Gluten Free Graham Crackers

Smores are quite possibly our favorite treat. During the summer, we eat them practically every night. It’s not uncommon to see us “roasting” some in the oven during the winter also.  Going gluten free was a struggle because packaged GF graham crackers are just not the same as good ol’ Honey Maid grahams. Actually, they resemble pretty cardboard. These however are very flavorful and crunchy. I  LOVE the fact that I know what is in them. Anyway – this recipe was my first major GF accomplishment so I very happy to share it with you – enjoy!

 

¾ cup sweet white sorghum flour

½ cup amaranth flour
¼ cup brown rice flour
½ cup tapioca starch
½ cup potato starch
½ cup brown sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 Tbsp cinnamon
½ tsp xanthan gum
½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
1 cup cold butter or shortening (in pieces) (I like to use ½ c cold soy butter, ½ c coconut oil)
¼ to ½ cup cold water
½ cup honey
2 tsp extract (vanilla, maple & almond are my favorite!)

·         Mix together dry ingredients first. Then cut in cold butter/shortening until you get a crumbly mixture. Unfortunately I have found the easiest way to do this is to use your hands – it’s quicker and much messier.
·         Add in honey and vanilla (or other) extract. Start with adding just ¼ cup of water and mix together. You want to have a nice ball of dough when you get done mixing so gradually add in enough water to get there. I typically use ½ cup and it works fine.
·         Once your dough is the right consistency, divide into three sections.
·         The next step is up to you really. You are going to need to place the finished squares onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. The dough tends to fall apart during transportation if you just try and move by hand. I find the best method is to roll out the dough in between two pieces of parchment paper. Once you get to the desired thickness (1/16-1/8^th of an inch), place the bottom piece of parchment paper with dough onto the baking sheet.
·         Pierce the dough with a fork all over and delicately slice into squares. Repeat with the remaining dough.
·         Bake for 10-15 minutes at 375°F. Makes (roughly) 15 3” square cookies 1/8 inch thick.
o   Note: The baking times of the crackers will depend on the thickness of the dough. It may take a little longer if your dough was rolled into thick squares, or take less time if the crackers are really thin. It all depends on your preference.
o   My kids and I also like to use cookie cutters to cut the crackers into fun shapes.
o   Store these crackers in a sealed container or bag and they keep for about a week.