Parmesan Crackers

Sometimes you just need a little something to go with that salad or bowl or soup, and saltines just won’t do the trick.  Here is a quick, easy, one ingredient cracker that will become immediately addictive and that’s a promise.  Amaze your friends and pat yourself on the back – this is a good one.

One ingredient – parmesan cheese.  That’s it.  You can get a little fancy and add some Asiago or other dry type cheese, but no need if you don’t want to.  The first step is to grate the cheese.  You can use a grater, as shown below…

Since I am generally lazy, I usually prefer the food processor route.  The cheese should be cut into about 3/4 inch cubes, then add a little at a time to prevent machine seizure.  You do not want to be put in the position of trying to pry cheese off of food processor blades.  I am speaking from experience here. Get a good base going and add a little more at a time.  You can make it as finely chopped as you like, but we are going for a lacy look here, so I left them fairly good sized.

Your next decision is cracker size.  You can make them as large or as small as you like.  These guys are about 3-4 inches across.  Use a spoon or an ice cream scoop, place them on some parchment paper or a Silpat mat, and then gently mash them down.

Pop them into the oven at 350 degrees and watch..  It should take about 10 minutes until they are melted and bubbly.  Look for a nice golden color.  If they get a little darker, absolutely no big deal.

Let them cool please.  They will become nice and crispy.  You can eat them right away, or store in a covered container in the refrigerator if you have any left over.  I didn’t.  Great with a bowl of Spring Pea Soup, or with a Winter Greens Salad.  If you’d like to see the Spring Pea Soup recipe, scroll to the bottom of the Bird’s Nest Bites Home Page, and click on ‘page 5’.  Scroll to the bottom, and the recipe is in the posting dated March 21, 2015.

I’d say we should have three crackers instead of one.  And then maybe three more.

I hope you like these as much as I do.  Enjoy!!  xoxoxo

PARMESEAN CRACKERS - THE ONE INGREDIENT WONDER

Roberta Reynolds

This quite possibly could be one of the easiest recipes you will ever make, but it never ceases to amaze anybody I serve it to. Why? Simple. It has only one ingredient, which happens to be cheese. It’s really hard to find a cheese hater out there, and even more difficult to find a melted cheese hater.I love horsing around with this recipe. For starters, you don’t have to use the super expensive Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. For this recipe, I opt for domestic Parmesan, or a Grana Padano. My favorite way to make them is to use a combination of cheeses, and love a combination of Parmesan/Grana Padano, Asiago, and Provolone. Often I will throw in a little bit of Sharp Cheddar too – It just depends on what is hanging around the house when the mood strikes. The only thing you want to be careful about is the use of super moist cheeses like Mozzarella or Jack. I think that would make the crackers spread too much, unless you used it in combination with mostly a drier cheese.

Just thinking… If you happen to have a guest or family member who cannot eat dairy, you might try this out with one of the non-dairy cheeses out there. I haven’t, so just suggesting at this point.

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 20 minutes mins

Ingredients

  

• Freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Use as little or as much as you want keeping in mind that each cracker uses about 2 tablespoons of cheese.

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Grate the cheese by hand or use a food processor. If using a food processor, cut the cheese into about 1-inch cubes and process in small batches or you will run the risk of getting the processor blades stuck in cheese. This is not pretty.
• Drop the grated cheese in about 2 tablespoon scoops onto a cookie sheet that has been well greased, or on parchment paper, or on a Silpat mat. Note: A coffee measuring spoon works well for this since it just happens to be 2 tablespoons. Pat the cheese down to form a round, cracker shape.
• Bake the crackers for about 10 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbling fiercely and starting to turn color to a more golden shade.
• Remove from oven and let cool on the baking sheet. When cool, you can serve immediately. If you have any left over, I like to keep them in a zip lock bag in the refrigerator. These crackers can also be frozen.