Make Your own Graham Crackers

I don't know about you, but my family and I love us some Graham crackers! Esp with peanut butter or s'more ingredients! My kids like to dip theirs in milk, which makes a mess, but I totally get it! So good! So when I found out that I can make my own with ingredients that I can read, then I was all in! I love to make snacks that the kids love and I can feel good about, bc other then that they usually only get fruit. All those package snacks are loaded with ingredients I don't want to give my tikes or are expensive! So here's the recipe I found from Smittten Kitchen and tweaked to fit my family.

Ingredients:
~makes 10 4x4.5" or 48 2' sq.

• 2 1/2 C + 2 tbs unbleached all purpose flour (can sub 1/2 C whole wheat flour)
• 1 C dark brown sugar, lightly packed
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 3/4 tsp kosher or sea salt
• 7 tbs unsalted butter cold and grated
• 1/3 C mild flavored honey like clover
• 5 tbs milk (full fat if have)
• 2 tbs pure vanilla extract

Topping (optional): 2 tbs granulated sugar, 1tsp ground cinnamon (mixed)

Get to Making:

Dough:
    Combine the flour, brown sugar, baking soda, and salt into a food processor or electric mixer. Pulse or mix on low to blend then add butter until looks like coarse meal.

     In separate bowl, whisk together honey, milk, and vanilla (wet ingredients), Add to flour mixture and mix on low until dough starts to form. *If its not moist enough and wont stick together like dough-then mix another proportionate ratio of wet ingredients and add to dough (I had too, maybe bc I used my hands?)
     Lay out saran wrap and dust with flour to add your dough in a 1' thick rectangle. Wrap and chill until firm ~2hrs

Rolling out the Dough:
     Divide dough in half and roll out onto flour surface into a long rectangle ~1/8 thick. Trim edges

Now cut your dough using a pastry cutter or I used a pizza cutter to cut desired size. Traditional cut is 4 1/2", but I just went with the flow. Poke each cracker half way through with end of wooden skewer or toothpick.

Place onto non stick baking sheet or parchment paper and sprinkle with mixed topping.

Bake for 15-25 minutes on 350* or until brown and slightly firm. They wont be hard when you first take them out like a traditional cracker, so DON'T over cook!

Let cool and ENJOY!! Let us know if your family loves them as much as ours.

     Happy Snacking!

Written By Brandi



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Homemade Wheat Thin Crackers

Have you ever read the label on a wheat thin box? Sparkly Polliwog has and we don't like what we have found! Why buy a snack that has MSG in it when you can make it yourself and know exactly whats going in it. Not that the package kind is evil or anything, but there is just stuff in it that you would never add to your food by choice. It is also a fun project to do with the kids! Found this recipe from Smitten Kitchen.

          Ingredients:

   Makes ~3 dozen.  I doubled it :)

• 1 1/4 C whole wheat flour
• 1 1/2 tbs sugar
• 1/2 tsp table salt , +additional for topping          
• 1/4 tsp paprika
• 4 tbs unsalted butter
• 1/4 C water

Directions:

1. By hand or food processor: COMBINE the flour, sugar, salt, paprika, and butter until evenly distributed. (I don't have a processor, SIGH, so mixed by hand-I grated the cold butter before mixing). Mix until looks like cornmeal.

                                 Drizzle 1/4 C water and combine and knead until all blended.

  2. Heat oven 400* and either lightly grease baking sheet or line with parchment paper.
  3. Roll half the dough out at a time on floured surface. You want to get it as thin as possible and in much of a rectangle shape as you can. You can recruit a helper ;0

                            Using your pizza, knife or pastry wheel, cut into 1 1/2 inch squares.
 4. Place onto baking sheet, don't need to be spaced to far apart and poke holes into each square using a tooth pick

Sprinkle some salt and bake until golden and crisp ~5-7 minutes depending on thickness 

Cool on baking rack

Store in airtight containers up to 2 weeks.

We like ours with the Garlic Cheese Ball! So YUMMY

Hope you and your family enjoy this alternative to the package kind. We sure do for so many reasons! Happy Snacking!!

Written by Brandi

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Garlic Cheese Ball Recipe

If you love cheese as much as I do then you will go crazy over this CHEESE BALL! I am a cheese ball at heart and this is my new best friend and favorite recipe. It's simple, with few ingredients and makes enough to share with your cheesy friends. My friend Abby was nice enough to share her aunts recipe after making it for a recent holiday party. I didn't leave the cheese balls side, it came to every room I was in, in fear that someone else would devour it all before me.

      This picture only shows half the size this recipe makes bc I made one w/o nuts for my Nut Free hubby.

Ingredients:
-1 8oz package of cream cheese
-1 1/2 pounds of sharp or extra sharp cheddar cheese (grated)
-Mayonnaise (just enough to moisten 1-2 tbsp)
-Fresh garlic -minced 1-10 cloves depending on taste (I put 7-8 cloves in mine)
-Seasoned salt
-Chopped Walnuts

Preparation:
1~Mix softened cream cheese with grated sharp cheddar cheese with enough mayo to moisten. (Use heavy duty mixer, or clean hands)
2~Add garlic and seasoned salt.
3~Roll into a ball, then roll in chopped walnuts.
4~Wrap and place in refrigerator.

                       *****Best if made several hours ahead of time for flavors to blend*****

                       Serve with choice of cracker-we love it with HOMEMADE wheat thins (CLICK FOR RECIPE)

I plan on making this awesome cheese beast for every party I tend, mainly bc I love it and so I don't eat the entire thing by myself! Happy Eating my Cheesy Friends!!

Written and tasted approve by Brandi

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