These homemade cheez-it crackers are not only salty, crunchy and cheesy, but super easy to make, especially for kids.
As I mentioned in my last post for Tuscan schiacciata, my brother and sister-in-law recently welcomed a new baby boy, Theo. Everyone is happy and healthy and my three year old niece Scarlet is in love with her new baby brother. But that hasn’t stopped her from noticing that all the attention is no longer on her. In order to make things a little easier on her parents, I’ve been trying to keep Scarlet entertained while they tend to the baby. She already loves helping out in the kitchen (see my painted sugar cookies recipe and my fresh pasta recipe for recipes that she’s helped with), so I figured that cooking something that she could really be involved with making every step of the way would be the perfect way to keep her busy. And she had an absolute blast making these easy and delicious homemade cheez-it crackers.
I’ve always seen recipes floating around for homemade versions of popular snacks, like these cheez-it crackers. And if I’m being totally honest I’ve always wondered… why? The store-bought version is already so delicious, so why put all that time and effort into making something that you could just as easily buy? Well, I’m here to admit that I was wrong. These homemade cheez-it crackers are most definitely more delicious. And not only that, but they’re customizable (you can change up the cheese, or add fresh herbs and spices), and while still not what I would consider “healthy,” you can feel better knowing that they don’t have a ton of added ingredients and preservatives.
THE JOY OF MAKING
Not only do they taste better and are slightly better for you, but making these cheez-it crackers with Scarlet made me realize that part of the joy of homemade snacks is exactly that: making them. Scarlet had such a good time helping me measure out ingredients, getting her hands dirty kneading the dough, and then helping me roll out the dough and cut and poke little holes in each cracker. You can tell from the photos that they look far from perfect, but that’s part of the beauty of making them yourself, and making them with a three year old. They make take a little bit longer than simply going to the store and buying them, but it was totally worth it to bring Scarlet so much fun.
A FEW TIPS ON MAKING HOMEMADE CHEEZ-IT CRACKERS
- Use a micro-plane or very fine shredder to shred the cheese. This will help it integrate better into the dough.
- Roll the dough out onto a sheet pan sized piece of parchment paper, then transfer it to the baking sheet and slice it. You can use a ruffle edge cutter like we did (that we have for ravioli) or simply a pizza wheel or knife.
- Once baked, the crackers should shrink up slightly in the oven to separate, but before baking you can push the rows apart a bit to help this process. But don’t worry if you don’t have room on your pan. They crackers will still break apart easily once baked.
- Use a salty egg wash before the crackers go in the oven. This will give them a beautiful color, but also that trademark cheez-it salty bite.
- Poke holes in the centers of the crackers using the flat end of a bamboo skewer simply for aesthetics.
- Keep an eye on the crackers towards the end of the baking process. You want them golden brown, but they will burn quickly if you’re not paying attention.
- Once cooled, store the cheez-it crackers in an airtight container for up to a month (if they even last that long in your house).
Homemade Cheez-it Crackers
Ingredients
- 1 + 1/3 cup all purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 2 tsp sugar
- 1 + 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 12 oz cheddar cheese, finely shredded
- 1 cup heavy cream
For the egg wash
- 1 whole egg
- 1 egg yolk
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tbsp water
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 and prepare two sheet pan sized pieces of parchment paper, or use silicone mats.
- In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. Toss in the shredded cheese until evenly combined, then add in the heavy cream and stir until a dough starts to form.
- Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and knead until it comes together, about 5 minutes.
- Divide the dough in half and flour each of the pieces of parchment or silicone mat. Roll out each half of the dough to roughly a 11 x 15 inch rectangle, roughly 1/8 inch thick. Repeat with the other piece of dough.
- Make the egg wash. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg, egg yolk, water and salt.
- Transfer the piece of parchment paper with the rolled out rough to a baking sheet. Using a ruffle edged slicer, a pizza slicer or a knife, cut the dough into 1 inch squares. If you have space, you can separate the rows of crackers a bit so they they separate, but if you don't have space that's ok (they'll break apart easily after baking). Brush the crackers with the egg wash and use the blunt end of a bamboo skewer to poke a hole in the center of each.
- Bake each try of crackers until golden brown, 22-26 minutes, checking frequently at the end to be sure they don't burn. Allow them to cool completely before breaking apart (if needed) and storing in an air tight container for up to 1 month.
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