GLUTEN FREE CHEESE CRACKERS

     You do not have to be gluten free for long before you realize that tasty treats from the store add up to about a dollar a mouthful.  There are six of those gluten free mouths in our house and they can swallow a ton of food.  


     Boxes of gluten free cheese crackers at the store come in boxes with about enough crackers to feed a sparrow and run about $5 or more.  This is a huge groan factor in my book as I hate feeling ripped off.  There is something about just the name "gluten free" that makes a product quadruple in price.

     Buying gluten free flour and making a homemade version can still be expensive so more often that not when the rest of the crew are chomping down on cheesy crunchy heavenly looking nibbles we just sit there watching and trying not to drool.  

     That crispy crunch type of food is sorely lacking in the gluten free diet unless it is a carrot or an apple.  Now and again on special occasions Grandma would arrive for a visit laden with gluten free treats for the poor deprived children and there would be a box of those crispy tasty cheesy morsels that I am too cheap to buy.  After about 2 crackers each, the box has gone and we are reduced to salivating while everyone else has plenty of their gluten filled counterpart.

     Buying gluten free flour can make baking from scratch almost as expensive as a pre made product.  Most flour runs about $6-7 a pound with the added expense of the xanthan gum.  This recipe uses cornstarch which is a fraction of the cost of tapioca flour and it's counterparts .     


     I used the most expensive cornstarch which was $1.69 a pound but it goes as low as about 70 cents a pound.  I found cheese on sale for about $3.50 a pound.  For about $2 I had the equivalent of about four boxes of crackers.  The problem was making them fast enough because as soon as they came out of the oven a swarm of cracker deprived children landed on them and devoured them.  You might have a family that possesses more self control than my crew but either way I have doubled the original recipe.  It is unlikely that you will want to half the quantities but you can.  

     The original recipe for these tasty treats was found in the book  "You won't believe it's gluten free" by Roben Ryberg.  I have to say that after tasting these I think she chose a good title for her book!



RECIPE

8 OUNCES OF SHREDDED CHEESE ( I used a mix of extra sharp cheddar and swiss )  
8 TABLESPOONS OF BUTTER
1 1/2 CUPS OF CORNSTARCH
1/2 TSP SALT
1/2 TSP XANTHAN GUM
1 TSP BAKING POWDER
2 TABLESPOONS MILK ( I used almond milk)

LINE A BAKING SHEET WITH FOIL AND LIGHTLY GREASE WITH OIL.

SET OVEN TO 400 DEGREES

PLACE ALL THE DRY INGREDIENTS IN THE BOWL OF A HEAVY DUTY MIXER AND MIX WITH THE PADDLE.  

WHEN COMBINED ADD THE MILK AND MIX BRIEFLY SO THE MIXTURE BEGINS TO STICK TOGETHER. 

TAKE A HANDFUL OF THE DOUGH AND ROLL OUT ON A BOARD DUSTED WITH CORNSTARCH UNTIL THE DOUGH IS ABOUT 1/8 INCH THICK.

USE A SMALL COOKIE CUTTER TO MAKE SHAPES OR JUST CUT IN TO SQUARES WITH A KNIFE.  1-2 INCHES SQUARE DEPENDING ON YOUR OWN SIZE PREFERENCE.  BAKE A FEW MINUTES LONGER IF THEY ARE 2 INCHES SQUARE.
BAKE FOR 10 MINUTES. 

CRACKERS WILL BE LIGHT IN COLOR WHEN COOKED AND WILL NOT TURN BROWN SO DO NOT OVER COOK WAITING FOR THEM TO GO BROWN.
PLACE CRACKERS ON A COOLING RACK  

               

TRY MAKING DIFFERENT FLAVORS WITH OTHER ADDITIONS OF HERBS AND SPICES AND CHEESES LIKE PARMESAN. 

LOW CARB GLUTEN FREE FRENCH BREAD

     Gluten free low carb could be considered an oxymoron.  Because most gluten free baked goods are made with combinations of white rice flour, potato starch and tapioca flour they are not a friend of your hips and waistline.  

     This variation on the previous recipe was made up at the request of a friend on a low carb diet.  As with a gluten free diet the thing that is missing with a low carb diet is bread!!!!  While you might have eliminated those carb cravings you will miss the texture and taste of well, lets face it, anything bread like.  

     I am not a fan of a classic low carb diet that is over loaded with fats and meat with a tiny amount of vegetables each day.  Even though there may be successful weight loss there is a cost health wise.  Much better to over load on really healthy carbs like raw vegetables and some fruits.  Going on a diet of just fruits and vegetables for a few weeks can make you not only healthy but thinner at the same time.  

     Being grain free though can be very beneficial when healing from celiac disease.  Because the colon suffers damage from gluten, it can take years to heal properly.  Even though the gluten free grains will not cause damage they may be difficult to digest.  Often people still feel unwell even after eliminating gluten.  Going completely grain free is a possible answer. 

     This  recipe will satisfy that desire for a bread texture without compromising a low carb approach to dieting.  Beans, nuts and seeds are not only high in protein but lend themselves well to gluten free baking.  That is a win win all around.       

     To make this alternative follow the ingredients in the Gluten Free French Bread recipe but substitute the tapioca and the rice flour for the three flours below but make sure to keep all the other ingredients especially the xanthan gum.

1 1/2 CUPS OF CHICK PEA FLOUR
1 CUP OF SUNFLOWER FLOUR
1/2 CUP OF ALMOND FLOUR

     Chick pea flour can be bought at the supermarket and is normally found with the other gluten free flours or online.  Bob's Red Mill makes it and it is labelled Garbanzo Bean Flour.
Sunflower seeds and almonds can be bought raw at the supermarket and then ground up in a coffee grinder.  It will look a bit like flax meal when ground up.  I use my high powered blender but most people do not own one of these.  The coffee grinder will take a bit longer because it is much smaller but will work.  Make sure you wipe it out before grinding your coffee beans.

     The dough will be heavier than the previous recipe.  Add a 1/4 cup of extra water to soften it a bit

     Reduce the cooking time to 35 minutes.  The crust is very dark almost burnt looking but it does not taste burnt.  I eliminated the melted butter on the risen dough before cooking but this was by accident.  It might make a different colored crust.  I added some grated extra sharp cheddar and freshly grated Parmesan to the top of the loaf before cooking.

     The end result is a little more substantial than the regular version but just as delicious.  Freshly grated Parmesan folded into the dough will be my next experiment. 

Enjoy and I know your waistline thanks me!