The Fresh Loaf

A Community of Amateur Bakers and Artisan Bread Enthusiasts.

cheddar crackers didn't become crunchy and crispy

restless baker's picture
restless baker

cheddar crackers didn't become crunchy and crispy

I made some cheddar crackers, but they didn't become crunchy and crispy, what do you think went wrong.

I got the recipe from here https://www.browneyedbaker.com/spicy-southern-cheese-crackers/

I just used half of the ingredients :

115 grams sharp cheddar cheese,
50 grams butter, at room temperature
2 teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
106 grams all-purpose flour

and here is the result ( they were kinda chewy ) :

what do you think I must do to make them look exactly like the ones in the tutorial ?? crunchy and crispy

clazar123's picture
clazar123

You are essentially making a pastry or pie dough. Handle the same way as making a pie dough with all ingredients chilled and minimally mixed so gluten isn't activated. The crackers either have to be thinner to be dry enough after a 15 minute bake or the oven temp should be lower and a longer bake involved. Crackers need to be dried as well as browned when they bake, in order to be crunchy. If they are too thick, they will be toothbreakers.

A few thoughts- butter has a water content. Lard makes a better pastry for that reason but doesn't have the buttery taste. European style butter has less water but is pricey where I am (upper Midwest US). Pre-shredded cheese sometimes has other ingredients in it to keep the shreds separate or may not be "real" cheese.

Lazy Loafer's picture
Lazy Loafer

I like to use lard in my crackers too. Roll them out thin then poke them all over with a fork. This helps releases any steam and moisture. If they're not crispy at the end of the baking time, turn off the oven and leave them in there for a few more minutes to crisp up.

Mini Oven's picture
Mini Oven

to dry them out.  Use a cool oven at or below boiling temp. if you don't want to brown them further.  Store in an air tight container when cool or serve immediately.

If too chewy, roll them thinner.

 

restless baker's picture
restless baker

dear clazar123 , toothbreakers Lol, that's a good one Lol. well i haven't made any pies yet so I am not sure yet how to deal with that exactly but as you said its better to minimally mix the dough, I wasn't trying to develop any gluten , still I had to add 2 tablespoons of water I should have baked it longer for sure and made it thinner too . I have some experience in the past with margarine but haven't used lard before.I like butter, and I use old traditional villagers butter. if only we had none commercial cheddar cheese, that would have been great, I must find good quality cheese.

dear Lazy Loafer , i almost forgot to mention that I read online that lard is made of pig fat and since I live a different culture, I am almost sure that I cant find it in here even if want to so that's not gonna work for me. yeah, it needed more time to bake.

dear Mini Oven , good point I will try to bake it twice if it didn't crip enough. I defiantly have to make them thinner. I am still trying to get the hang of the dough quality and content. I suppose I have to work on the recipe and make some more adjustments.

restless baker's picture
restless baker

I decreased the amount of flour and cheese and added some more butter, and this time, also increased the baking time and made my crackers thinner and look what I have got, super crispy and crunchy. I think to make it look better I need to add a tablespoon or more of water.

what do you guys and girls think? any others suggestions to try next time?