was still pretty yummy!)3 tablespoons (43 grams) granulated sugar
1 teaspoon (5 grams) ground cinnamon

Make the dough: Combine the flour, brown sugar, baking soda, and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade or in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Pulse or mix on low to incorporate. (we used our regular electric hand mixer and it worked great) Add the butter and pulse on and off on and off, or mix on low, until the mixture is the consistency of a coarse meal.
[Alternately, if you don't have a food processor or electric mixer, you can cut the ingredients together with a pastry blender. Just make sure they're very well incorporated.]
In a small bowl, whisk together the honey, milk, and vanilla extract. Add to the flour mixture and pulse on and off a few times or mix on low until the dough barely comes together. It will be very soft and sticky. Lay out a large piece of plastic wrap and dust it lightly with flour, then turn the dough out onto it and pat it into a rectangle about 1-inch thick. Wrap it, then chill it until firm, about 2 hours or overnight. Meanwhile, prepare the topping, if using, by combining the sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and setting aside.

Roll out the crackers: Divide the dough in half and return one half to the refrigerator. Sift an even layer of flour onto the work surface and roll the dough into a long rectangle about 1/8 inch thick. The dough will be sticky, so flour as necessary. Trim the edges of the rectangle to 4 inches wide. Working with the shorter side of the rectangle parallel to the work surface, cut the strip every 4 1/2 inches to make 4 crackers. (again, we didn't do anything special with the shape making other than using a simple cookie cutter)
Place the crackers on one or two parchment-lined baking sheets and sprinkle with the topping. Chill until firm, about 30 to 45 minutes in the fridge or 15 to 20 minutes in the freezer. Repeat with the second batch of dough. Finally, gather any scraps together into a ball, chill until firm, and re-roll.
Adjust the oven rack to the upper and lower positions and preheat the oven to 350°F.

Now, if you care to decorate, read on more, but we didn't and still enjoyed them very much, so to each your own! :) 

Decorate the crackers: Mark a vertical line down the middle of each cracker, being careful not to cut through the dough (again, this is for the traditional cracker shape). Using a toothpick or skewer (I like to use the blunt end of a wooden skewer for more dramatic dots), prick the dough to form two dotted rows about 1/2 inch for each side of the dividing line.

Baking: Bake for 15 to 25 minutes, until browned and slightly firm to the touch, rotating the sheets halfway through to ensure even baking. [The baking time range is long because the original recipe calls for 25 minutes but my new oven -- which I suspect runs crazy hot but have yet to confirm with the actual purchase of an oven thermometer -- had them done in way less. Be safe, check them sooner. Nobody likes a burnt cracker!](ours were done after about 10 mins, so yes, like she says, really watch them!)


They stored very nicely in Mason jars, we didn't cook the whole batch our first...and well almost every time after we made these (I did manage to bake one whole batch at one point, but it's only happened once). After cooking the first batch and the other half in the freeze we didn't end up baking them, because let me tell you, they have an all new secret that will take you breath away!

  The dough is also amazing all on its own! And because there are no eggs, you don't have to be paranoid about Salmonella. In fact we love it tons better in just dough form, that we are really lucky now if it ever gets past the dough stage into the cracker stage.

Then for a little extra fun one time we decided we would toss them in with a batch of our homemade ice cream!

 These lovely cookie dough balls...combined with...

This lovely homemade ice cream, equals a super winner (in my book). Now a small disclaimer, the first time we tried combining the dough with the ice cream, we accidentally made the balls a little too floury. I personally didn't notice it, or mind it, but it bothered my husband. So if you ever do try it this way, just keep light on the flour.

So maybe this post is more about the dough than the crackers, but either way they are all so yummy!

So, back to a cracker note, if you do manage to let the dough pass the dough stage and transform into crackers, they really are so good in this Bean Fudge dip, or just to eat on their own lonesome.

Well that's all for now, I hope you have a wonderful weekend ahead because you deserve it!

Until next time!