Sparkle Kitchen

sparkle kitchen: "just cheese" crackers

In this week's The Willowbee Tree story, “Through the Hedgerow,” Piper comes home feeling tired of all the same things. From multiplication tables at school, to over-familiar snacks and games at home, Piper is tired of things being “always the same”.

When the Willow Tree takes her, Clancy, and Little Ty to a verdant land of grassy fields and beech hedgerows, the local cows show her that adventures abound in their neck of the woods. But the cows' definition of “adventure” is a bit different from what Piper was expecting.

Do you ever get a little envious of cows? I do, sometimes. Particularly on spring days, when the sky is a gleaming aquamarine and the grass smells warm and sweet. Wouldn't it be nice to nap in the fields? To have nothing to do but eat and make milk?

In a nod to the cows of this story, this week's recipe is made from milk — or, rather, from milk's favorite daughter, cheese. These “just cheese” crackers have long been a cracker substitute for folks who can't eat wheat, but they're delicious enough to make for their own sake.

You can use just about any mix of shredded cheeses that you have on hand. In fact, this is a great recipe to make if you need to use up the odd ends of several blocks or bags of cheese. You can also change up the seasoning blend, if you like.

Baked off for just a few minutes, the resulting cracker is a crunchy treat that — even if you can't quite call it an “adventure” — is certainly a welcome variation to “always the same.”

“Just Cheese” Crackers

Ingredients

1 cup shredded cheese (feel free to use a mix of leftovers to make your own unique blend)

Leaves from 5-10 sprigs of fresh thyme

½ tablespoon garlic powder

Directions

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees, and prepare a bake sheet (or two) by covering it with parchment.

Toss together the cheese, thyme, and garlic powder.

Divide it out on the bake sheet in scant tablespoons, spreading out the cheese so that each cracker is about 3 inches wide and leaving about an inch of space between crackers.

You will have to make these in batches, so don't get tempted to pile on more cheese. They should look sparse, and if you use too much cheese you'll end up with floppy, soggy crackers.

Bake the crackers for 5-7 minutes, or until they're mostly brown, even in the center. Remove them from the parchment and move to a rack to cool.

--- Download the recipe card HERE.

If you liked this recipe, here are other you might enjoy:

• Cheesy Crackers
• Baguette Sandwich
• Strawberry and Goat Cheese Salad

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