I don’t buy crackers at the store. I know, I’m weird . I have a serious problem. I love them too much, and that can be a problem.
On the other hand I wanted to make homemade crackers way longer than I’ve been blogging.
It is done. I’ll eat crackers for lunch. And I did. Totally worth it though.
On the other hand I wanted to make homemade crackers way longer than I’ve been blogging.
It is done. I’ll eat crackers for lunch. And I did. Totally worth it though.
My recipe includes one ingredient that is not as common but is well worth the investment if you are looking for crisp and airy cookies.
Predecessor to Baking Powder and Baking Soda, Baker’s Ammonia(Ammonium Carbonate, Hartshorn) has been around for a long time yet it is extremely hard to find in stores. I first discovered Baker’s Ammonia last year , didn’t think much of it, until I baked traditional Slovak Ginger Cookies. They were crisp, airy, yet tender enough to bite. Just like I remembered them from my childhood.
Baker’s Ammonia is mainly used for baking to achieve crisp and airy texture, especially in cookies. It gives off an ammonia like smell during baking that quickly disappears; your cookies won’t smell of it at all.
Look in European stores, Scandinavian, Polish or Russian stores sometimes carry this leavening agent. It doesn’t have to be sold in containers. I’ve seen it sold in individual packets as well. Baker’s Ammonia tents to evaporate. Store it preferably in the airtight container to get more shelf life out of it.
You can also buy it online at King Arthur Flour .
Just in case you can’t get your hands on Baker’s Ammonia, try substituting with baking powder. Results may be slightly different.
I’ve made crackers with and without it. They are definitely crispier with the baking ammonia, though using baking powder creates a wonderful match.
Rosemary Prosciutto Crackers(makes about 80 + 2×1 1/2 inch rectangles)
2cups all purpose flour
3tbl finely grated Parmesan cheese
1/4tsp sugar
1tsp yeast
1tsp kosher salt
1/8 tsp freshly ground pepper
2 slices prosciutto
1tbl fresh rosemary leaves or 1tsp dry rosemary
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cold milk
1/4tsp baker’s ammonia– preferably, if you can’t find it you can substitute for baking powder
1/2tsp kosher salt for sprinkling
1/2tsp kosher salt for sprinkling
- Using food processor, blend together flour, salt, yeast. Add rosemary and prosciutto, pulsing until there are fine pieces of rosemary and ham left.
- Dissolve baker’s amonia in 2tbl cold milk.
- Stir together remaining milk and olive oil.
- Sprinkle baker’s ammonia mixture over the flour mixture.
- In one continuous flow add olive oil milk mixture into the dry, pulsing the food processor until the dough resembles pea size chunks.
- Gather dough together and form a ball.
- Chill dough for 20 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 385F
- Roll out the dough thinly onto a cutting board, using a fluted wheel cut even rectangles, squares etc.
- This dough is pretty easy to work with, it doesn’t stick much.
- Place crackers onto a parchment lined baking sheet. They won’t spread much during baking.
- Bake for about 8-10 minutes, until edges start to get slightly golden brown.
- Remove sheet from the oven and flip the crackers. Bake for additional 2-3 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and let cool.
- Store in the airtight container for up to a week.
 |
| You can cut any shapes you like |
 |
| Sprinkle with salt |
Delicious Homemade Rosemary Prosciutto Crackers
The dough really fought back using a rolling pin. I’ll machine it with the pasta machine next time instead. The crackers crisped once out of the oven.
I did spray them with olive oil as they came out of the oven.
Thanks for sharing Suz. I just got my pasta machine and will definitely use it to make these. I find that resting the dough really helps to make it more relaxed so it rolls better. How did you like them?