Homemade crackers are well-loved in our home – rustic, flavorful and tender, they’ve become a favorite of both visiting children and adults. While preparing homemade crackers doesn’t require too much time or kitchen know-how (even a novice can master the slow techniques of mixing, kneading and rolling), the results are simply lovely – a reminder of a time gone-by when everything served at the supper table was made with love, and always from scratch.
In our version of homemade crackers, we rely on whole grain flour for its rich and earthy flavor and nutritive value. First whole grain flour is combined with fresh yogurt, and allowed to rest overnight which fulfills the dual purpose of not only improve the tenderness of the grain, but also improving its nutrient profile. All whole grains contain antinutrients – naturally present substances like food phytates which keep the grain from sprouting until conditions for the plants growth are optimal, but also bind up with minerals in our digestive tracts, preventing their full absorption. Fortunately, the traditional methods of soaking, sprouting or souring grains prior to preparing breads, cakes, muffins and even homemade crackers not only improves the bioavailability of minerals, but also improves their digestibility and flavor.
In this recipe for homemade crackers, we use whole, full-fat yogurt to soak the flour before combining the dough with good quality grass-fed butter, which creates a flaky texture and crumb. Season the crackers with coarse sea salt, dried chives or dill, or leave them plain, anyway you make them is worth your time and effort.
homemade yogurt & spelt crackers
By Published: October 26, 2010
- Yield: 120 crackers (12 Servings)
- Prep: 20 mins
- Cook: 7 mins
- Ready In: 27 mins
Flaky, tender, crispy – these homemade crackers take little effort; however, they’re prepared first by soaking whole grain spelt flour in fresh yogurt which both tenderizes the flour and improves its nutritive qualities. Consider adding dried herbs to the dough for a variation in flavor.
Ingredients
- 3 cups whole grain spelt flour
- 1 teaspoon unrefined sea salt
- 1 cup full-fat yogurt (try making raw milk yogurt)
- 1/2 cup butter (plus 2 tablespoons melted butter)
Instructions
- Stir three cups whole grain spelt flour and one teaspoon unrefined sea salt with one cup full fat yogurt in the bowl of a stand mixer equipped with a dough hook. Continue to process until the dough forms a smooth ball.
- Place the dough in a mixing bowl and cover it with a tea cloth. Leave the dough to rest at room temperature overnight and up to twenty-four hours.
- Once the dough has rested overnight or up to a full day, preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Knead one-half cup softened butter into the dough, then divide the it into four separate balls to make rolling it more manageable.
- Flour your working surface and your rolling pin, place one ball of dough into the center of your work surface and roll it to 1/8-inch. Cut the dough into rounds with a biscuit cutter, or into triangles or squares with a pizza cutter or sharp knife.
- Brush each unbaked cracker with melted butter, prick with the tines of a fork to prevent puffing and bake in an oven preheated to 450 degrees Fahrenheit until brown and crispy, about six or seven minutes.
Thanks for the lovely recipe. I can’t wait to try them. What’s the best way to store them and what is their shelf life?
I just made these with buckwheat and lard (more than you’ve listed, as my yogurt is so stiff) and they came out well. Except for the batch that I turned my back on – those are little briquettes. Did yours sort of fry on the baking stone, or is that a function of the added oils in mine?
For the love of pete… how does one knead 1/2 c. softened butter into the thick dough-ball? Short of being slathered in butter up to my elbows, my dough hook/bowl are merely spinning the dough with the extra lubrication. Tips? Thank you!
Get slathered up to your elbows in butter.
Don’t use a machine for this; rather, physically knead the chilled butter into the dough.
I tried these last night and they were very tasty. Instead of kneading the dough, I laminated it. I rolled out the dough slathered it with the soft butter then folded and repeated the process until it was well incorporated into the dough. Laminating takes a bit more time but the results were excellent. However, I did find that in order to crisp these crackers up I had to let them sit longer in the oven (more than the 6-7 minutes). After cooking them at the temperature recommended here, I turned the oven off and cracked the door slightly to allow the crackers to sit and dry out a bit more – I had to keep an eye on them to make sure they did not burn or brown too much. In the end they were very close to the consistency of a Dr Kracker – but richer because of the butter and yogurt. I will continue to play with my food here, working from this great base recipe. Thanks..
Are they supposed to be more flakey or crunchy? Maybe I didn’t roll mine thin enough. I found that if I rolled them out on parchment paper it was a lot easier to just move the paper to the cookie sheet then each cracker.
Figured it out! I just spread the.second batch with my hands so I could feel the thickness. They are a huge it in this.house!
Jenny, I’m confused. In the recipe, you said use softened butter and now you are saying use chilled butter. Please explain further. Thanks
Hmm… I’m not seeing a reference to chilled butter – where are you seeing that? I used softened butter to mix into the dough (after the dough had sat w/ yogurt mixed in for 24 hours), and then I brushed a little melted butter over the top of the rolled-out dough. Tasted great.
I probably didn’t roll mine thin enough, because they weren’t crispy after 15 minutes in the oven, so I put them in the dehydrator for a few hours. Had a nice crunch after that.
Could i use something non dairy in place of the yogurt and butter? They sound fab but i’m trying not to eat yogurt. Thanks
There are non-dairy yogurts available. My favorite is almond. I am going to make this with goat yogurt as I can’t tolerate cow milk.
Would these work in the dehydrator?
Jenny, will there reduced break down of the phytic acid/ antinutrients/gluten due to the use of yoghurt (calsium) in this recipe?
-G.M
Would these work with einkorn flour? It is a little different.
Have you tried this with einkorn flour? I would like to make these.
I’m interested in making this recipe but the only problem is that I have a really bad dairy allergy. I was wondering if you think it might work with plain soy yogurt and the butter with Earth Balance?
I just made a batch of these today, using kefir in place of the yogurt and 1/2 the suggested butter. They turned out really nice. We eat so much butter already, that I couldn’t get myself to use 2 full cubes. I could only fit half the dough on my stoneware pizza pan, so the other half is yet to be baked. Baking time was 10 minutes before the outer crackers began to brown. I put the inner crackers into the toaster oven for a cycle and they crisped right up. Thank you for posting this recipe. This is the first time i have done a soaked grain recipe. I have sprouted my own wheat and ground it for bread and muffins. The naysayers of sprouted grains may say that there isn’t much of a difference btwn sprouted and not, but my body tells me otherwise! I am interested to see what it says about soaked