Gluten-Free Cheez-Its
These Gluten-Free Cheez-Its - from my book, "Beyond Flour 2" - are Gluten-free cheese crackers JUST like actual Cheez-Its... only better!
Note: This recipe was first posted on my original blog, Celebration Generation, on November 15, 2016. It was transferred over to this blog - existing comments and all - on 9/17/2021
Hey, did you know that Beyond Flour 2 came out a couple weeks ago?
Neither did I!
Well, I guess technically I DID... but between a convention, Halloween, the election, etc... I managed to completely forget to formally announce it.
Whoops!
I'm definitely more of a recipe developer than a book marketer, so dropping the ball on promoting it probably shouldn't surprise me. Yikes, though.
It's a great book, if I do say so myself.
After tackling a bunch of "Holy Grail" type recipes in the first Beyond Flour - Chewy cookies, stuffed pasta, perogies, proper pita bread, and more - I had even more confidence and experience when it came to developing the sequel, so I got to play around a bit more.
It's fun to see what you can come up with, when you throw convention to the wind.
I'm particularly proud of the gluten-free graham crackers and hybrid tortillas - each of which make use of *one* specialty ingredient, which makes all the difference with each respective recipe.
In the graham crackers, that recipe's secret ingredient means the difference between those vaguely cinnamon flavoured GF crackers that are labelled as "Graham crackers", and proper graham crackers that are completely indistinguishable from the source material.
For the hybrid tortillas, THAT special ingredient meant the ability to create a tortilla that looks and acts like a flour tortilla, but with the taste of freshly roasted corn.
SCIENCE. I love it!
Also pretty proud of the bagels and soft pretzels, but I don't want to sound like I'm bragging. 🙂
ANYWAY.
2 weeks late, I'd like to mark the occasion of the book release, by sharing one of the recipes from Beyond Flour 2: Cheese crackers.
Gluten-Free Cheez-Its
This is one of a few cracker recipes in the book, including butter crackers (Like Ritz), and a grainy rectangular cracker inspired by my favourite from my pre-GF days, Vinta.
I've just never really been into the commercially available GF crackers, you know?
They tend to cost an insane amount of money, and tend to be either mini hockey pucks, or basically compressed powder.
Also: They almost always taste like sadness.
I wanted crispy, flaky crackers that tasted right. Buttery, flavourful crackers with airy layers... that would also hold up to being served with toppings.
It was a tall order, but I did it!
These cheese crackers were inspired by Cheez-Its... but they're so much better.
The use of good cheese in these really elevates them over the source material, with a cleaner, clearer cheese taste.
These puff up significantly in the oven, yielding very flaky, buttery crackers.
You may want to double the batch, as they go fast!
More Gluten-Free Snacks and Appetizer Recipes!
Looking for even more fantastic gluten-free munchies that *everyone* will love? Look no further!
Ahi Tuna Nachos
Gluten-Free Air Fryer Jalapeno Poppers
Gluten Free Beaver Tail Recipe
Gluten-Free Chicken Nuggets
Gluten Free Chicken Pakora
Gluten-Free Chicken Satay
Gluten Free Corn Dogs
Gluten-Free Doughnut Holes Recipe
Gluten Free Fried Brie
Gluten-Free Gougeres
Gluten Free Mixed Vegetable Pakora
Gluten-Free Paneer Pakora
Gluten Free Pizza Bites
Gluten-Free Samosa Recipe
Gluten Free Soft Pretzels
Gluten-Free Sauerkraut Buns [Piroshki]
Gluten Free Tempura
Jalapeno Popper Dip
Loaded Mini Baked Potatoes
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Well, the published nonsense, anyway!
Gluten-Free Cheese Crackers (Like Cheez-Its)
Equipment
- Parchment Paper
Ingredients
- ½ cup Corn Starch
- ½ cup Millet Flour
- ¼ cup Sorghum Flour
- ¼ cup Light Buckwheat Flour
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- ½ teaspoon Xanthan Gum
- 8 oz Shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese
- ½ cup Shredded Parmesan cheese
- ½ cup Cold Butter chopped
- ⅓ cup Cold Water
- Additional corn starch for rolling
Instructions
- Measure corn starch, flours, salt, and xanthan gum into the bowl of your food processor, blitz to combine.
- Add cheeses and butter, blitz a few times until mixture resembles gravel.
- Stream in cold water as you run the food processor, just long enough to start to bring it together as a dough – you may need to use a little more or less water. Do NOT over-process it!
- Remove dough from processor, knead lightly to bring it together as a ball. Wrap in plastic film, chill for 1 hour.
- Preheat oven to 375 F (190 C) . Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Scatter some corn starch over your – clean! – work surface. Roll dough out ¼″ thick, cut into 1″ square pieces.
- Use a chopstick or small straw to poke a hole in the center of each piece, carefully transfer to lined baking sheets.
- Bake for 11-12 minutes, or until golden and puffy.
- Allow to fully cool to room temperature before storing in an airtight container.
Okay well these look just plain amazing. Will have to make a large batch... any ideas on how long they keep // long-ish term storage? Perhaps vacuum seal?
Vacuum seal would probably help, but might deflate them / squish them - they're a little fragile, being so flaky! Not sure about long term storage, as these are one of those things that ends up disappearing long before they have the chance to go bad!
I did lose a bag of one of my other GF cracker recipes... found it more than a month later. They were still OK (no mold, etc), but were stale. That was just in a normal ziplock.
Hi! Will any starch work in place of the cornstarch? We are wheat- and corn-free. Thanks!
Potato or arrowroot
Can I replace the millet and sorghum flours with anything else? Almond flour or gf all purpose?
Possibly, but the recipe won't necessarily work the same way. It was developed with this flour mix in mind, every GF flour behaves differently when it comes to things like how it handles moisture, etc.
I used a gluten free flour with the X gum in it. I just needed to get the dough level. I used a meet skewer on either side of my dough and then rolled it out. My oven is new so tell a process of learning. And my husband wants more cheese in it. I used Red Mill Gluten free 1 to one. I will tweak it next time.
Hi Linda,
I removed your rating, as you didn't actually make my recipe. I chose the flour amounts to taste and work a certain way - substituting for a generic mix flour will NOT produce the same results.