Email to Cat      

Sea Salt Crackers

Source of Recipe

From "Cheryl Day's Treasury of Southern Baking" by Cheryl Day


Recipe Introduction

"Crackers are something you might take for granted. After all, you can pick them up at any grocery store. But they are easy to make at home, so forget the store-bought versions. This recipe, a straightforward introduction to the process of cracker-making, is for a homemade version of the familiar salty ones that come in a box. These have good sea salt sprinkled on top. If you like, rather than cutting the dough into squares, you can use cookie cutters to cut out crackers of various shapes."

List of Ingredients

â—¦ 4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
â—¦ 1 teaspoon baking powder, preferably aluminum-free
â—¦ ¾ teaspoon fine sea salt
â—¦ 12 tablespoons (1 ½ sticks) unsalted butter cut into ½-inch cubes and chilled
â—¦ 1 ¼ cups whole milk
â—¦ Flaky sea salt, such as Maldon, for sprinkling


Recipe

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the flour, baking powder, and salt on low speed to combine, 30 seconds. Add the cubed butter and mix until you have a sandy mixture with pieces of butter in various sizes. With the mixer running, gradually pour in the milk, mixing until combined.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and shape into an 8-by-6-inch rectangle. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Position the racks in the middle and lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 350° F. Line two baking sheets with parchment.

Cut the dough into 3 equal strips. Working with one piece of dough at a time (leave the rest of the dough in the refrigerator), on a lightly floured surface, using a lightly floured rolling pin, roll the dough into a very thin square about 14 by 14 inches and â…› inch thick. With a sharp knife or a pizza wheel, cut the dough into 2-inch squares and arrange about 1 inch apart on the baking sheets. Gather any scraps together and reroll to make more crackers. Prick the tops of the crackers with a fork and sprinkle with flaky sea salt.

Bake the crackers for 16 to 18 minutes, until golden.
Let cool completely on wire racks. Stored in an airtight container, the crackers will keep for up to 1 week.

Makes about 100 crackers