Though I had set some pats of butter in the freezer a couple of weeks ago in preparation to make graham crackers, I finally got around to making the recipe this weekend. Luckily, D's parents were in town, and Sheila (D's mom) graciously offered to help me make them. (Admittedly, I hate rolling out dough, so I was kind of hoping she'd help out with that part!) I made the dough on Friday evening, and then we rolled out the dough and baked the crackers in the afternoon on Saturday. The graham crackers are quite tasty, though not quite as crisp as the kind you can purchase from the store. I'm not sure if the chewiness is how they were supposed to turn out, or just a result of how I made them. Regardless, they still made an excellent base for a round of s'mores, which we all enjoyed together on Sunday night.
Graham Crackers (printer-friendly version)
makes ~16 crackers
2 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup dark brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon aluminum-free baking soda
3/4 teaspoons kosher salt
7 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch cubes and frozen
1/3 cup honey
5 tablespoons heavy cream
2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
1. Add the flour, brown sugar, baking soda, and salt into the bowl of a food processor. Using the stainless-steel blade, pulse one or two times to combine the ingredients.
2. Add the frozen pats of butter to the flour mixture and pulse on and off continually until the mixture resembles coarse meal.
3. In a small bowl, whisk together the honey, heavy cream, and vanilla extract.
4. Add the liquid to the mixture in the food processor, and pulse several times, until the dough just begins to come together.
5. Lay out a large sheet of plastic wrap on the countertop. Lightly dust with flour. Add the dough and pat gently into a rectangular shape, about one inch in thickness. Cover with the plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours, or up to 24 hours.
6. Once the dough has chilled, remove it from the wrap, and place it on a lightly-floured work surface. Cut the dough in half, one rewrap one half in the plastic wrap and return to the fridge.
7. Roll out the remaining dough until it is about 1/8" thick. Trim the edges to make a 4"-wide rectangle.
8. Cut the dough into 4"x2" rectangles.
9. Place the cut rectangles onto a baking sheet covered with parchment paper. Leave at least 1/2" between the crackers.
10. Chill in the freezer for 15-20 minutes, or until firm. Repeat steps 7-9 with the remaining half of dough.
11. Once firm, use the blunt end of a bamboo skewer to add rows of dots to each cracker.
12. Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes, or until the crackers are lightly browned and slightly firm to the touch. (You could opt to cook both sheets of crackers at the same time, switching their location in the oven halfway through baking, or you could bake each sheet of crackers one at a time.) Let cool on the baking sheet for two minutes, then place the crackers on a wire rack to cool completely.
(adapted from this Smitten Kitchen recipe)
makes ~16 crackers
2 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup dark brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon aluminum-free baking soda
3/4 teaspoons kosher salt
7 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch cubes and frozen
1/3 cup honey
5 tablespoons heavy cream
2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
1. Add the flour, brown sugar, baking soda, and salt into the bowl of a food processor. Using the stainless-steel blade, pulse one or two times to combine the ingredients.
2. Add the frozen pats of butter to the flour mixture and pulse on and off continually until the mixture resembles coarse meal.
3. In a small bowl, whisk together the honey, heavy cream, and vanilla extract.
4. Add the liquid to the mixture in the food processor, and pulse several times, until the dough just begins to come together.
5. Lay out a large sheet of plastic wrap on the countertop. Lightly dust with flour. Add the dough and pat gently into a rectangular shape, about one inch in thickness. Cover with the plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours, or up to 24 hours.
6. Once the dough has chilled, remove it from the wrap, and place it on a lightly-floured work surface. Cut the dough in half, one rewrap one half in the plastic wrap and return to the fridge.
7. Roll out the remaining dough until it is about 1/8" thick. Trim the edges to make a 4"-wide rectangle.
8. Cut the dough into 4"x2" rectangles.
9. Place the cut rectangles onto a baking sheet covered with parchment paper. Leave at least 1/2" between the crackers.
10. Chill in the freezer for 15-20 minutes, or until firm. Repeat steps 7-9 with the remaining half of dough.
11. Once firm, use the blunt end of a bamboo skewer to add rows of dots to each cracker.
12. Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes, or until the crackers are lightly browned and slightly firm to the touch. (You could opt to cook both sheets of crackers at the same time, switching their location in the oven halfway through baking, or you could bake each sheet of crackers one at a time.) Let cool on the baking sheet for two minutes, then place the crackers on a wire rack to cool completely.
(adapted from this Smitten Kitchen recipe)
It's like our brains are linked - I just made graham crackers too!
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