Rye Crisp (Cracker)
By Cat, Jan 2011 (Photo, right from Wikimedia Commons)
- See also: 1. Breads & Rolls Menu; 2. Other cracker recipes on other sites: Garvick.com cracker recipes (3); Towards Sustainability basic cracker recipe (4); All Recipes, Oatmeal or NY Style Rye Crackers (5); Nourishing Traditions (2)
- Includes: 1. Rye Crackers, standard method; 2. Rye Crackers, Pre-Soak method
I’ve never much liked crackers. As a child I didn’t like the way they got soggy when I chewed on them. But that was Saltines, and I’ve since discovered some whole grain crackers that I actually like with cheese or pate.
They are relatively easy to make – no more difficult than rolled cookies, and typically use far less ingredients.
Rye Crackers (Rye Crisps)
This recipe is adapted from a package of Bobs Red Mill Dark Rye Flour (1). Dark rye is a fine-grind whole grain rye flour (as opposed to pumpernickel which is coarse-grind). The original calls for unbleached white (wheat) flour but unbleached white spelt flour can also be used, but may need less moisture (milk). See Other True Grains (about) for more about rye and spelt flours, or Wheat Flours (about) for more on wheat flours.
When using whole grains, I prefer to presoak the flour overnight to improve its nutritional value and absorbability of its minerals; I’ve added a pre-soak adaptation below the main recipe, but I have not yet tested either version.
The original also calls for margarine but I avoid industrially-processed and fake foods like margarine, preferring the real thing: butter. However, margarine and butter do behave a bit differently when baking, so an adjustment in the amount of butter may be needed. Will determine this from testing.
Consider adding dehydrated onion and/or garlic powder (total 1 tsp) with the white flour.
Not yet tested. Baking at 400 degrees bothers me a bit; Nourishing Traditions (2) bakes crackers at 150°F to dehydrate them. But online whole grain cracker recipes bake at 350° – 400°F.
Ingredients & Equipment:
- ½ cup unbleached white flour (or white spelt flour)
- ½ cup dark rye flour
- ½ tsp unrefined sea salt
- 1 Tbsp Rapadura sugar
- 1 tsp baking powder (aluminum-free)
- 4 Tbsp (¼ cup) butter
- 3 Tbsp whole milk
- 2 tsp caraway seeds
- Equipment:
- medium bowl
- waxed paper or oiled bakers parchment
- cookie sheet
Method
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- Sift dry ingredients (except seeds) into a bowl, then stir in the caraway seeds.
- Cut in butter until fine (finer than for pie crust).
- Stir in milk.
- Form into a ball and roll out to ⅛” thick (or less), between two sheets of waxed paper (or roll out on lightly floured surface).
- Cut into desired shapes, prick with fork and transfer to ungreased cookie sheet.
- Bake in preheated oven for 5 – 6 minutes until lightly browned on edges.
- Remove from oven and transfer crackers to rack to cool.
- Store in airtight container.
Pre-Soak Adaptation
This has not yet been tested by me. I recommend that before you try this version, you try the original version to get feel for the consistency of the dough, as this will guide you in adjusting the amount of white flour or additional milk before rolling.
Ingredients & Equipment:
- ½ cup dark rye flour
- ½ tsp unrefined sea salt
- 4 Tbsp (¼ cup) butter
- 3 Tbsp buttermilk (or clabbered milk)
- Next Day:
- 3 – 4 Tbsp unbleached white flour (or white spelt flour)
- 1 Tbsp Rapadura sugar
- 1 tsp baking powder (aluminum-free)
- 2 tsp caraway seeds
Method
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- Sift rye flour and salt into bowl. Cut in butter until fine, then stir in buttermilk.
- If dough is thick, shape it into a ball and wrap tightly in waxed paper or oiled parchment; otherwise, press the waxed paper/oiled parchment against the top surface of the dough in the bowl. Cover bowl with a damp towel and let rest on counter overnight.
- Next day: Sift 3 Tbsp of the white flour with sugar and baking powder into bowl of presoaked mixture and stir in. Dough should form a ball without falling apart. If it is too dry and tends to fall apart, add whole milk 1 tsp at a time, mixing well. If it is too moist, add another Tbsp of white flour and mix well.
- Form into a ball and roll out to ⅛” thick (or less), between two sheets of waxed paper (or roll out on lightly floured surface).
- Cut into desired shapes, prick with fork and transfer to ungreased cookie sheet.
- Bake in preheated oven for 5 – 6 minutes until lightly browned on edges.
- Remove from oven and transfer crackers to rack to cool.
- Store in airtight container. These will keep a long time.
References:
- Bob’s Red Mill recipe # 1144 (link removed at their request)
- Nourishing Traditions, by Sally Fallon with Mary G. Enig
- garvick.com/recipesmm/cracker_recipes.htm
- towards-sustainability.com/2009/08/basic-cracker-recipe.html
- allrecipes.com//Recipe/Oatmeal-Crackers/Detail.aspx and allrecipes.com/Recipe/NY-Style-Rye-Crackers/Detail.aspx
