Being an avid reader of food blogs long before I decided to get my own, I would often come across posts labelled as a "Daring Bakers (or Cooks) Challenge." It was only months later that I decided to look further into the matter (gosh, I'm making it sound like something so much more serious than just a community of food bloggers, aren't I?) and I discovered what it was all about; essentially, the Daring Kitchen is an online community where recipes and advice is discussed and shared by bloggers, budding chefs and fatties alike (guess which one I fit into). The Daring Kitchen Challenges come in two types; the Daring Bakers and the Daring Cooks, who would each month take on a new "challenge" and cook something new, different and sometimes, just plain weird (just wait 'til the next challenge post....).
Each month on the 27th, everyone involved posts and shares their products and everyone joins together in a collective screen-licking. Or something.
Yes, it's past the 27th but I found me some fine print, dictating that there is a one week "grace period" to post so it's all good :). Yes, I'm just making excuses for my procrastination again. Shut up.
SO NOW onto the actual challenge.
This month's challenge was very generous and not too difficult, allowing free reign on the choice of recipes and involving nothing too difficult. The challenge was to create any sort of cracker/crisp flatbread, so long as it was crunchy (so no like...un-crisp flatbread). I made two types of crackers, one using olive oil as the binding agent, the other using butter. The second one was definitely preferred, although next time I'll be sure to add more pepper and perhaps some dried herbs or something, it was a bit too plain with just the cheese. The dough was a little tricky to work with due to all the cheese and butter, but it was nothing too difficult.
On the other end of the seasonings spectrum, the olive oil crackers were waaay over-seasoned and were definitely too salty for my liking (although my sister loved them). A shame, since I quite liked the crispy texture of these. Perhaps next time I'll refrain from chucking in the entire seasonings drawer into the mix (jokes, I'm Indian* and you'd actually die if that happened).
Easy Cheese Crackers (Adapted from Nigella Lawson)
- 100g plain flour
- 200g grated cheddar cheese
- 50g soft butter
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
1. Place all the ingredients into the food processor and process until the mixture starts to come together.
2. Bring together into a dough using your fingers and wrap the dough in cling wrap. Allow to rest in the fridge for half an hour or until dough is firm to the touch.
3. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees and grease two large baking trays.
4. Roll out the dough until it is approximately 3mm in thickness. Use a cookie cutter to form cookies and place on a greased baking tray.
5. Bake for ten minutes or until golden brown.
6. Allow to crisp up on the baking tray for five minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Olive Oil crackers with Herbs
- 1 cup plain white flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 4 tbs water
- 2 tbs dried herbs
- coarse sea salt, to sprinkle
1. Preheat the oven to 190 degrees and grease two
baking trays.
2. Combine all the dry ingredients in a bowl.
3. Add the olive oil and water, stirring til the
mixture starts to come together as a dough. Add more water if the mixture is
too dry, but keep in mind that it will be very crumbly.
4. Form the mixture into a dough with your fingers and
roll out into a thickness of approx. 3mm.
5. Use a cookie cutter to form cookies and place on a
greased baking tray. Sprinkle each cracker with a small amount of sea salt. Be
careful not to oversalt!!!!
6. Bake for ten minutes or until golden brown.
7. Allow to crisp up on the baking tray for five
minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Blog checking lines: Sarah from All Our Fingers in the Pie was our February 2013 Daring Bakers’ host and she challenges us to use our creativity in making our own Crisp Flatbreads and Crackers!
