Say Cheese Cracker

From Meg's Kitchen 

OK, I am on a roll.  Or maybe I should say that I am on a cracker?  And you should be very proud of me - I am creating this on my tablet!  It was incredibly easy to log on to the blog site (made easier having used my password yesterday so I remembered it today)  So I am sitting in my living room with my tablet on my footstool and my Bluetooth keyboard on my lap - total comfort.

So, here is the cheese cracker recipe that I promised.  It comes from "The How Can It Be Gluten Free Cookbook Volume 2" by the editors of America's Test Kitchen, 2015.  In my last blog I believe that I gave credit to Cooks Illustrated - wrong.  America's Test Kitchen has their own gluten free flour blend but the recipe says that you can use King Arthur Gluten-free Multipurpose Flour or Betty Crocker All-purpose Gluten Free Rice Blend.  I would imagine that just about any gluten-free flour blend would work.

According to the recipe it makes 5 dozen crackers.  I got 50 crackers...

8 oz extra-sharp cheddar cheese, grated
7 1/2 oz (1 2/3 cups) gluten-free flour blend
1 TBSP cornstarch
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp paprika
18 tsp cayenne pepper (more for a bit more of a bite)
6 TBSP unsalted butter, cut into 6 pieces (chilled)
3 TBSP water

In a food processor blend the cheese and dry ingredients - about 30 seconds.  Add the pieces of butter and process until the mixture has the consistency of wet sand - about 20 seconds.  Add water and process until a dough ball forms.

 Transfer dough to a flat surface and  briefly kneed dough into a ball.  Divide in half.  Roll each into a 10 inch log and wrap in plastic.  Chill for at least an hour.

Heat oven to 350 degrees.  Adjust racks to the middle and upper portion of the oven.  Cut the cheese dough into 1/4 inch slices and place on a baking sheet that has been lined with parchment paper.  The crackers don't spread very much so you can place them fairly close together.  You will need 2 baking sheets if baking both logs.

Bake at 350 degrees for 22 minutes.  Turn the pans half way through and rotate shelves.  The edges of the crackers will be slightly brown when done.  Allow the crackers to cool completely on the baking sheets - about 20 minutes.  Serve or store in an air tight container.