A fabulous low carb guest post from Kim of Low Carb Maven. These grain-free parmesan crackers are sure to please the kids…and the adults!
With school back in session, I’m always looking for new snacks for my kids; either to put in their lunch boxes or to give to them when they come home. Let’s face it. Their little brains are working furiously learning everything we did at that age and more! By the time they get home they need a little snack to help nourish their bodies and re-fuel those brains.
When I was a kid, goldfish crackers were a popular snack cracker. We always had a package in the house. My mother’s favorite was the parmesan cheese flavored goldfish while my brother and I preferred the cheddar cheese variety (see Kim’s Cheddar Cheese Crackers). I remember her pouring each of us a small bowl of crackers and turning on “The Banana Splits” show for us to watch before we got started on our homework and chores. When we were out of goldfish, we resorted to eating oyster or soup crackers or celery with cheese. We didn’t care, all we wanted was an easy, crunchy snack.
Little has changed since then and my own kids prefer a crispy cracker to almost anything else. Sometimes, I purchase snacks from the store, but gluten-free crackers are expensive and grain-free? Fugeddaboudit! I’d rather make the crackers from scratch at home. They take no time to put together and the only “fussy” part is the rolling. An old pro now, it takes me less than 10 minutes to roll and cut the dough. A pizza cutter makes quick work of it. By the time the oven is ready, so am I.
This recipe for low carb Parmesan crackers has an ingredient that produces a texture unlike any other low carb cracker – crispy and flaky just like the real thing. Nutritional yeast, affectionately called “nooch”, is full of b vitamins and has a wonderful “cheesy” or umami flavor. It was the secret ingredient in many vegetarian dishes I used to make back in the day. If you are trying to avoid yeast, you can feel assured knowing that this product is rendered inactive by heat processing. It’s rich cheesy flavor compliments the Parmesan nicely.
Looking for some tasty grain-free, gluten-free cheese crackers? Check out this recipe from Texanerin Baking!
Every time I make these parmesan cheese crackers my kids beg for more. At 3 net carbs per 10 crackers I don’t mind obliging!
Kim develops tasty low carb recipes in her California kitchen. Find more great recipes on her blog Low Carb Maven and follow her on Facebook, Pinterest or Instagram.
Low Carb Parmesan Cheese Crackers
Ingredients
- 2 cups almond flour
- 2 ½ ounces freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- ¼ cup Bob’s Red Mill Nutritional Yeast
- 1 tablespoon buttermilk powder optional - provides tang
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon granulated garlic
- ¼ teaspoon granulated onion
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Optional Flavorings (variations):
- 1 tablespoon dried chives
- 1 tablespoon dried parsley
- 1 tablespoon lemon pepper omit salt above
- ¼ - ½ teaspoon dried dill
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F and place the rack into the middle position. Cut a piece of parchment paper to fit the dimensions of your sheet pan. My pan is 18 by 13 inches (or 46 by 33 cm).
- Measure the dry ingredients (the first 8 ingredients) into a medium bowl, stirring thoroughly with a whisk to break up any lumps.
- In a smaller bowl, whisk the eggs and olive with a fork. Add the egg mixture to the bowl with the dry ingredients. With a rubber spatula, work the ingredients together to form a ball of dough.
- Place the parchment on the counter and the ball of dough on top. Flatten the dough slightly with your hands. Cut a piece of waxed paper longer than the parchment and spray one side with baking spray. Place it oil-side-down on the dough and begin rolling out the crackers. I roll a few times, then lift and reposition the waxed paper. Cut any dough that goes beyond the parchment and patch it to areas that need more. Continue until the dough is even in thickness and just about to the edges of all sides of the parchment.
- With a sharp knife or a pizza cutter, cut a neat edge around the perimeter of the dough, discarding the extra bits. Then, proceed to cut the dough into 1 inch columns and rows, yielding 90 -100 1 inch x 1 inch squares. I like to cut the short side first, leaving the long side for last - and I use a ruler. This whole process should take about 8 minutes.
- Bake for 15 minutes. Remove and let cool for 5 minutes. Carefully break up the crackers, spread them evenly in the pan, and place them back into the warm oven for 10 minutes to complete baking. Cool completely before enjoying. Store in an airtight container on the counter or in the refrigerator if you prefer.
Notes
Calories: 174
Fat: 14
Carbohydrates: 5
Fiber: 2
Protein: 9
Net Carbs: 3
Anna Wisner says
Very tasty! Funny story about these crackers, I misread the recipe and added only one egg instead of two. So, rolling them out was complete chaos. I worked really hard, kept spraying the mixture with a little avocado oil, and cursing under my breath, and finally got them scored and into the oven. When I looked at the recipe, I realized my mistake. I yanked them out, scraped them into a bowl, added the second egg, and oh what a difference! The second time around, it only took a few minutes to roll them out and score them! lol Lesson learned: always double check the ingredients!!
Rona says
so I read about these nutritional yeast and understood I could just dry my regular dry yeast in a pan, gonna give it a try.. (i think I wrote my first comment on the cheddar crackers, but I’m not sure)
Beth says
These crackers are delicious, and stayed crisp for an entire week. I don’t know how much longer they would have lasted because I ate them all before I could find out.
Carolyn says
Glad to hear it!
Teresa says
I didn’t have nutritional yeast or know what it was (I have since googled it but not sure I can get it here in Belgium–What could I use as a substitute? )> I put in dry yeast instead, turned out fine and they are very filling!! My biggest problem with the crackers recipes is to get the dough the same thickness throughout the pan (and not have some burning because they’re too thin)
Marie says
I don’t have any buttermilk powder, I know it’s optional, but I was thinking of trying cream of tartar for tang. I was thinking I should add less than the buttermilk powder though, and wondered if anyone else has tried it? I haven’t tasted buttermilk powder, but cream of tartar seems pretty sour… is anyone able to do a comparison between the two? Are they similarly tart?