Crispy Cottage Cheese Crackers
Crispy homemade cottage cheese crackers that taste just like Cheez-Its with double the protein. Make them with sourdough or keep it classic with no protein powder and no additives.
Servings: 28 grams
Calories: 112kcal
Equipment
- Food processor pastry cutter
- Small blender
- Rolling Pin Pasta machine
- Quarter sheet pans
- Parchment paper
- Pizza cutter or pastry wheel
- fork
- Wire cooling rack
Ingredients
- 113 grams full fat cottage cheese blended smooth (1/2 cup)
- 113 grams extra sharp cheddar finely grated (1 cup)
- 28 grams unsalted butter softened (2 tablespoons)
- 120 grams all-purpose flour 1 cup
- 100 grams sourdough discard or active starter scant 1/2 cup
- 1.5 grams kosher salt 1/2 teaspoon
- garlic powder 1/2 teaspoon
- dry mustard powder 1/4 teaspoon
- smoked paprika 1/4 teaspoon
- flaky sea salt for topping 1 teaspoon
Instructions
- Add the cottage cheese to a small blender and blend for about 60 seconds until completely smooth with no visible curds. It should look like thick sour cream. Smooth cottage cheese keeps the dough consistent and the texture even.
- Add the blended cottage cheese, grated cheddar, softened butter, and sourdough to a food processor. Pulse 8 to 10 times until combined. Add the flour, kosher salt, garlic powder, mustard powder, and smoked paprika. Pulse just until the dough comes together into a shaggy ball. Do not overmix or the crackers will be tough.
- Turn the dough out and divide it in half, then cut each half in half again so you have four equal portions. Working in smaller portions gives you better control when rolling. Press each into a flat disc, wrap tightly, and refrigerate for at least 45 minutes or up to 48 hours.
- For a standard oven, preheat to 375 degrees F. For a convection oven, preheat to 350 degrees F since the fan circulates heat. Line two quarter sheet pans with parchment paper.
- Remove one dough portion and let it rest at room temperature for 15 minutes before rolling. This relaxes the gluten and makes the dough easier to work with. Keep the other portions cold.
- You have two options to roll out your dough. Use a pasta machine or use a rolling pin by hand. Both are simple it just depends on your preference.
To Use a Pasta Machine for Rolling
- Flour the dough well. Using a pasta machine, start at setting 1, then 3, then 5, flouring lightly before each pass. To roll by hand, roll between two sheets of parchment as thin as possible, about 1/16 inch. Thinner dough makes crispier crackers.
To Roll By Hand
- Flour the dough and place the dough between two sheets of parchment paper and roll it out as thin as you possibly can, about 1/16 inch. Thinner dough makes crispier crackers, so do not be afraid to really work it out.
Continue for both methods
- Transfer the rolled dough on the parchment to a sheet pan. Score into 1 inch squares with a pizza cutter or pastry wheel and separate each cracker slightly for crispier edges. Dock each cracker with a fork 2 to 3 times to prevent puffing. Sprinkle with flaky sea salt.
- Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until golden and the edges begin to deepen in color. Start checking at 15 minutes. Pull any crackers that finish early and return the rest to the oven. Repeat with the remaining dough.
- Turn the oven off and leave the crackers inside for 5 more minutes to pull out the last of the moisture. Watch closely on convection since the retained heat is more intense.
- Transfer to a wire rack and cool completely. The crackers continue to crisp as they cool. Do not store them warm or they will steam soft.
Notes
Storage:
Store completely cooled crackers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. They were still perfectly crisp on day three of testing. If they soften, warm at 350 degrees F for 5 minutes and cool again to bring back the crisp.
Classic Version, No Sourdough:
To make these without sourdough, omit it and increase the cottage cheese to 163 grams (about 3/4 cup) and the all-purpose flour to 170 grams (about 1 and 1/2 cups). The extra cottage cheese and flour replace the moisture and structure the sourdough provides. Skip the long ferment and simply chill the dough for 45 minutes to 1 hour before rolling. Everything else stays the same.
Make Ahead:
The unbaked dough keeps in the refrigerator for up to 48 hours. Make a batch of dough and bake fresh crackers in small portions throughout the week. For the sourdough version, a long overnight ferment deepens the flavor.
Substitutions:
Bread flour is an equal 1 to 1 substitute for all-purpose flour and gives a slightly sturdier, crispier cracker. For a gluten free version, use a 1 to 1 gluten free baking flour such as Bob's Red Mill 1 to 1 Baking Flour. Discard and active peak starter are interchangeable in the sourdough version.
Cheese Variations:
Extra sharp cheddar gives the most Cheez-It like flavor, but gruyere, pepper jack, smoked gouda, parmesan, and colby jack all work beautifully. Always grate from a block since pre shredded cheese contains anti caking agents that affect texture.
Troubleshooting:
If the dough is too sticky to roll, add flour one tablespoon at a time until manageable. Cottage cheese moisture and sourdough hydration vary by brand. Use full fat cottage cheese, since low fat versions hold more water and make crackers harder to crisp.
