A few readers have shared a homemade “goldfish” crackers recipe with me. I decided to try the recipe (with several modifications), and while the outcome tasted good, the process of rolling out the dough took some time and made a huge mess.
Want to Save this Recipe?
Enter your email below & we'll send it straight to your inbox. Plus you'll get great new recipes from us every week!
As a busy mom I am a big fan of shortcuts, so the goldfish recipe inspired me to come up with these easy cheesy crackers. Making your own “crackers” from scratch sounds like such a daunting task, but trust me…this recipe is ridiculously easy!
Of course if you make this “easy” version you end up with round crackers as opposed to fun little shapes, but the last time I checked my daughters didn’t discriminate against a circle. They were too busy gobbling up these crackers and asking for more to even think about what shape they were eating.
And these are by no means just for kids. There are so many ways to get creative, which would surely impress any adult as well. Before baking experiment with adding some of these spices to the dough:
- black and red pepper
- fresh or dried rosemary
- diced olives
- diced jalapeños.
Or instead of mixing in herbs and spices, just top off the baked cheese crackers with something fun like pesto and grape tomatoes (just like we did for our dinner club last year). No matter what you end up doing, have fun with it and enjoy!
Easy Cheesy Crackers
Ingredients
- 1 cup whole-wheat flour
- 5 tablespoons butter (cold (cut into tablespoon size chunks))
- 1 ½ cups cheddar cheese (grated (the sharper the cheese, the cheesier the crackers))
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Combine all three ingredients in a food processor and blend. The mixture will eventually turn into one big ball chasing itself around the bowl. Be patient because it can take a few minutes.
- Roll the ball into a log about 1 ½” in diameter. At this point you could refrigerate the dough until later.
- With a sharp knife slice ¼” thick pieces off the log (pictured above) and place each one flat on an ungreased baking sheet. Try to rotate which side you are cutting down on because the top of the log does start to flatten a little. It is like your very own homemade slice and bake!
- If you want your crackers to look a little fancy (as pictured above) take a fork and gently mash down the top of each one before baking.
- Bake for 8 - 14 minutes or until golden brown. The thicker the crackers the longer it will take.
These crackers can be stored in the freezer so double the recipe and save some for later!
Notes
Nutrition Facts
Entered on Food Renegade's Fight Back Friday
free iphone budget app says
Greetings from Idaho! I'm bored to tears at work so I decided to browse your blog on my iphone during lunch break. I enjoy the knowledge you provide here and can't wait to take a look when I get home. I'm surprised at how fast your blog loaded on my phone .. I'm not even using WIFI, just 3G .. Anyhow, amazing site!
Becky Vance says
Here's a link to the bisquick recipe from the gracious pantry http://www.thegraciouspantry.com/clean-eating-bisquick/
Becky Vance says
There were a few comments regarding looking for a "clean" bisquick recipe... I like a site called "The Gracious Pantry"...it's all clean recipes and she has a clean biquick recipe...no sugar :)
Jill Robinson says
These are so so addicting. My first batch came out shaped like mini pieces of toast. Still tasty, just needing to perfect the shape. So, the second batch as I cut off my piece from my log I rolled up into a ball and then used a fork to make criss cross design. I am hoping these will be more pretty. There is something about eating food that is pretty and presentable!!! Thanks again!!!
Jill Robinson says
I just made these crackers without a mixer but with a fork, spoon, and my hand. I did have to add about 4T of milk for the dough to ball up as another person suggested. Thank you for that suggestion. I did sprinkle a little sea salt on them before baking. They are wonderful and so fresh tasting. Thank you for this easy and delicious recipe.
Heather says
I am excited to hear that gluten free cornmeal worked ... can't wait to try! If you added turmeric..a small amount.. would that give them the "orange" color like goldfish?
Abi says
just wanted to share that I made these in my stand mixer. It took about 30 minutes of mixing at medium speed. At the end of the time, the dough was still pretty crumbly so I used a spoon to mash everything together until it had the described consistency, this took about a minute. Then I formed my loaf, cut my crackers and cooked them. They are delicious!!! Thank you for this easy and tasty snack!
Karen says
Here is a recipe that can be used in place of any storebought boxed biscuit mix. I haven't tried it yet. It's from [email protected]; it does have sugar in it.
3 cups whole wheat flour
3 cups unbleached flour
6 TBSP. baking powder
3 TBSP. sugar
1 tsp. salt
1 cup cold butter (Trans fat-free shortening or lard can be used.)
Mix all the dry ingredients together well and cut in the butter until it is in pea-sized amounts. For lighter, more layered biscuits, it's best not to cut the butter too small. Store in a tightly covered continer in the refrigerator until ready to use.
Thank you for all the great ideas on this blog. They could not have come at a better time.
Donna says
I stopped buying cheese-its and goldfish crackers about a year ago, although, I have to admit every once in a while I have bought a box because my kids love cheese crackers. I made these tonight and I LOVE them.. I am going to have to wait till my kids get home so they can try them, but I am sure they will to. I just could wait to post to say how amazing these are!
Danielle says
Awesome crackers!! My son love crackers but I hate him eating the store bought variety with added flavors and colors. These are perfect for him. Thanks
Bet says
Thanks for this! I just made these for my super picky 4 yr old and he keeps asking for MORE more more! I did add a handful of carrot pulp left from juicing a bunch of carrots, figured I'd trick him into some veggie fiber AND it added color. Double bonus!
Mary Kathryn says
We made these today and they were a success- I have tried other homemade crackers and cheese crackers that didn't work for us. My three year old daughter is quite the addict to the cheddar bunnies. After reading this post I pushed myself even more to get them out of our house on a regular basis and prepare her for the homemade change. I am sure she will still ask for bunnies for a little bit she loved these so there is hope!! :)
Kelsey says
I was really worried about this recipe and I dont have a food processor so I had to form the dough by hand. I was so worried they wouldn't come out mostly because it is so hard for me to find good recipes. I dirtied my blender and magic bullet. But, success because they are so good! My VERY picky 7 year old likes them and she does NOT like cheddar cheese. My husband said wheat has an aftertaste but he likes them - had to sprinkle salt on them, but he ate them! No salt for me or my daughter! Yay!
January says
We are going to make these today! The boys and I are going to try a cookie spritzer to see how well that will work!
mila says
hi
i got a question can i make this with ap flour? this looks so good i cant wait to make it
Cali says
made two batches of these today...hopefully I don't eat them all! I made one with some garlic salt sprinkled on them and another with cayenne mixed in the dough. Both are soo good!! Thanks for the awesome reacipe!
Lois says
Thank you SO much! I have 2 kids that cannot have gluten, so I substituted blue cornmeal for the whole wheat flour, and they came out fabulous!
Valerie says
Looks like a great recipe, do you have the nutritional breakdown, like calories per cracker??
100 Days of Real Food says
Nope we don't count calories, fat grams, carbs, sugars, etc. We just eat a variety of whole foods especially produce and the rest falls into place. It is so much easier than all those crazy fad diets!
Kelly says
These are delicious! Myself, and my parents loved them! (I'm trying to break them of their processed food habits, and have been incorporating more natural foods into the household)
100 Days of Real Food says
Good for you! I am still working on trying to change my parents as well LOL
Alycia says
Wondering if anyone had tried this with a different type of flour? Have to stay away from gluten.
Kelly says
Alycia, I used brown rice flour (http://www.bobsredmill.com/brown-rice-flour.html). It's relatively cheap at HEB and Kroger stores around here in Houston. They tasted delicious (I also made with sharp cheddar - my favorite!) and came out with a perfect crunch, so I don't think the brown rice flour had any effect on the taste or consistency! :)
Merriett Ferris says
I modified the recipe for these a little to make them just like cheezits... yum!
I rolled the dough out as thin as I could (its hard with this dough because its kind of sticky) but anyway, after they were rolled out super thin I cut them into little squares and put them on the baking sheet. Then I sprinkled them with a little salt.
Bumped up the temp to 400 degrees and cooked them just long enough that they were a little golden but not brown (sorry, I didn't time it so I'm not exactly sure how long I cooked them for.) YUMMY!! Thanks for sharing this recipe!
100 Days of Real Food says
I love the idea of sprinkling them with a little salt before baking...thanks for sharing your variation!
Sabrina says
I made the crackers tonight. I'd been waiting all week! The first batch, I very soon realized, were cut too thick. So the next batch, I was able to cut them much thinner. Bingo! We have a winner :) Thanks for sharing this recipe.
Have you tried the brie & walnut crackers from Deliciously Organic cookbook? I'll be trying those next weekend!
100 Days of Real Food says
Thanks so much for the feedback...and no I have not tried Carrie's crackers yet. I bet they would be a winner too!
tammy says
I made these last night and man were they good and SO easy to make. Wondering if this could somehow be modified to make sausage balls with. I love them but since bisquick isn't an approved baking item wondering if this somehow could be tweaked to make them? Any ideas?
100 Days of Real Food says
Can you send me your sausage ball recipe so I can see exactly what is in it?
kerrie says
I make sausage balls using whole wheat flour and a bit of baking powder instead of bisquick.
I use one package (about 1lb.) of breakfast sausage - from our farmers market, about 8oz shredded cheese and about 1c whole wheat flour adding 1tsp of baking powder. I am sorry there isn't much of a recipe, I make a lot of things up and don't measure much. I mix all of that together and roll into balls and cook at 350 until they are browned.
JaniceT says
The dough came together perfectly. I used a fork to press them down to get a uniform thickness. They baked up perfect in my toaster oven and I could not wait for them to cool. These are so good, I almost burned my mouth! I will be making these again & again. I got 32 crackers larger and thicker than a Ritz cracker. :) Yummy!
100 Days of Real Food says
So glad they turned out good...love getting the play by play from you. LOL!
JaniceT says
Sorry I guess the link should say http://www.grasspoint.com
JaniceT says
I am making these as soon as my butter gets good and cold for a few minutes in the freezer. :) I have exactly 4oz left of an 8oz block of all grass fed extra sharp 4yr old cheddar cheese from Grass Point Farms that I found in the grocery store this week. I think it will be perfect for these crackers!! :)
grasspoint.com
April says
I am completely loving this blog! :) My husband and I have decided to change our families way of eating, though we are taking it slowly (instead of 100 days off the bat)!
Anyway, I just tried to make these-- I waited for almost 10 minutes without seeing any progress in the dough, so I added a few tablespoons of milk-- I hope that's OK. It did then ball up nicely! I have it chilling so I can cut it easily. I can't wait to try them!
100 Days of Real Food says
I am glad the milk made it happen for you...and welcome to the blog!
K says
Can you make this without the food processor?
100 Days of Real Food says
Try cutting in the butter with a fork and then mashing the dough together until it is one big ball. I hope it works for you!
Carrie says
You could try a pastry cutter too. They are small and should be inexpensive yet will work for cutting fats into flours. I have one that I have used for a long time and that is what my mom always uses.
Jennifer C. says
I'm excited about making these. I've become somewhat addicted to crackers and hummus lately and love the idea of making my own crackers. I'm going to try these this weekend.
Michelle says
These are awesome! I love that your recipes are so simple and so good! I never even thought about making my own cheese crackers, but they were so easy I had to try them - with just 3 ingredients, how could I not? Just like the other recipes we've tried from here, it has spoiled my tastebuds so that I'm never going to want to eat boxed crackers again. I actually did roll out my dough, and my kids had a great time using the small leaf cookie cutters to cut out the crackers. Another winner!
100 Days of Real Food says
Thanks so much for the review...glad the crackers were a hit!
Barb says
I'm going to make these after dinner. I can't wait! Thanks for the recipe.
Heidi says
Yum! I can't resist crackers for some reason. Sweet or savory, it doesn't matter. Yours look so good :)
Jamey Beckham says
These look great! ThAnks! Will the person w/ the graham cracker recipe please share! Love all this info!
sara says
I've tried other homemade 'fishy' cracker recipes with so so results-will try this one today and see if my kids like it better!
Sally C says
I am definitely trying this recipe. Wendy, if you can find Cabot cheddar it is vegetarian, rennet free, gluten free and is free of casein (I believe). I am very picky on the cheeses I use since I went vegetarian 5 years ago. I have been doing this lifestyle of only cooking with REAL food for many years (as close to what GOD created as possible) and my family is happier and healthier for it.
Jazmin says
Casein is milk protein. If the cheese was made from milk (organic or otherwise) it has casein in it naturally. Some processed food might add more, but to get rid of it entirely basically means not starting from milk. For those of us who are allergic to it, we keep quite close track of where it comes from. :)
Wendy P says
Just had a question, and BTW can't wait to try these and I just got those cute little shape cut-outs from Pampered Chef that I plan to try just so my kids aren't "weirdos" even more than I make them out to be ;)
Back to the question? I'm just asking b/c there has been a concern about the amount of casein in processed cheese and the link to some cancers. Do you use organic cheddar cheese? I haven't made the switch yet but am thinking about it after I read the article. Any thoughts?
100 Days of Real Food says
We do use organic whenever we can!
Aubre Rice says
YUM! I can't wait to try this for my family! Thanks thanks thanks for all your awesome recipes!
100 Days of Real Food says
you are welcome! glad you enjoy them :)
sheri says
very excited to try these!!!! we gave up most crackers when we started reading labels and trying to get rid of partially hydrogenated oils. i keep saying i need to find a recipe for regular crackers as i've been making the kids homemade graham crackers for awhile. now i have no excuse, the recipe fell in my lap!
100 Days of Real Food says
I would love your graham cracker recipe if you don't mind sharing!
sheri says
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ cups butter, melted
½ cups honey
mix together flour, cinnamon, baking powder, and soda. separately, mix the butter and honey and then pour into the dry ingredients. mix well and drop onto a greased baking sheet. roll out to the corners with a rolling pin. i usually end up using my hands to press out the mixture as it tends to be pretty sticky! bake for 10 minutes at 400 degrees. cut quickly when they come out of the oven. my kids love it when i use different shaped cookie cutters! these are delicious warm out of the oven, but they also keep well...and taste great with a cup of coffee (for mom, not the kiddos!)
Genna Haddad says
Sheri - with the graham cracker recipe, have you ever tried it without cinnamon? I just made these - and my kids LOVED them BTW, but I am not a huge fan of cinnamon. Just wondering if they would taste too plain without.
Tami says
Try adding 1/3 cup cocoa to the recipe to make chocolate graham crackers. That might help avoid bland crackers if you leave out the cinnamon as well.
Brandi says
I just found this site and can't wait to try the recipes!! I love this one and hope to get my husband OUT of the vending machine at work.
Jessica says
Ten minutes ago I asked my kids if they wanted to make these, and now they're in the oven. They couldn't have been easier. Next time I'll try making the chocolate version. I can see that this recipe could deplete our local-honey supply quickly!
Kelly says
Love the Easy Cheesy Crackers. Also love the Graham Cracker recipe posted by Sheri. My son had the biggest smile on his face munching on both. So delicious! I don't think I will every by store made crackers or graham crackers again. Can't wait to try some spices in my next batch of Cheesy Crackers and the chocolate idea in the grahams. Thanks so much for the great recipes and ideas!
Rachel says
Love these graham crackers... going to make another batch tomorrow. Looking forward to finishing our goldfish, so I can switch over to homemade cheesy crackers too. Thanks ladies! :)
Angie says
Just preparing for the mini pledge and found this old thread, but the original commenter's recipe has "A" before some of the ingredients... so not sure if it is supposed to be 1 1/2 t baking powder or just 1/2 t baking powder. Any advice is welcome!!
Jennifer says
Thanks for this recipe! I am excited to try it. We do eat Goldfish in our house but I am glad to try something that is homemade and whole wheat.
apryl says
I can't wait to try these!!! I was just having a discussion with my husband about how horrified I was to find out that Goldfish have GMO's. We tried the bunnies but I wasn't impressed with them. I think I'll add some flax or chia seeds to add an extra nutrition boost.
Nancy R. says
What are GMO'S?
100 Days of Real Food says
Genetically Modified Organisims...it basically means the pesticides are built into the plant's seed (rather than just being sprayed on when it is growing). So it is far from organic and some think even worse than standard conventional produce.
Debbie T says
Ooh I love your addition suggestions!!!