Sesame Crackers - 2g Carbs, 1g Dietary Fiber
Homemade Whole Grain Crackers
By MARTHA ROSE SHULMAN VIA The New York Times
Published: May 2, 2011
Martha Rose Shulman is the author of "The Very Best of Recipes for Health."
There are plenty of whole-grain crackers on store shelves, but none
taste as good to me as those made at home. You can use a mix of grains
and flours to make them, including gluten-free varieties like millet,
buckwheat and rice flours, and top them with any number of seeds, herbs
or spices. They're quick to mix together and very easy to roll out.
Recipes for Health
Martha Rose Shulman presents food that is vibrant and light, full of
nutrients but by no means ascetic, fun to cook and to eat.
Crackers are a great destination for sesame seeds, an excellent source
of copper and manganese, and high in lignans, a type of fiber that may
help lower cholesterol. I sprinkle my crackers with everything from
sesame seeds to za'atar, Parmesan and chili powder. I also like to use delicious black seeds known as both nigella and charnushka, which are
used in Indian and Middle Eastern cuisines to flavor breads and other
pastries.
"Healthy" crackers can be hard and dry, but this week's offerings are
not. I use olive oil in all of them, and some work best with a small
amount of butter.
Sesame Crackers - 2g Carbs, 1g Dietary Fiber
I've been making sesame crackers for decades, tweaking my recipe over
the years. They have a wholesome, rich, nutty flavor.
1 1/4 cups whole-wheat flour
1/2 cup toasted sesame seeds
1/2 tsp salt
5 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil or sesame oil
4 to 5 Tbsp water, as needed
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees with the racks positioned in the
middle and upper third. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. Mix together the flour, sesame seeds and salt in a mixing bowl, in
the bowl of a stand mixer, or in a food processor fitted with a steel
blade. If using a mixing bowl, add the oil and cut in with a fork. If
using a stand mixer, mix at medium speed. In a food processor, pulse
until the mixture is crumbly. Add the water, and mix with your hands,
or at medium speed in a mixer or in the food processor, until you can
gather the dough into a ball.
3. Lightly dust your work surface and roll out the dough, or roll out
between pieces of parchment, plastic or wax paper. Cut into desired
shapes -- squares, diamonds or cookie-cutter shapes -- and place on
the baking sheet, close together but not touching.
4. Bake 15 to 20 minutes until lightly browned, switching the sheet
trays front to back and top to middle halfway through. Remove from
the heat, and allow to cool on racks.
Advance preparation: These will keep for about a week in an airtight
container.
Yield: About four dozen crackers
Serving Size: 1 cracker
Nutrition per Serving:
33 Calories, 0g Saturated Fat, 1g Polyunsaturated Fat,
1g Monounsaturated Fat, 0mg Cholesterol, 2g Carbs, 1g Dietary Fiber,
25mg Sodium, 1g Protein
