Cheddar Crackers with Thyme

Despite not having a lot of rest these days, I've been at work in the kitchen coming up with fun recipes. I tinker around for hours and give Stephen and Ada lots of daddy-daughter time. This weekend, she "read" (and still seems to despise tummy-time) while he graded. Excuse the mess.

Bonus: Baking means warming up the kitchen. The house was freezing. I was wearing like seven layers.


I've been meaning to update an old cracker recipe of mine for a while now. On Friday evening, I discovered that we had cut into a block of cheddar, but didn't have a plan for the rest.

Perfect!


THICK CHEDDAR CRACKERS WITH THYME

What you'll need . . .

• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 to 1 teaspoon thyme (powder)
• Black pepper to taste
• 1 block (8 ounces) mild cheddar cheese, shredded
• 4 tablespoons plain low-fat yogurt
• 3 tablespoons water

Method . . .

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment (if you have it, I didn't this time around) or spritz with a bit of olive oil. Set aside.
2. In a food processor, combine the flour, salt, thyme, and pepper.
3. Then pulse in the yogurt. When it's fully incorporated, it'll look mealy. Do the same with the cheddar cheese -- one handful at a time -- until fully incorporated.
4. Next, add the water a tablespoon at a time. Pulse until the mixture comes together into a ball. You may need more or less water depending.
5. Then -- using a piece of plastic wrap on top to avoid sticking -- roll the dough with a rolling pin until it is thin on the baking sheet. It's a bit tricky, but just go slow.
6. Trim the edges with a knife if you want square shapes. You can save this dough for another batch within the week or use it up after your first batch is done.
7. NOTE: For a thicker cracker, roll it so it's about 1/4 in thick. That's what I did with this batch because I wanted a pillow-y cracker. If you'd like a crispier one, go thinner, like 1/8 inch. I made crispier ones the following morning. They were both equally delicious, but I enjoyed the bigger, thicker crackers better.
8. Bake for 15 minutes. Then take the baking sheet out of the often and flip crackers over. Bake for another 5 minutes. Until browned.
9. Let cool. That's when the get their crisp.

Tomorrow will be installment #1 of the med-free hospital birth series. Thanks so much for all your enthusiasm about it. I'm really excited and some wonderful gals have volunteered to share their experiences, too! (Dear wonderful gals: I'll be writing to you soon with details.)

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