One Easy Recipe for Homemade Crackers with Endless Variations.
Make an endless variety of delicious, buttery, flaky homemade cheese crackers with this one simple recipe.
If for some crazy reason I ever have to give up dairy, it's the cheese I'll miss the most. (Well, and ice cream. And yogurt. I'm never giving up dairy.)
I know there are people out there who live perfectly happy lives without eating cheese. My son is one of them. He's never liked the stuff and is the only person I know who orders pizza without cheese. (I blame his father.)
I just can't relate to a life without cheese. As far as I'm concerned, cheese is a perfectly acceptable meal choice all on it's own. But, especially if there's wine. And, maybe some bread or crackers.
Here's a little bit of cheese trivia that will surprise none of you:
The French eat the most cheese out of anyone in the world, with each person eating an average of 57 pounds a year. They also drink quite a bit of wine. I've never been to France, but this seems like a great way to live. I think I'd fit in really, really well.
And - AND! - this study linked a diet rich in cheese with a decreased risk of obesity. I didn't actually read the study, of course. Doing so might cause me to question the findings and I'm really happy just believing that it's true on face value.
Loving cheese the way I do, and with all that scientific rationale (it's for my health goddamnit!), it's not really surprising that I'd add a hefty amount of it to homemade crackers. Because the only thing better than cheese and crackers is cheese and cheese crackers.
This recipe is the only one you'll ever need to make any kind of homemade cheese crackers.
Homemade cheese crackers are really, really simple to make and use ingredients you probably have on hand most of the time. All you need is equal parts flour, butter and cheese. Use any kind of cheese you like, or a combination of different cheeses. Whatever you want, or whatever you have.
Leave it at that, or add additional flavorings, such as fresh or dried herbs, nuts or seeds, salt and pepper. In the recipe below, I used a combination of Romano and Parmesan cheese, a handful of fresh dill, a dash of cayenne, salt and freshly ground black pepper.
That particular flavor combination makes for some seriously addicting homemade cheese crackers.
I made them in the middle of the afternoon when both of my daughters were home. We tried them with a schmear of garlic and herb goat cheese. Delicious.
Not wanting to stop there, we added a slice of apple and dried fig over the goat cheese. Even better.
Then we tried them with some apricot jam and dried cherries. Amazing.
After that, we broke out the little jar of olive tapenade that's been hanging out in the refrigerator for just such an occasion. Heaven.
But please don't limit yourself to Romano, Parmesan and Dill.
To get your imagination going, here are a few other homemade cheese cracker combinations...
Rosemary, Gouda and finely chopped roasted hazelnuts.
Sharp Cheddar and chili powder.
Parmesan, Gorgonzola, thyme and garlic powder.
White Cheddar and chives.
Parmesan and Rosemary with sunflower and chia seeds.
You get the idea.
Whatever cheese, herbs and spices you use, I really hope you'll make these. They are easy to make, buttery, tender, oh-so flaky and irresistible. Make a batch today and impress your family and friends.
More importantly, impress yourself with these little bites of homemade cheesy deliciousness.
Homemade Cheese Cracker Recipe Notes:
Follow this basic formula to bake as many or as few crackers as you want: equal parts in weight of cheese, flour and butter. Have a little bit of cheese in the refrigerator that you want to use up? Just weigh it and mix it with equal amounts of flour and butter, and presto! Homemade cheese crackers.
Just remember that you want equal amounts of cheese, flour and butter in weight. 8 oz of flour will equal about 1 ½ cups, while 8 oz of cheese will equal about 3 ½ cups.
I've included measurement in cups in the recipe below. But, the beauty of this recipe is that it's really easy to scale up or down. Just make sure to weigh your ingredients.
If you don't have a small kitchen scale, I'd really encourage you to get one. They are super useful. I ordered this one from Amazon a few years ago and use it all the time:
More recipes that you might like:
- Simple have-it-on-hand-at-all-times White Bread
- The best Homemade Dinner Rolls
- Homemade Flour Tortillas
- Overnight Homemade Cinnamon Rolls
Homemade Cheese Crackers are a Building Block Recipe
Building block recipes are tried-and-true recipes that I consider foundational to great home baking. They are the kind of recipes I come back to over and over again, sometimes baking them as is, but often using them as a jumping off point to create something new. > Scroll through all Building Block recipes.
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Cheese Crackers
- Total Time: 26 mins
- Yield: 62 crackers
Description
Make an endless variety of delicious, buttery, flaky homemade cheese crackers with this one simple recipe. NOTE: The number of crackers you get from this recipe will depend on how large you cut them. I used a small 1 ½-inch biscuit cutter.
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups (6 ½ oz) unbleached, all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp granulated sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp coarsely ground black pepper
- ⅛ tsp ground cayenne pepper
- ¾ - 1 cup (to taste) chopped fresh dill (or any chopped, fresh herb)
- 6 oz. grated Romano cheese
- 2 oz. grate parmesan cheese (you should have approximately 3 ½ cups of cheese in total.)
- 8 oz. (2 sticks, or 1 cup) of butter, cut into ½-inch cubes
- 2 tsp cold water
- Additional ground black pepper and sesame seeds for sprinkling
Instructions
- Add the flour, sugar, salt, black pepper, cayenne and dill to the bowl of a food processor fitted with the chopping blade. Pulse a couple of times to combine all the ingredients and blend the dill into the flour.
- Add the cheese and pulse 2 or 3 times to combine. Add the butter, all at once, and pulse until the mixture resembles bread crumbs. Sprinkle in the water, and pulse a few more times, just until the mixture starts to look like dough. (It the dough is still pretty dry, sprinkle in another teaspoon or two of water.)
- Dump the dough - which will be a bit crumbly - into a large bowl or onto a clean work surface. Press the dough together and knead a few times with your hands to bring the dough together. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, and up to 1 day.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and have at the ready: 2 baking sheets covered with parchment paper, a 1 ½-inch biscuit cutter or sharp knife or pastry wheel, a cup of flour, a small bowl of tap water and a pastry brush, a large flat spatula, a rolling pin, black pepper and sesame seeds.
- Sprinkle some flour across a clean works surface. Remove the dough from the refrigerator, unwrap it and lay it on the work surface. Dust the top with additional flour. Roll the dough into a thin sheet, approximately ⅛ inch thick. (NOTE: If the dough has been in the refrigerator for several hours, you'll probably have to let it soften on the counter for 10-15 minutes to let the butter soften before rolling out.)
- Run the spatula underneath the dough from all sides to loosen any dough that's stuck to the work surface. Cut out the crackers with the biscuit cutter and lay them on the baking sheets very close together, but not touching. (You can also cut the crackers into squares with a knife or pastry wheel.)
- Lightly brush the tops of the crackers with water and sprinkle with additional black pepper and sesame seeds.
- Bake one sheet at a time for 14-16 minutes, until the edges of the crackers are starting to brown. (While one sheet is baking, put the other sheet in the refrigerator.)
- Remove from the oven onto a wire rack and allow the crackers to cool completely on the sheet. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 weeks.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 16 mins
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Carol says
I wish the recipe would completely follow weight.I find much better accuracy and love a recipe that is more precise. I also love using King Arthur but no need to rely on chart for guidance. This is fine just left as is.
Carol says
Hi Rebecca! I am going to make these ASAP. And you are so right cheese is the most awesome thing in the whole world and I would never consider giving it up or any other dairy, as well. NEVER. Anybody that does not like cheese just confuses me.Now I noticed in the recipe it says 8 oz flour , then it says 1 1/2 cups.Can you please clarify so I don't put in too much flour? I want these to be my new snack addiction as I am sure they will be.
Rebecca Blackwell says
Hi Carol! THANK YOU so much for not only catching that typo, but alerting me to it. It should be 1 1/2 cups of flour, which is 6 1/2 oz, not 8. I have corrected it in the recipe. I can't wait to hear what you think of these! Will you please let me know? xo
Carol says
Thankyou so much for the correction.I will be making these in next few weeks. I will absolutely let you know. I am sure they will be as wonderful as they sound!xo
★★★★★
Carol says
Ok Rebecca, Now I have a little laugh because I think your math is as bad as mine. Too cute. If it is 1 1/2 cups that will be 12 oz. not 61/2. Not a big deal. I think most people will follow volume and not even be aware of oz. Most people need calculator to know this.
★★★★
Rebecca Blackwell says
Hi there! Actually, a cup of flour, measured by weight, comes in at around 4 1/4 ounces/ 120 grams. So, 1 1/2 cups of flour should weigh roughly 6 1/2 ounces. King Arthur Baking has a great chart that lists the weight by cup of a bunch of common baking ingredients that I find super helpful. Of course, if you're measuring by weight, there can be other factors involved, like how "packed" your flour is, causing weights to differ slightly from person to person. But, for this recipe, if you're measuring by weight, you'll want to start with 6 1/2 ounces of flour.
Did you make these yet? How did they come out for you?
xo
hannah johnson says
if i could rate this recipe 10 stars, i would. BEST crackers i’ve ever had in my entire life, and the recipe is so simple and easy to follow, and quick enough that i was able to make these while my toddler and infant played. i will be making these many, MANY more times.
★★★★★
Rebecca Blackwell says
I'm so happy to hear that you liked this recipe, Hannah! I make these all the time and people are always so impressed by the idea of making homemade crackers, but as you said, they're so easy! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a comment for me. I truly appreciate it! xo
Bill says
I love everything about this cheese crackers recipe! Thank you for sharing it!
★★★★★
Misrii - Homemade Food says
Best homemade-cheese-crackers I have made! Thanks for the recipe!
★★★★★
Rebecca Blackwell says
I am so glad to hear that! Thank you so much for taking the time to let me know you enjoyed this recipe! xo
Erin @ Brownie Bites Blog says
I love how versatile this recipe can be... definitely a useful one to keep in my pocket.
Rebecca Blackwell says
Thank you Erin! The versatility is my favorite thing about this cracker recipe. Hope you try it! xo