Did you know that you can make crackers at home? Crackers that are completely natural, have no funky or suspicious ingredients and also don’t cost more than pennies? And addressing my pet peeve: crackers that are actually firm enough for you to spread cheese and other deliciousness over?
I bet you think I am talking crazy [I almost said “crackers” — see how I restrained myself there?] but for once, I’m not. This astoundingly simple recipe for crackers accompanied an article in last weekend’s New York Times Magazine about spelt versus farro and how some people mix them up but they’re quite different… and so on. The story is cute, but for me, the real gem was this recipe.
And I hope you’re sitting down for this but the sum of the ingredients are salt, water and flour. Seeds are optional, but I wouldn’t skip them since even the best flour, salt and water aren’t going to taste a whole lot on their own.
Now, I know the first questions I am going to get are a) where do I get spelt flour and b) can I use [insert your flour here] instead? So, to nip these in the bud, I got my spelt flour at Whole Foods, but know that it is also available from Amazon, King Arthur Flour and I have no doubt, your local health food store. As for trying other flours, I haven’t yet, but will. In the meanwhile, I encourage you to and let us know how it goes if you did.
That said, should you be able to find spelt, I really enjoyed what it offered: a surprisingly rich wheat aroma and a touch more flavor than plain white or whole wheat flour. I used a combination of seeds and dried onion one would find on my favorite bagel, the glorious everything bagel but you can use anything you have on hand.
Tune in tomorrow and I’ll tell you about the awesomeness we scooped up with these.
Cracker-like things, previously: Crisp Rosemary Flatbread
One year ago: Latke, Redux
Two years ago: Winter Panzanella
Spelt Everything Crackers
Adapted from the New York Times Magazine, 11/28/08 who adapted it from the Hungry Ghost in Northampton, Mass.
If you check out this video from a kitchen even smaller than mine, you can see one of their recipe testers making these at home. It’s seriously that easy.
Makes 1 large cracker sheet
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups white spelt flour, plus more for flouring surface
Coarse sea salt, dried onion bits, poppy seeds and sesame seeds (for the everything bagel effect) or a seed combination of your choice
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Dissolve the salt in 1/2 cup of cold water. Stir in the spelt flour until combined. Knead the dough a few turns until a ball forms.
2. Flour an overturned 12-by-17-inch cookie sheet and roll out the dough on top of it, using as much flour as needed to prevent sticking, until the dough covers the sheet from edge to edge. Do your best to get them as thin as possible, because the thicker parts become quite hard when baked. Using a spray bottle filled with water, spray the dough to give it a glossy finish. Prick the dough all over with a fork. If you choose, sprinkle with sea salt or seeds. For neat crackers, score the dough into grids.
3. Bake until the dough is crisp and golden and snaps apart, 15 to 25 minutes. (Check after 10 minutes to make sure it does not overcook.) Break into pieces and serve.
AAHHHHHH – I LOVE SPELT – Oh, enough of that caps!!! I cannot wait to test this out. Looking forward to the awesomeness tomorrow.
Oh goody, goody, goody! I was hoping for more crackers. These sound wonderfully easy, though I haven’t used spelt flour before. I like the everything bagel seasoning addition. I’ll make these tomorrow. I have to tell you..I’ve made that crisp rosemary flatbread so many times and for so many occasions and everyone loves me for it! I roll it paper thin, so it’s more like a cracker, but it’s pretty fragile. Nobody cares though, I serve it with a really soft spread or dip. It’s so good even plain! Thanks, Deb, this is kicking off party season really well.
Making my own crackers has NEVER crossed my mind. But these sound ridiculously simple and so good. I must try this this weekend, when my 12 hour workdays go away for a couple of days.
I already have a deviously sneaky mind that has whispered a couple of deviations on this recipe. But, will I follow yours?…or follow my own weird path?
Tune in later to find out. :)
Thanks for the inspiration.
Thank you for posting this! I’ve been buying flatbread crackers in bulk whenever I’m on a road trip since I can’t find good ones anywhere nearby. This will be a fantastic recipe to make at home. Thanks Deb!
That recipe couldn’t be EASIER! Thanks!
I never even considered making crackers. Thanks for the idea.
“White spelt flour” is also sold under the name “Light Stoneground Spelt Flour”- that’s how I buy it. It’s much softer than regular stoneground spelt flour. Basically, the regular stuff is the consistency of whole wheat flour, and the light/white flour is the consistency of all purpose flour. The light/white spelt is FANTASTIC- I substitute it in any recipe (sometimes adding an extra Tbsp or two to reach the right consistency) for my wheat-free friends, and have always had excellent results. So excited to see you post a recipe using an alternative flour, Deb! And a cracker recipe that actually looks great (I’ve tried so many of them, and they’re always too thick/chewy/crumbly- you name it).
I’ve never even thought to make my own crackers, but like Leighann I’m thinking these sound really simple. And a good base for all sorts of seed mixes. Thanks for posting, I’m going to try them out. At least you know what’s in them.
HUNGRY GHOST <3 <3 <3. Seriously, if anyone who reads this happens to be near Northampton, Massachusetts sometime that’s not a Monday, Hungry Ghost is a necessary foodie experience. The last time one of my friends visited Northampton, she left with three loaves in her suitcase. I… don’t have words for the awesomeness. Really.
My favorite is the Rosemary Loaf.
Oh this sounds great! My Mom makes a fabulous spelt loaf, but I’ve never had spelt crackers before.
Thanks for this excellent idea! I always buy crackers just like this for ridiculous prices all the time – I never thought to make my own. I think chopped rosemary and sea salt would be awesome.
I can’t resist a good cheese and cracker spread so I’ll have to make these soon. I’m mystified at how easy it seems!! Thanks for the great idea.
This is funny timing! I just made crackers for the the first time the other day! I used the Whole Wheat Cracker recipe from the Alabama Stitch Book. These look great too!
By the way – the comments on your non-stick pan post have totally changed my cooking life. My parents gave us a set of Paderno stainless steel cookware for Christmas last year and I’ve been cursing it ever since. After reading all the comments I tried preheating it forever and using a really low heat and turning things when they’re ready and I’ve had no problems!
They look like an awesome cracker! I can’t wait to see what you scooped!
I’ve never even considered making my own crackers, but now I’m inspired. One of my biggest pet peeves is crackers that break in dips!!
Holy crap! My friends’ bread written up in the NYT?! Tinder Hearth’s spelt bread is amazing. It is SO delicious. Spelt is pretty well-known around here; our local pizza joint/pub uses spelt crust, which is lovely.
Those crackers look great–and so easy! I hate spending as much money on crackers as I do.
I notice that you shop at Whole Foods and thought I’d clue you in to their current practices. They are being investigated by the FTC for their recent merger with Wild Oats. Because of this they have subpoenaed 96 small grocers in their current markets. They are requesting financial information, plans for expansion and other vital information that is normally kept away from someone’s competition.
The higher-ups in Whole Foods have also said that they want to squash out the competition and become “the microsoft of natural food markets.” Because of this I urge you to vote with your dollars and shop at the small stores Whole Foods is targeting.
Wow! How easy are those! And we just so happen to have a natural foods store right around the corner. I bet these would be very low fat as well, AND ok for the parrots to have. I could go on and on, but I won’t. I’ll just go make some.
Ok. I still dream about your rosemary flatbread (I know. Even my dream life is sad) so I am happy to see you tried this.
And I laughed so hard to see this because my husband and I went to dinner last night and there was farro on the menu and I went over the whole spelt/farro debate with him. So to see spelt crackers here made me giggle! Thanks for the review…now I’m doubly inspired.
Yay! I love this post! It totally has me inspired. Think of the awesome possibilities besides just spelt; whole wheat crackers, oat crisps, rye crackers topped with sea salt and a hint of caraway! The list goes on and on.
I’ve been enjoying Spelt flour pizza dough for years but have never thought about using it to make crackers, what a great idea and yours looks scumptious!
My mum makes her own crackers which look similar to yours and tops them with sea salt and chilli flakes and serves with an avocado and lime dip.
I’m with you on the ‘everything’ bagel, I buy them here in Melbourne, they’re my favourite and I love to enjoy them with lots of butter and vegemite.
wow – can I just tell you how excited I am by this recipe!! I don’t eat wheat so I have a hard time finding crackers and I haven’t had bread in ages so I’m definitely going to make these – thanks!
Fantastic! I made some fig tapenade last week — this will round out a hostess gift nicely. How long do you think the crackers will stay fresh?
After accidentally catching part of “good eats,” a couple of weeks ago I tried to make the crackers he made. They did not turn out well. I’ll have to try these.
I can’t wait to test these out! My boys will think it is so cool to make crackers!!
How long do you think these will last stored in the pantry of fridge?
*or
i totally set that recipe aside to make soon — it looks awesome. and the video was so humbling too. her kitchen is much smaller than mine as well.
The cracker recipe was interesting, but I was also intrigued by the farro risotto recipe from the same article. Will you be attempting it? I’ve enjoyed farro salads, but the risotto sounded delicious.
making my own crackers has been on the to-do list for some time. and i love spelt pretzels…hm. i think i need to go buy some spelt flour. and cheese. lots of cheese.
Deb, the video link sent me to a video of Tom Cruise! Now, I like Tom Cruise, but I was actually pretty interested in viewing the video you mentioned. You have been a very busy cook! I happened upon your website over the summer and have become a SK junkie. Somedays foaming at the mouth waiting for a new post and now mad that I can’t keep up because I work retail and have four kids. Keep the good stuff coming!
Oh dear. Link is fixed now.
I thought I’d mention I just watched an Alton Brown episode where he used a pasta machine, getting thinner and thinner each time he put it through, to roll his crackers.
Oh that’s a great idea! I have so much spelt flour left, I might try to tweak these some more tomorrow, see if I can get them a little lighter…
Hmmmm. And I just so happen to have some spelt flour lying around. Thanks!
I found your blog when I was surfing to find a recipe for crackers/flatbreads, and have been delighted by it ever since! The Rosemary Flatbread recipe is AMAZING, and is now a constant in my kitchen, but just this evening my husband was complaining that other crackers always break when he tries to spread them with Boursin. Can’t wait to try these, but may have to use Kamut (on hand) until I can get to the store for some spelt.
The everything bagel is absolutely the best. Your rosemary flatbread was a hit and I can’t wait to try out this recipe.
I imagine these would go great with humus.
You, are a genius. There is not a single recipe of your that I do not want to try. Thank you.
That’d be ‘of yours’. Sorry, I had to correct it.
I walk by Hungry Ghost every day of my life…but my favorite bread is from Bread Euphoria, about 5 miles away. I’m spoiled and I love it!
Oh those look nice and country. I’ve made blue cheese crackers and want to be Goldfish crackers and both were very tasty but lacked some of the crunch that I expect in a good cracker. I’ll have to give this a try.
I’ve never worked with spelt… now I’m going to have to try. I loved the rosemary flatbread, and I made the olive oil crackers from 101 cookbooks but these look like a nice addition to the ol’ cracker repertoire :)
Yes, crackers are so easy to make, I don’t know why I don’t do it more often. Yours look so thin and crisp they must just snap when you bite into them!
I have been making my own crackers for years and my friends and coworkers have always laughed at me for it! Thank you for making this phenomenon public. I make my own crackers because, like you said, I know what is going into them, and plus I can add whatever fresh herbs and seasonings that I am in the mood for. My son loves them with dill. I will definitely have to try this recipe!
Is it easy to work with spelt flour? I’ve never tried it. I have tried buckweat flour, but it wasn’t very user friendly. I really want to try this recipe. Thanks.
These look awesome! I’ve always meant to make my own crackers, but never have. I’m definitely trying these. I used to buy everything crackers just like these, until my store stopped selling them. I’m going to find some spelt flour right now!
Yes! Thank you! I have been looking at the ingredients on cracker boxes and the only ones that are not full of YUK is the Triscuits! Can’t wait to make these (as soon as I finish making 300 cookies for school)!
Cherie — Surprisingly easy — spelt flour is soft and white. Buckwheat can be difficult because it is almost completely gluten-free, meaning that it is harder to get a soft and/or stretchy dough.
I made these crackers (http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/olive-oil-crackers-recipe.html) with the semolina and unbrominated unbleached white flour and they were amazing! Thanks for another great recipe!
I love crackers. Any kind of crackers, I will eat with just about any kind of topping/soup/other food. This looks so awesome! Thanks for sharing. I will have to try soon.
you tempted me with your rosemary crisp bread, which I have yet to try. Now you come along with a ridiculously easy looking recipe for all natural crackers. I don’t know where you keep coming up with these things, but you have an uncanny way of finding recipes that I immediately add to my “must try” list. My ever growing must try list.
And what a great recipe to find just in time for the holiday entertaining season!
Oh my goodness. Soooo easy. You’re right. Even I could do this! And I will, as we are out of crackers. Can’t wait to see the yumminess you put on top! For now, these will be great with the soup we made yesterday, now that it’s finally gotten (ahem) “cold” here in Dallas. Thanks!
This is perfect! I wanted to make some different kinds of crackers and also homemade dog biscuits to give away for Christmas this year. I know people are always in need of things to serve to guests around the holidays so I thought crackers would be a perfect. Thanks for sharing. P.S. Bob’s Red Mill makes a spelt flour. I bought some last week at our regular grocery store.
These look great. It’s amazing how thin you got the dough to roll out.
I love spelt! It would be fun to try these with kamut flour or rye flour too…can’t wait to try these out!
Thanks for the recipe, Deb! My mom and brother are allergic to milk, wheat, and eggs. A few weeks ago I made a wheat-free, milk-free, egg-free spelt chocolate cake for her birthday (boy, that was an adventure!). Now I can make her spelt crackers too (and pretzels and pizza dough… thanks for the ideas, commenters!).
Yay for the Hungry Ghost!
Yummiest bread in the world!
Just a caution, Spelt flour is not completely gluten-free, so it’s not suitable for someone with Celiac disease, http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/crops/field/news/croptalk/2003/ct_0903a2.htm (scroll down to the bottom). However, of course, being allergic to wheat is a different condition, so it may work for you, as it did for Katie who posted above! These look wonderful and make me want to try them. :)
I LOVE SPELT!
I’m sorry I cannot contain my excitment :) I eat it everyday and always blog about my fav. Spelt cereal.
Can’t wait to try these out.
Angela
Funny, I’ve been wanting to make crackers for ages, I was planning to do it today with a different recipe, but I’ll have to try this one, too.
That looks delicious and lovely pictures as always! By the way, I love your glass mixing bowls. Can you please tell me where you get them? Thanks!
I can’t say that I’m sad about Wild Oats going away. It was not a very good store. Their inventory was somewhat lacking… Deb, how do you get your stuff to stuck to the crackers, mine always fall off after baking…
I am obsessed with them too! I looked everywhere for them and was beside myself to learn that a set of four were just $20. The glass is tempered and they’re incredibly sturdy, but also nice enough to serve in. Like I said, obsessed.
Kelly — I was worried about that after having trouble getting the seeds to stick to my bagels last year — to the point that I fully expected these seeds to fall off — but miraculously, they all stuck. Something happens in this recipe that really glues them on in baking.
As for the Whole Foods comments, I welcome your opinions — and am aware of the lawsuit, as well as the CEOs ridiculous online tactics — but do prefer that comments relate to cooking or the subject/subjects of the post.
Bless you for publishing this… I always feel like I’m wasting money by spending 2-5 bucks on crackers that don’t even taste that good! I’m SO looking forward to trying out this recipe.
I actually made herbed crackers awhile back with white flour. The recipe is almost identical to yours. I really loved them and, as you said, it was almost incredulously easy. The link to my recipe is here if anyone needs it: http://straightfromthefarm.wordpress.com/2008/02/19/artisan-herb-crackers/
Yeah! I am one of the few people that are intolerant to Gluten that can still eat Spelt. I am soo going to try these once final exams are over with! Thanks!
Hoping that this hasn’t been mentioned before (did not read all comments) – you can also open the dough for crackers using a hand cranked pasta machine
works very well for those “rolling pin challenged” folks such as myself :-)
Boo hoo, total failure does not even begin to describe how terrible these are. I bought Arrowhead Mills Organic Spelt Flour. Maybe this is not the same as ‘white spelt flour’ but it was all they had. The dough was quite stiff. While I sprinkled the pan with additional flour and rolled it out, the additional flour is powdery yuck on the few crackers that I can actually pry off the pan. I’m not sure why the dough baked onto the pan and can’t be removed. I can say that they taste awful– even with sesame seeds, toasted dried onion, and fennel. Any insight from anyone?
I just made these trying it with 1/3 spelt (my whole foods bulk aisle only had whole grain spelt, but that’s fine for me), 1/3 whole grain rye, and 1/3 whole wheat flour. Topped with kosher salt and raw sesame seeds.
cs, I can’t imagine why yours stuck… I used a pastry brush at the end, before putting on the water and topping, and brushed away all the excess flour on both sides. And as they cooked, they bent a bit and completely came away from the pan (in fact I had to be careful they didn’t slide right off as I took them out of the oven!).
Thanks for this great simple recipe!
I made these gluten-free and low carb with almond and oat flour (slightly more almond than oat) and a bit of xanthan gum. Garlic powder added nice flavor. This recipe is incredibly flexible–thanks Deb!
I took 2 batches of Spelt Crackers and a bowl of the Feta Salsa to an x-mas party last night. Both were very well received. I really like the flavor of the crackers, but ran into trouble not having a spray bottle. I tried to sprinkle water on the dough and rub it around for the glossy effect but unfortunately this was a bad idea as some of the damp parts of the dough refused to crisp and were more bread-like. They were still quite tasty though with the everything style seasoning blend.
Also: is there a rolling pin lesson for rectangular shapes out there somewhere? Apparently I am only capable of making oblongs. I’d love some tips!
thanks for the great, simple recipe. we try to avoid white flours so i used 3/4 cup fresh ground whole rye and 3/4 cup fresh ground whole spelt. added 1/2 tsp of wheat gluten and dashes of paprika and turmeric. wonderful! though i imagine they are a little heavier than the white spelt version.
oops i should add that my dough was a little dry-seeming so i added a scant tablespoon more water. i think whole grain flours, especially rye, are ‘thirstier’.
Wow, who knew it was so easy to make homemade crackers?! I tried these last night using whole spelt flour, and they are delicious. The only changes I made were:1) to roll the dough on a silpat sheet and then transfer to a baking sheet, which worked really well; and 2) to spread water on with a pastry brush because I don’t have a spray bottle (I have a feeling the spray bottle works better here though). Thanks for the great recipe! I can’t wait to experiment with other flours.
These look AWESOME! How should these be stored and how long will they keep?
If anyone out there is wondering whether these work with regular wheat flour, the answer is yes (kind of). I used 1 cup unbleached all-purpose and 1/2 cup whole wheat. My first batch stuck to the baking sheet a bit, so for the second batch I rolled and baked on a silpat for the first 10 minutes, then I removed the silpat and continued baking for another 10-15 minutes until brown. I scored the dough but it totally refused to break into beautiful little crackers like Deb’s, so I just broke it haphazardly. I will definitely try these with spelt flour for a more interesting flavor next time… but for something that came together in 2 minutes and didn’t require a trip to the grocery store, the wheat flour version was great.
i love white spelt.
In case you want to know how thin you actually have to roll the dough out, roll it out really thin and then try to make it even thinner. I cooked these this morning and made the mistake of rolling the dough out pretty thin, but apparently not thin enough. My dough took forever to cook and brown (first fail sign), then when they were done, I nearly broke a tooth on one. Ouch! The recipe is simple enough though and I do plan on trying to make these again, correcting my rolling mistake with the first batch. The flavor was great regardless. I ended up submerging a few of the messed up crackers in soup to salvage them.
This might be a silly question, but would these cook right if i took a cookie cutter to them? For example, to make duck shaped crackers?
Reporting back, cookie cutter crackers worked great. You just get odd shaped pieces around the cookie cutter parts. I think this dough was too much for 11×17, next time I’ll halve it and try it on two pans to see if I can get them thinner and crisper, though they were great as is. With pesto and goat cheese… yum.
I’ve never cooked with spelt flour before. I’m so excited, I bought some on my lunch break and will try to make these tonight.
I tried the crackers, used Spelt for the first time, and I liked them. They
are so quick and easy. I used a seasoning mix called Chipotle Grill in them
and they are quite spicy. I toned them down with a slice of cheese. Very good.
Next time I’m trying cinnamon and sugar with graham flour.
This turned out pretty well. It would be much better if it were really thin, so if your using small baking sheets, consider dividing it into two. tastes great though
This me acknowledging that it IS important to flour your baking sheet. I realized after rolling the dough out that I forgot that step. I should have taken the dough off and floured it, then rerolled it, but I was in a hurry. The crackers stuck so badly! But they were still good. We are taking a train through snowy mountains to the Bavarian town of Leavenworth tomorrow. The crackers and some cheeses and fresh bread will be our lunch, YUM!
Made the crackers AND the feta salsa and wowed my husband. He couldn’t remember when we bought the crackers and was impressed when I told him I made them. However, the crackers do require a little extra water and I would suggest that we actually “roll” the seeds into the cracker before baking…as much of the seed falls off after cooked. Also, these crackers are definitely best eaten the day they are prepared. Thanks for the inspiration!
Loves it – I listed under my holiday food roundups. You always need crackers when people are over, and this look lovely! Even better that they are spelt.
I made the crackers using whole wheat pastry flour and they turned out wonderfully. Thank you so much for the recipe. Happy Holidays :)
These crackers are so, so easy, but it seemed magical when I made them myself. Perhaps I was in shock at how little effort it took?? Thanks for sharing this great find with us!
I just made these this afternoon, they were delicious and very filling! Mine did come out too thick though, I wasn’t able to get it rolled out thin enough (I was being a tad lazy I must admit) and I was stuck with an oblong shape. I’m gonna try my pasta attachment next time to get nice and thin ones. I served mine with a white bean dip, riffing off of your recipe for white bean and red pepper dip:)
I will get a spray bottle for the water next time too, using a brush seemed to get too much water on there.
Has anyone tried a pasta machine to roll these out? I’d love to hear the outcome.
I missed the mention of the pasta machine towards the top, nix that part in my above comment please:) Of course it was Alton who brought this up.
I made and baked these in under an hour last night and they were ridiculously easy. They went down very well on an impromptu picnic with extra-garlicky homemade hoummus. I used Allinson’s Seed & Grain flour, which I think is actually bread flour, and didn’t put anything extra on top as there’s seeds aplenty in the flour (as implied in the title…). I couldn’t find a spray bottle, either, so just sprinkled water froma cup, asif sprinkling it on naan, and it seemed to work fine. Maybe they’ll crisp up a little more though if I use a spray bottle next time. I’m now off to try this rosemary flatbread that everyone seems so keen on…thanks Deb!
Unbelievably easy and delicious. Three ingredients – can’t beat it. So so so good. Thank you!
Finally, I’ve been searching for a cracker recipe for months! I have no idea what spelt flour is, but everyone seems to be really excited about it. I can’t wait to try this out
So these are just like flatbread. Have you ever tried making it like a pizza?
I just tried these….the dough was very tough to roll out, and they’re not perfectly crisp. But fine, nice with hummus.
These were really easy! Much easier to roll than some of their cracker counterparts, which often times refuse to roll thin enough. I’ve been making crackers for a while too, mostly using recipes from King Arthur’s Flour’s baking book. I’d recommend doing the full 20 minutes for extra crispness. The first tray I took out far too early. (The second tray I forgot salt, but I spritzed it with Pam and added some and put it back in the oven and it turned out fine.) I also used a stoneware pizza tray in the oven as well. Don’t know if it made a difference or not . . . . oh well.
The funny thing is, I asked Mom if we had spelt flour when I first saw this recipe, and here four months later she came back from a trip to our nearest large city with a health food store two hours away with some and said, “I remembered somebody asked me if we had it for a recipe once upon a time.” 0.o Yet she doesn’t remember who asked it or which recipe I was going to use.
I tried these crackers last week and they were really good! A bit of a challenge to roll out, but it is very important to get them thin! I paired the everything cracker up with your recipe of white bean and roasted red pepper dip. I misread the recipe for the dip when I went to buy the ingredients. I thought it called for 2 cans of beans. I couldn’t find canellinis, so I bought a can of navy and a can of garbanzo beans. Putting two cans into the recipe made it a bit thicker, but very good nonetheless. My husband loved the crackers/dip combination!
I found my spelt flour at a little bulk food store in our town. I have seen it in Amish bulk stores also.
I used a ruler, holding it on its edge, to score the dough after rolling it out. I just pressed it into the dough vertically, then horizontally and ended up with nicely scored crackers that broke easily once they were baked.
I made these with whole wheat spelt flour, and it worked. I had no trouble at all rolling out the dough, I actually found it to be one of the easiest doughs I’ve ever worked with! Maybe the whole wheat is sturdier. These are great with hummus.
I loved the video that is with this.
And I can’t wait to try the recipe.
Thanks
Great recipe!! I’ve tried numerous cracker recipes over the past week, and have met with very little success. This one, however, was very good. I was so pleased with the first batch that I experimented with the next, using 1 Cup A.P. flour and 1/2 Cup Flaxseed Meal. Great, nutty taste and a very crispy texture! Thanks for posting this!
I just made these tasty treats with a half and half rye/all purpose flour for some lovely havarti dill cheese I have, and they are wonderful. I may have overcooked the edges a bit, but they’ve got a great cracker crunch
How long on average should these store? I made 4 batches last night in hopes they would hold for a party we are having Thursday, and by the next day they were already really stale/chewy..no good to say the least. I don’t know if I did something wrong, or if these are meant to be eaten immediately. Thanks so much.
On a side note, I also looooove using spelt flower for making pita bread.
On a second site note…these cheese straws are pretty much the most amazaing snack in the world. ( http://smittenkitchen.com/2009/06/cheese-straws/ )
Melissa — I agree, they don’t keep terribly well. I’d make them for same-day eating. It’s a limitation of a oil- and egg-free cracker.
I’ve been trying to replicate the health food store crackers but till now didn’t get close. These are terrific! I baked mine for 20 minutes and they came out dlicious and crispy. I added flax seeds, sesame and finely chopped almonds.
King Arthur Flour also sells an Everything topping (8 ounces for like $5 or something) which I use to top bagels, breadsticks, etc. Easy enough to make the topping at home, but it’s a nice lil shortcut : )
How can a recipe so simple taste so good? I made this along with Moosewood’s Roasted Pepper White Bean Dip. Yum!! After breaking my crackers apart, I found myself gathering up the crumbs off the cutting board & eating them. Seriously.
I make spelt muffins, and never thought of making spelt crackers. Will have to try it.
I have one small and one large cookie sheet, what size did you use?
Once baked, where do you store them?
How long do they stay fresh and crisp?
Can you make several batches and freeze them?
I came home with spelt flour because the speltcrackers I wanted to buy were so expensive. I googled for a recipe for crackers and dohh ended up here. What else is new ;) I’ve made these a few times now and they’re so good, and so easy! I’ve baked them with a little bit of olive oil on top and pumpkin seeds, which was very very good. The olive oil gives them a nice golden color! Really great. Thanks for posting!
Can you replace whole wheat flour with spelt for this recipe?
just started with spelt a few weeks ago. loved the fresh smell of this flour! i love the idea of making crackers….they are so dang expensive to purchase at food store. black pepper and onion flakes in oven now. hoping i rolled thin enough. used pastry brush – didn’t have water bottle, so we’ll see. want to try your rosemary flatbread recipe next. Thank You!
Has anyone tried rolling this dough through a pasta maker? I love this recipe, and admire the beautiful simplicity, but just started wondering if it could be even easier…
I am thinking about getting a pasta maker—for just this purpose. And I love my organic whole wheat pizza that could be made thinner with the pasta maker….never used one before. Anyone have suggestions on ease of use?
I finally made these! I think I should have floured my pan more…because 1/2 stuck solid! The taste was ok….the best part is that they hold up to the dip and we all know it’s really about the dip! I am going to try these again with a few adjustments on my end…more salt, flour the pan better, bake a little longer etc.
I use a pasta maker, rolling the dough to the next to the thinnest pasta setting, then slide them onto my preheated pizza stone and bake for about 5 minutes. Because they’re so thin, the recipe makes a lot more crackers, but they don’t seem to last any longer.
I’ve made these twice and they are great with my homemade hummus. I didn’t roll them out thin enough the first time so I split the dough in half and it worked much better!
I originally saw this recipe on The ny Times site but the tester did not mention how long to bake…so , I googled and gloriously the search came up with your identical recipe with all the directions. I tried the recipe…1) it’s super simple 2) it tastes great and I appreciate the toppings suggestions 3) mine did stick but, only some of them and I came to the realization that I should have checked to make sure that underside of the dough was sufficiently floured before baking. Live and learn. Hope this helps someone. Thanks again for the recipe and now I’m onto try the other crackers and flatbreads you have…Yum:P
Hi there,
I found these quite… stale. I even used a pasta maker to make them really thin and still they were just… hard to chew into.
Thoughts?
sooooooooooo making these tonight.
Second night in a row making these easy quick crackers. Scoring with a zig zag pastry cutter makes a nice edge and helps with docking the crackers. Caraway seed and course salt is a natural on these.
Super easy to make, I used Red Mill spelt flour, and coated with red & black salt with sesame. Perfect with hot pepper jelly.
These are wonderful! I added some finely grated parmesan to the flour, then rolled it out and put sunflower, sesame, and chia seeds on top. Crispy goodness! Thank you!
To Jenny – If your cracker are chewy, you didn’t bake them long enough. My edges finished before the middle, so I broke those crispy parts off (I don’t care about shape), and baked the middle for longer. Good luck!
I love making crackers but hate rolling dough (prefer rolling IN dough). So I put spoonfuls of the dough directly on the ungreased cookiesheet and flattening them with flat bottomed glass (greased and covered in sesame seeds). Takes 10 minutes from thinking about making crackers to eating crackers.
I used Bob’s Red Mill spelt flour. First batch stuck to the bottom of the pan, gummy. Hand spritzed with water, added sesame, poppy seeds and dried onion, rolled seeds into the dough. Seeds stuck beautifully, very disappointed in the chewy, moist result. Second batch, rolled super thin between 2 sheets of parchment. Brushed with olive oil, topped with Parmesan, sesame seeds and flaky salt. Baked at 425 degrees for 15 mins. Success on the thin crisp result, but the oil didn’t hold the seeds on the crackers. Is there a difference between white spelt and regular spelt flour? These seem too heavy and perhaps bland, even with the toppings. Any suggestions?
I think they need a higher temperature too!
And I baked them on parchment. They took about 30 minutes to bake because they are wet on top. They have a very nice flavor just extremely hard.
Rolled very thin but these would break your teeth they are so hard. I rolled them right over the pan so couldn’t make thinner. Had to throw them out.
Would this work if I cut the rolled out dough into squares and baked them on a parchment lined baking sheet?
Unfortunately, these were a total disaster. I’m not sure what the advantage of baking them on the bottom of a cookie sheet is, but it was terrible–they stuck to the pan and it took me an hour to scrape them off :-(. It also needs a lot more taste and texture.
Killer recipe!!! Simple and delicious. I’m a fan of whole-spelt flour. Thanks, wallace
These were SO easy! I used parchment paper to roll out the dough — in TWO batches, so they’d easily fit on my cookie sheet. Once they were thin enough, I wet the top with water (just with my fingers) and then sprinkled on sesame seeds. To make sure they’d stick, I gently put the top parchment paper back on, and rolled once. The paper lifted off easily. Then I cut to the size I wanted with a pizza wheel — and put in the oven on the same parchment sheet I’d used to roll out the dough. They were done in about 15-20 min. My tester (also known as hubby) said they were crying out for salt, so I added salt to the 2nd half, and I’m in love with them! I’m now out of spelt flour, so I’ll have to try with regular whole wheat next time (unless or until the Covid-19-induced flour shortage eases up).
p.s. I didn’t bother trying to separate the crackers from each other until they came out of the oven. Worked fine. I also forgot to prick with a fork on the first batch–didn’t seem to differ much from the 2nd batch, which I did prick.
Made it with 50% white wheat flour and 50%whole grain flour, since I was unable to find out where they can sell (if ever they do) spelt in the south of Chile, where I live.
It turned out great!!! So easy, so convenient, so much better than any store bought cracker. :))))
How many crackers you did with one this amount of recipe please