Every once in a while when chatting with likeminded preparedness type people, someone mentions something about wanting to learn to make crackers. They've either never tried, or have tried and failed, and then never tried again.
No, it's not time to breathe a sigh of relief because you finally have a food storage recipe for making crackers. Yes, these are crackers, but they are not Krispy or Premium. Sadly, they aren't even close.
And I really tried. Honestly.
I tried the recipes with all-purpose flour and with soft white wheat, which is supposed to work better for making crackers and cookies. No matter what recipe I tried, the texture just isn't there. The dough is difficult to roll as thin as it needs to be for really crispy crackers. A pasta machine would make this process a whole lot faster and easier and may be worth considering if you really want crackers. However, don't be deceived. These are not going to taste like store-bought. They will not have the right texture.
The flavor of the soda crackers is just fine. However, they go immediately soggy in soup. They'll work to be eaten on the side.
Soda Crackers
2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup + 1 tablespoon sour milk (add 1/2 teaspoon vinegar or lemon juice to milk and let sit 5 minutes)
Combine dry ingredients in a medium mixing bowl. Cut in butter and then add sour milk. Knead the dough one or two minutes. Divide dough into two pieces. Roll each piece out thin on a cookie sheet, going to the very edges of the pan. Cut into squares and prick with a fork. Bake at 400 degrees about 9 minutes, or until the edges are a golden brown.
Saltine Crackers
2 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter
2/3 cup milk
1 egg white, beaten
Combine dry ingredients in a medium mixing bowl. Cut in butter and then add milk. Knead the dough one or two minutes. Divide dough into two pieces. Roll each piece out thin on a cookie sheet, going to the very edges of the pan. Cut into squares and prick with a fork.
Brush the tops with the egg white and sprinkle liberally with salt. Bake at 350 degrees about 18 minutes, or until the edges are a golden brown.
Review: OK, the family split 50-50 on these two different recipes.
With more butter and less milk, the soda crackers roll out easier. The texture is a bit reminiscent of pie crust. The women liked this one better. The saltine crackers are harder. The men liked them better.
So now you have these two options for something akin to saltines. They honestly don't taste bad. I finished up the batch I liked better and my son happily took the other batch up to his tiny house to snack on. Are they going to be worth my time and effort post-collapse? I don't think so. Each batch took about two hours, start to finish, not including clean-up. That's a lot of time when time may be quite precious and when other forms of bread will taste better and take less time. But who knows? Maybe I would want to make them for a grandchild. But for my own adult children? Sorry, guys, not happenin'.
Alas. I was hoping that I might enjoy homemade saltines with my bean soup while in the bunker.
ReplyDeleteHomemade Soda Crackers
ReplyDeleteYIELD:about 2 cookie sheets of crackers
INGREDIENTS
2 teaspoons active dry yeast
2/3 cup warm water
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more as needed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
Kosher salt
DIRECTIONS
In a small bowl, sprinkle the yeast over the warm water; stir to dissolve and let stand for 5 minutes.
In a large bowl, mix the flour, salt and baking soda. Add the yeast mixture and stir vigorously with a wooden spoon to blend. If the dough is sticky, add sprinkles of flour until a soft dough forms.
Knead the dough until it is soft and has an elastic consistency, about 5 minutes. Add sprinkles of flour to control the stickiness. If using a mixer or a food processor, the dough will form a soft ball around the revolving dough hook and clean the sides of the bowl. Add flour, if necessary, to firm up the dough.
Drop the dough into a buttered bowl, cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator to rest for at least 1 hour and up to 18 hours (the longer the better.)
Arrange the rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 425 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. With a heavy rolling pin, roll the dough into a rectangle about 18 by 6 inches and no thicker than 1/8-inch. Fold the dough back on itself from the short ends, brushing off the excess flour. Roll out thinly back to 1/8”. Repeat 4 or 5 times to make 4 or 5 layers for extra flaky crackers. Roll again a final time to 1/8”.
Prick the dough with the tines of a fork to help cook evenly. Evenly cut the dough along the edge of a straight ruler your eye with a pizza or cookie cutter into squares or desired shapes.
Place the crackers close together on the prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle lightly with salt from 12-inches above the crackers to distribute the salt evenly.
Bake until lightly browned and crisp, 9 to 14 minutes, depending on the thickness of the crackers. Check the crackers several times during the baking period to make certain those on the outer edge of the baking sheet are not getting too brown. If so, switch the ones on the outside with the ones in the middle.