Olive Oil Crackers

Our close friends recently made the decision to switch to a vegan lifestyle after struggling with food allergies with their 2.5 year old son. They’re our most frequent dinner guests, so I’ve been doing a lot of research and searching for recipes/meals that our guests will enjoy as well as dearest hubby. For a snack for the superbowl yesterday I decided to make some homemade crackers and roasted red pepper dip. These crackers were AMAZING. They were easy to make and delicious. I’m never buying crackers again (with the exception of goldfish cause you can’t beat goldfish!)

Some flavor combinations I chose: Sea salt, Crushed Black Pepper & Sea Salt, Seasame Seeds, Cajun seasoning & Italian Parmesan. The cajun ones were actually probably my favorite (and hubby’s), followed by the Seasame. It was fun playing with the different flavor combinations and shapes!

Pop over to Heidi’s website for some suggestions regarding flours and some other tips!

Olive Oil Crackers

1 1/2 c semolina flour
1 1/2 c all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 c warm water
1/3 c extra virgin olive oil

Whisk together the flours and salt. Add the water and olive oil. Using a mixer with a dough hook attachment mix the dough at medium speed for about 5 – 7 minutes. Alternately, feel free to mix and then knead by hand on a floured counter top. The dough should be just a bit tacky – not too dry, not too sticky to work with. If you need to add a bit more water (or flour) do so.

When you are done mixing, shape the dough into a large ball. Now cut into twelve equal-sized pieces. Gently rub each piece with a bit of olive oil, shape into a small ball and place on a plate. Cover with a clean dishtowel or plastic wrap and let rest at room temperature for 30 – 60 minutes.

While the dough is resting, preheat your oven to 450°F degrees. Insert a pizza stone if you have one.

When the dough is done resting, flatten one dough ball. Using a rolling pin or a pasta machine, shape into a flat strip of dough – I can usually get down to the 4 setting on my pasta machine w/o trouble. Pull the dough out a bit thinner by hand (the way you might pull pizza dough). You can also cut the dough into whatever shape you like at this point. Set dough on a floured (or cornmeal dusted) baking sheet, add any extra toppings, and slide into the oven (onto the pizza stone). Repeat the process for the remaining dough balls, baking in small batches. If you don’t have a pizza stone, bake crackers a few at a time on baking sheets.

Source: Heidi Swanson, 101cookbooks.com

Tagged as: Snacks, Vegan