Extra-Sharp Cheddar Snap Crackers

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

A box of orange cheese squares can't touch these. Real extra-sharp cheddar and a little parmesan are cut into cold butter and flour, rolled paper-thin, docked with a skewer and baked until they shatter. Mustard powder and a whisper of cayenne push the cheese flavour forward, and flaky salt on top makes them impossible to walk past. One batch makes a big bowlful of hand-to-mouth snacking crackers.

Ingredients

• 6 oz extra-sharp cheddar, cold, coarsely grated (about 2 packed cups)
• 1/4 cup finely grated parmesan
• 1 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling
• 2 tbsp cornstarch
• 3/4 tsp fine sea salt
• 1/2 tsp mustard powder
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/4 tsp onion powder
• 4 tbsp unsalted butter, cold and cubed
• 2 tbsp ice water, plus up to 2 tbsp more

• 1 tbsp whole milk, for brushing
• 1 tsp flaky sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper (optional)

Instructions

1. Grate the cheddar on the large holes of a box grater (or in a food processor with the shredding disc) and spread it on a plate. Refrigerate 10 minutes while you measure everything else — cold, dry cheese keeps the dough from turning greasy.
2. In a food processor, pulse the flour, cornstarch, fine sea salt, mustard powder, cayenne and onion powder a few times to combine. Add the cold butter and pulse 10 to 12 times, until the mixture looks like coarse sand with a few pea-sized bits.
3. Add the chilled cheddar and the parmesan and pulse 15 to 20 times, until the cheese is broken down and the mixture looks like damp orange crumbs.
4. With the machine running, drizzle in 2 tablespoons ice water. Stop and pinch the dough: it should hold together when squeezed. If not, add ice water 1 teaspoon at a time, up to 2 tablespoons more. Do not let it form a single ball in the processor — stop while it's still crumbly.
5. Turn the dough onto the counter and press it together with your hands into a smooth mass. Divide in half, flatten each half into a 4-inch disc, wrap in plastic and refrigerate at least 45 minutes or up to 2 days. (No food processor? Rub the butter into the dry ingredients with your fingertips, toss in the cheese, then squeeze in the water.)
6. Heat the oven to 350°F with racks in the upper-middle and lower-middle positions. Line two sheet pans with parchment.
7. On a lightly floured counter, roll one disc into a rough rectangle about 1/16 inch thick — thin enough that you can almost see the counter through it. This is the single most important step for snap; if the dough cracks at the edges, press it back together and keep rolling. Trim the ragged edges with a pizza wheel or knife.
8. Cut the sheet into 1-inch squares with a pizza wheel or fluted pastry wheel. Transfer the squares to a prepared pan, spacing them about 1/2 inch apart — they barely spread. Brush very lightly with milk, poke a hole in the centre of each with a wooden skewer or toothpick, then sprinkle with flaky salt and a little black pepper.
9. Bake one pan at a time for 15 to 18 minutes, rotating the pan front to back at the 9-minute mark, until the crackers are puffed, deep golden at the edges and dry-looking in the centre. The thinnest ones brown first — pull any dark strays with tongs and return the pan to the oven.
10. Slide the parchment onto a rack and cool completely, about 10 minutes; they crisp as they cool. Meanwhile roll, cut and bake the second disc (re-roll the scraps once, chilling them briefly if they've gone soft). Taste one cooled cracker: if it bends instead of snapping, return the batch to the oven for 3 to 4 more minutes.
11. Serve in a big bowl. Store airtight at room temperature up to 5 days; recrisp in a 300°F oven for 4 minutes if they soften.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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