Cynthia’s Crackers: Super Crispy and Super Easy To Make
Topic for today: vegan crackers! I just love having crackers on tap; they make such good and healthy snacks, especially when combined with some fresh veggies, like tomatoes, or with some dips (my definite favs are guacamole and nut butters).
The most annoying part of making crackers for me is that I’m not good at it. LOL! I tried and tried so many times but they either turn very tough or they are almost tasteless. This time, tough, I cracked the code.
The Chemistry of Making Vegan Crackers
After so many trials and errors, I finally figured out that the key to making crispy and delicious vegan crackers is in how long I knead the dough. I’m not a pastry chef and whenever I make pastry, I tend to knead the dough for very long trying to make it look really smooth and soft. Apparently, that doesn’t work with crackers. You know how flour has gluten in it; well, it turns out that if you knead the dough for long, gluten activates and makes the dough tough. Lesson for making perfect vegan crackers learnt!
I also used boiling water for combining all the ingredients together. I’m not really sure how, but boiling water does some magic on its own that has an impact on the final texture of the pastry you are making. I’d be delighted to hear about all of the details of this process, so if you are a pastry chef or know the chemistry behind hot and cold water and pastry making, don;t be shy to comment below and share the knowledge.
As for the flavours, I felt like eating something that would give me the feelings of Mediterranean summer, so I used very simple ingredients – oregano, olives, and salt. I’m wondering what other flavour combos would work well for these crackers. By the way, I sprinkled the crackers with some pumpkin seeds but they just fell off while baking, so I don’t recommend adding any sort of seeds on top of the crackers.
Vegan Crackers Recipe!
Ingredients
- 170 grams Spelt Flour
- ½ tsp Dried Oregano
- ¼ tsp Salt
- A pinch of Black Pepper
- 30 grams Black or Kalamata Olives, deseeded and chopped
- 2 Tbsp Olive Oil +a bit more for brushing
- Boiling Water, as needed
- 1 tsp #HOPE
Method
- Preheat your oven at 340F/170C.
- Mix the flour and oregano, add a pinch of salt and black pepper, stir and make a small well in the middle.
- Pour in the olive oil, add the olives, and stir to combine.
- Gradually pour in the boiling water and stir until the ingredients come together. Pour in more water if needed.
- Dust your hands and knead the dough for a couple of minutes.
- Place the dough in between two sheets of baking paper and roll it out until it reaches your desired thickness.
- Cut the rolled out dough into cracker shapes and transfer the baking paper with the crackers to a tray.
- Brush the crackers with olive oil and bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes.
***
Serves: 4
Prep time: 10 mins
Baking time: 20-25 mins
Freezer-friendly: No
C, RSF, DF, NF, VEG, V
I found these crackers to go really well with vegan cheese, veggies sticks, and my probiotic spread. I haven’t tried but something tells me these crackers will pair nicely with my Hemp Cream Cheese. Oh I’d also love to eat these with some avocado or tomato slices on top. Yumm! Test it out and share your thoughts with me on my YouTube channel. See you there!
With love from my kitchen to yours,
Chef Cynthia Louise xx
