Allergy Friendly ‘Diamond Crackers’…

My growing up years are replete with memories of mom (or, ‘amma’ as I call her) whipping up batches of these adorable hand-cut crackers every so often. She would even let my brother and me help make the dainty little squares or diamonds – cooking is a great time to bond with family! Traditionally, these crackers are made with all-purpose flour but I will be using a gluten-free flour blend.

The gluten-free blend is the recipe for self-rising flour mixture from Living Without magazine and contains the following:

• Sorghum Flour: 1 and 1/4 cup
• Rice Flour: 1 and 1/4 cup
• Tapioca Flour/ Starch: 1/2 cup
• Xanthan Gum: 2 tsp
• Baking powder: 4 tsp
• Salt: 1/4 tsp

Mix it well and store it in an airtight container till you need it. The recipe is inspired by one of the most popular Indian chefs, Sanjeev Kapoor – whose recipes are simple and easy to follow. The best part is that the same dough can be used to make diamond crackers that are baked or fried. The baked one is obviously healthier but both are equally delicious in slightly different ways.

Ingredients:

1. Gluten-free flour: 1 cup
2. Allergy Friendly butter substitute: 1/4 cup
3. Powdered Sugar: 6  tbsp
4. Cardamom powder (optional): a pinch
5. Fennel seeds (optional): 1/2 tsp (crushed coarsely)

Method:

1. Mix all the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl.
2. Add the butter substitute. I used Earth Balance vegan butter. Rub in the butter into the flour with your finger tips till the mixture  resembles coarse bread crumbs.
3. Now add cold water (less than a tablespoon at a time) to the mixture  and bring it together into a soft dough. This flour mix require very little water so add very slowly else you will have a wet mess on your hands. You will need less than a 1/4 cup of water.
4. Let the dough rest for 20 – 30 minutes.
5. Divide into 4 balls.
6. There are 2 ways this can be converted into a cracker: baking and deep frying.
7. If you are planning to deep fry it, dust the rolling pin and board liberally with gluten-free flour. If you are planning to go the baking way use the minimum amount of flour that you need to roll out the dough because the powdery feel on top of the cracker leaves an annoying after taste when baked.
8. Now gently roll each ball into approximately a 6″ – 8″ thick circle. It will crack but keep cementing the dough together with your fingers as you roll gently.

   

9. Use a rolling cookie cutter or pizza cutter or knife to cut the rolled out dough into small one inch squares or diamonds.

Baking:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degree F.
2. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and gently place the cut dough on it.
3. Bake it for 9 – 10 minutes. The edges will darken in color when it is done. Keep a close eye on the oven because these cookies can burn easily. (I burnt my first batch by keeping just 1 minute more and oven temperature 25 degrees hotter – blah!!!)
4. Let the cookies cool down completely before serving or packing in an airtight container.

Deep Frying:

1. Heat oil in a deep frying pan – the ideal temperature is 350 degree F.
2. Gently add the square/diamond cut dough to the oil and deep fry to a golden brown.
3. Remove it onto a plate lined with kitchen paper to absorb the excess oil.
4. Let the cookies cool down completely before serving or packing in an airtight container.

The crackers whether baked or fried have the right amount of crunch without being hard – definitely an awesome snack for kids.  And, a great snack for adults to…serve it with fruits, Daiya dairy-free cheese wedges for an allergy-friendly cocktail party.

I would like to end this post with a shout out to an avid Allergy Foodie supporter, Ashwin to wish him a very Happy Birthday. I am yet to meet him in person but his larger than life persona energizes through humor and motivates through personal example all those around him. Thanks to a job that puts him in some of the remotest corners of the world – this adventure sports loving, musician and humane army dad brings unique input to Allergy Foodie – gluten-free Nepalese beer, water chestnut flour tortillas, apricot kernel oil and more. And, on the personal front – I would not have jumped out of a plane at 13000 feet if it had not been for his laughter inducing encouragement 😉

Wishing you a sunny  life dude and thanks for your precious input to Allergy Foodie!