These sesame & chia seed crackers are full of flavor and come together quickly with only 6 ingredients. They are great for dipping into hummus or topping with cheese. Plus, the seeds add nutrients and great flavor with a long shelf life, making this an excellent pantry staple. 

I get weird amounts of joy making things from scratch that you normally buy in the store. Lately my endeavors have gotten more and more ambitious, like making homemade yogurt (eek!) and puff pastry. But I also love making simpler homemade pantry staples, like crackers. 

I will be the first to admit that sometimes my homemade things are loved for the sake of being homemade. Maybe because they don’t have any unnecessary ingredients or because it was fun to experiment. They are not all delicious. This is not the case with these crackers. I love these because of their flavor. Ok, and also because they don’t have unnecessary ingredients and because they are fun to make. Sometimes it just all works out. 

Measuring Flour 

Lately I’ve been excited about having a full kitchen again someday…scale, muffin tins, cast iron skillet, stand mixer, etc. That’s right, I’ve been whipping up whipped cream (and everything else) by hand for two years! I’ve started reading cookbooks for fun on my kindle, which is not a hobby I would’ve predicted for myself. I’m reading about how much variation there can be with measuring cups and flour- whether you spoon and level or scoop it directly into the flour can vary your measurements, and therefore results, greatly. And while I can see myself easily being converted to a kitchen scale full time in the future, it’s not a tool I have right now. 

As I’ve made these crackers again and again I do find that the amount of flour needed consistently varies depending on the day and batch which, among other things, probably has to do with my flour measuring!  

When making these crackers try to pay attention to the texture of the dough and add more flour as needed. You should be able to knead this dough without it sticking too much to your hands or the bowl. If it’s still sticky, continue adding a bit more flour until you have a soft, sort of shiny dough that isn’t sticking. If the dough is wet, it will still make delicious crackers, but it will be a pain to roll out. Go partly by feel and trust yourself! 

Rolling & Cutting your Crackers

The first time I made these crackers I cut them, individually poked them and then moved each cracker to the sheet. I only needed to do that for one round before I realized a ‘work smarter not harder’ method was needed (one of my favorite methods). 

So now, I roll out the dough on the parchment paper, slice it into the square cracker shapes and poke the holes with a fork all before moving it onto the baking sheet. No need to separate the crackers or move them one by one. Quicker and easier. Because I don’t care that each one is beautifully the same, there ends up being quite a bit of variation in size. This usually results in the corner or end pieces getting more brown than the rest. That’s ok though, because if you take them out before that it will mean the majority of the middle crackers are not finished. 

I don’t know about you, but I like a crisp and crunchy cracker. I want a snap and not a bend. Sacrifices need to be made. But I find that even those little burnt ones end up getting eaten along the way. 

Feeling doubtful that these little crackers can bring so much joy? To that I would say, you never know until you try. You might find the same satisfaction in making something homemade that you’d normally buy. ?

Sesame & Chia Seed Crackers

These crackers are full of flavor and come together quickly with only 6 ingredients. They are great for dipping into hummus or topping with cheese. Plus, the seeds add nutrients and great flavor with a long shelf life, making them an excellent pantry staple. 

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Prep Time 20 mins

Cook Time 30 mins

Total Time 50 mins

Ingredients

  

• 1 cup plus 1 Tablespoon of AP flour
• ½ teaspoon salt, plus more for sprinkling
• 2 tablespoons chia seeds
• 1½ tablespoons sesame seeds
• a few grinds of pepper (optional)
• ⅓ cup water
• 2 teaspoons olive oil, plus more for drizzling

Instructions

 

• Preheat the oven to 390° F (200° C).
• Mix the flour, salt, pepper, chia and sesame seeds together in a medium-sized bowl. Then add the olive oil and water and start mixing together to form a dough (I used a fork).
• Continue bringing the dough together with your hands or a wooden spoon, adding flour (teaspoon at a time!) if the dough remains too sticky. Knead the dough in the bowl, or a nearby floured surface, for one minute until you have a workable dough that's soft, but not sticky. Split the dough in half.
• Roll out the first half of the dough on parchment paper and a cutting board. Roll the dough very thin, about 2-3 mm. Rolling it thin enough ensures the baking time is correct for crisp crackers!
• Drizzle some olive oil on top (1 teaspoon) and spread with a pastry brush to create a shiny finish. Cut the crackers into squares as evenly as possible. Poke them with a fork all over. Top with a sprikle of sea salt and put the parchment paper directly onto a baking sheet and into the oven.
• Bake for 13-15 minutes, depending on the thickness of your cracker. The very outside crackers will get quite brown, but don't worry! Let them cool before trying them both to prevent your mouth burning (yep, did that) and to allow them to crisp up.
• Repeat with the other half of the dough.

Notes

• I've adapted this recipe from Camilla over at fabfood4all. And she notes her recipe is adapted from Cooking for Geeks by Jeff Porter. 
• For a visual on how the cut crackers should look before going into the oven, see the pictures above! 
• The crackers should start to brown before you take them out. If they are still white and pale the sesame flavor will not come through enough. 
• I've also had luck with these crackers that require sourdough discard.