The saltine crackers is a great, wholesome snack for any time of the day… let’s make our own from scratch! Find this and many more recipes with pictures on the Giallozafferano App (in English) http://itunes.apple.com/app/giallozafferano-recipes/id384387249?mt=8
***
They were created in the United States, in 1801, to give sailors a savoury biscuit suitable for long sea voyages: the saltine crackers take their name from the crunchy sound they make when you eat them. Let’s make our own from scratch!
Ingredients for about 60 crackers
Saltine crackers
(60 pieces)
• 4 cups (500 g) of flour
• ½ cup (120 g) of extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp (4 g) of active dry yeast • ½ tbsp (10 g) of salt
• ¾ cup (180 ml) of water
For brushing
• 2 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tbsp of water
Sift the flour into a bowl, then dissolve the yeast in a little water and add the resulting mixture to the flour… mix with your hands, then add the oil and the remaining water, in which the salt has been dissolved. Now knead until blended.
As you can see, the dough has come together, so transfer to a pastry board… perhaps dust with a little flour, and continue to knead until the dough is smooth and even.
The dough is ready, now place in a bowl, cover with cling film, and let it rise at room temperature for a couple of hours; you can use the turned off oven, with the light turned on. It should double in volume.
The dough is risen, so it’s time to roll it out and cut out our crackers. Take a small piece of dough… I’m using an electric pasta maker, but you can use a hand-crank machine or a rolling pin: you want it to be very thin, about 1/10 inch (2 mm). So start with a wide setting… to make the dough smooth and even… then set the machine to a narrower setting, until the dough is 1/10 inch (2 mm) thick. Flatten another piece of dough… and pass it through the rollers at the wide setting, a couple of times, at least.
When the dough is as thin as desired, cut into rectangles, 2 1/3 inches (6 cm) wide by 4 ¾ inches (12 cm) long. Use a fluted pastry wheel for the short sides, and a sharp pastry wheel for the long sides. After that, draw a line down the centre of each rectangle with fork tines, then poke 5 holes in each half, to create the classic saltine crackers… in this way. You can use a wooden skewer to poke the holes, then place the crackers on a baking sheet, lined with parchment paper, and bake in a preheated static oven at 390°F (200°C) for about 10-12 minutes, until lightly browned. Before baking, brush with a mixture of water and oil; then sprinkle with salt or chopped herbs, if you like.
The saltine crackers are done! Remove immediately from the baking sheet, to avoid over browning. Once cooled, they can be stored in a tin box for at least a week. From Sonia, bye bye and see you next videorecipe!