Making homemade Whole Wheat Cheese Crackers is so much easier and faster than you would think and this video will show you how! You can whip them up and even freeze a bunch so you have them around all the time.
While I’m super easy-going about Kenya and Chloe having cake at birthday parties or ordering things like french fries every now and then when we’re out to eat, I can’t help but cringe when they are offered goldfish as a snack on play dates or at camp. Of course there are many things that would be considered far worse for them than these little yellow bite-sized snacks, but goldfish kind of get under my skin.
Goldfish are one of those “easy” foods that most people keep in the pantry for their kids. And why not? They’re delicious. But they are also high in sodium, low in fiber and feature some unneeded empty ingredients like sugar. For what is such a simple food, making your own homemade version is so much better, especially when you use whole wheat flour, which ups the fiber content and is far more nutritious than refined.
I know what you might be thinking…”it takes longer to make goldfish than it does for me to buy them”. Well, you’d not only be surprised by how quick and easy these cheddar crackers are to make but also how much money you’ll save making your own. And the best part is that you can use cookie cutters to pop out these crackers in whatever shapes you think your kids will love. More special than goldfish? What more could you hope for at snack time!
Photo by Maren Caruso
Whole Wheat Cheddar Crackers
Ingredients
- 2 cups cheddar cheese, grated
- 1 cup whole wheat flour
- 1 tablespoon spike salt-free seasoning (any salt free/herb seasoning will work)
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 F.
- Place the first 3 ingredients in a food processor and pulse to combine.
- Add the butter and pulse and until a ball forms.
- Roll out dough 1/4 inch thick on a floured or parchment-covered surface. Slice into crackers or cut out shapes with a cookie cutter.
- Bake for 15 minutes. Keep in mind, every oven is different and how thick the crackers are rolled out can affect the cook time. Keep an eye on your crackers so they don't burn just in case!
- Serve.
I followed this recipe to the T, and yet the crackers started burning in 9 mins! Something seems off with the baking instructions in this recipe. Was very disappointed 😞
Hi Mai! Agh – I’m sorry these didn’t turn out for you! I’ve made them many many times without issue, but everyone’s ovens are different. The temps can sway 25° or more sometimes. How thick the crackers are when rolled out can affect the cook time too. I hope you’ll try them again some day and make adjustments!
I store them in an air tight container at room temperature, and I often freeze a batch, too! I Haven’t had an issue with them being too greasy. I wonder if it has to do with the brand of butter you used, or maybe it was warmer in your kitchen when making the dough?
I made these today for the first time. Because I only had salted butter, I used just a good pinch of garlic powder and a generous pinch of paprika for seasoning. They taste really yummy but I find them quite greasy, actually (causing more greasy fingers than I expected). I followed the recipe exactly (except the seasoning). Any ideas?
Also, I am wondering how to best keep them.
Great tips, thank you!
I love this recipe. I am always looking for nutritious recipes that my disabled daughter can feed to herself. These are a big hit.
I did have to add water, but I found that the 15 minutes is dependent on the thickness of the cracker. I liked mine thin, so then I cut the time down to 10 minutes, When the dough was thicker, 15 minutes was spot on.
Someone complained about a bitter aftertaste, I believe this is from the seasoning they used. When I used Mrs. Dash mine had a slight bitter aftertaste compared to when I used the Spike you suggested.
I added nutritional yeast to the top of my last batch, and that made them even better.
I made these tonight after feeling in a rut over what to send for my kinder’s snack at school tomorrow. They turned out SO PERFECT. I don’t have a food processor so I finely grated some medium cheddar and worked it with my hands while watching Netflix. Hehe! I also don’t buy any salt-free seasonings so I went with a little bit of garlic salt, onion powder and paprika. I rolled them out on parchment paper and baked for only 10 minutes. The suggested 15 minutes would be crazy too long in my oven… I suggest you stay near by during the first batch so you know exactly how long works best for yours. 🙂 I’m so excited to send these in his snack with some fresh fruit tomorrow. Thank you once again, Catherine!!
I made these crackers today for our 2 yr old granddaughter. Because I only had salted butter, I did not add any additional seasoning. 15 min was too long for my oven temp – 12 min was perfect. I think the trick is not to roll the dough too thin. I hope they’re a hit with our little one. I used a star and heart cookie cutter. They did take a while to cut out but that was part of the fun in making them. Next time I’ll let our grandaughter help. Thanks for the great recipe. Can’t wait to make the graham crackers.
Hi….I just made them and they are great…thx
Has anyone made these gluten free?
I love your recipes and snacks for kids especially the goldfish, wheat thins, etc but I need to make them gluten free. It can be tricky finding the right substitute that will suit the recipe. Would you consider adding directions for how to make it gluten free? Thanks
You mention that making these vs. buying saves money and doesn’t take as much time as some people think. Another great point and probably the most important, is that Goldfish are full of ingredients that aren’t natural or food-based but are altered and can have really negative effects on our children’s brain. Some of the ingredients are actually designed to keep you wanting to eat them instead of feeling satisfied. Also, you can control how much sodium is going in since Goldfish have already a high amount. If you go the extra mile and give our children cleaner foods that what is on the shelves, go for it!
Great recipe
Jessica, I’m glad I read your post. I don’t have a food processor either and decided not to make this until I read your remarks. Thanks to you, I’ll give it a try. Thank you.
Took an 8-oz block of cheddar and grated it by hand on the smallest grate (arm workout!!). It turned out to be about 3 cups. I added 1 1/2 cups of whole wheat flour to compensate. Put in onion and garlic powder and paprika. Added 8 Tbsp of chilled butter instead of 6. Should have put in 9 though. Combined by hand since I have no processer (more of a workout!!) and tried to roll it real thin. No luck. Kept it thick (about 1/4 in.) and cut into med. squares with a knife. Baked for 12ish min and they came out perrrrrrrfect! I felt super awesome smelling these wholesome and delish crackers on my 18-month old’s breath! Will be making these again, but will switch my work arm to get an even muscle tone. 😉
The crackers are yum but there is a bitter after taste. Why would that be? I tried it with white whole wheat flour. Thanks