Saturday, September 21, 2013

Crunchy Crackers - packed with flax seeds, pumpkin seeds and walnuts for a healthier treat

In our trip to Austria in July this year, one of our favourite snacks on the road was the yeasted crackers from Spar. It's from their range of Spar Premium house brand products and comes in a variety of flavors. I recalled that there's one with cheddar and sunflower seeds. Absolutely crunchy, savory and filling for a snack in between meals.

So when I saw the Bread Baking Buddy's September theme on crunchy crackers, I set out to try my hands on it too! Its a relatively quick process, a quick mix and knead in less than 30 minutes, then resting period of 90 minutes, roll out for 10 minutes and rest another 30 minutes, so total handling time is only 40 minutes. I didn't manage to roll out the dough totally even, so there were some parts that were really crispy and crunchy and some parts that were still slightly doughy but still crisp to the bite. No matter which thickness, me and Hub love it. It might not be as savory as Spar's but it was just as addictive and definitely healthier with no preservatives, plus they are packed with nutrient-rich seeds and nuts. Am gonna try the next bake of crackers with herbs and spices!

Ingredients:
100g Whole Wheat Flour
170g All Purpose Flour (I ran out of whole wheat flour so I used AP flour and more almond meal)
50g Almond Meal
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon instant dry yeast
2 tablespoon sugar (I used light brown sugar)
200ml warm water
2 tablespoons pumpkin seeds and flax seeds
Topping - 100g of walnuts, pumpkin seeds and flax seeds. Black pepper. (I only had roasted pumpkin seeds which is already slightly salted so omitted the salt for topping)

1.In a large bowl, combine the flours, almond meal and salt together. Form a well in the middle and add the sugar and yeast, then 200ml warm water. Let it sit for 10 minutes.
2. Add the 2 tablespoons seeds and form into a dough. Knead until it comes together into a smooth and relatively dry ball. It was pretty sticky to begin with, so I added another 1 tablespoon of flour.
3. Cover and let it rest for 90 minutes. My dough rose quite a bit, probably 1.5x the starting size.
4. Divide into 2 parts and roll each dough into a very thin layer. Sprinkle some water on the dough and spread the topping all around the dough. Press the topping into the dough.
5. Let it rest for 30 minutes and bake at 180C for 20 minutes. I used 2 trays and therefore used the oven fan mode, it turned out to be too hot and I had to lower the temperature to 160C and tent the top tier after 10 minutes.
6. Once the crackers are nicely browned, turn off the oven and let it cool inside the oven for at least 15 minutes. Remove and cool completely before storing in an air tight container.




Submitting this to Bread Baking Buddies, Yeastspotting and Bake Your Own Bread

5 comments:

  1. How very fabulous! Your crackers look lovely, so glad you enjoyed them.
    I'm thinking you have the spirit to experiment and will perfect a cracker much like you remember from your trip and so much more healthy.
    Delighted to have you baking with us.
    Will send you a badge shortly!

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  2. Thank you Tanna! Love your blog and your detailed instructions. Delighted to have found Bread Baking Buddies, I will try to bake along as much as possible. =)

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  3. Welcome to the "Buddies", dear Corrine. I've been a Buddy since May 2012 and each and every recipe I've baked from the Babes has been a huge success.
    This delicious crackers proves again that the BBBabes have a "magical eye" to pick up great breads.
    Many thanks for linking up your wonderful crackers to "Bake Your Own Bread".
    Many greetings from Switzerland

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  4. Hi Carola, many thanks for your kind message. I'm delighted and excited to have found both BBB and BYOB! Switzerland is a beautiful place, hope to visit it one day. =)

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  5. Your crackers are beautiful! But I'm intrigued by the Spar cheddar cheese version now. Next time I make these crackers, I'll have to add cheddar cheese. Or maybe parmesan....

    Many thanks for baking with us.

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