Taste&Create XI: Cinnamon Sugar Crackers

As a perpetual nibbler, I have to be careful about what foods I keep on hand in my kitchen and around the house. One of my favorite snack foods has always been Stacy’s Pita Chips – the cinnamon sugar flavor especially. One bag can disappear in a day if I’m left unsupervised. This past week I tried a new recipe for Taste&Create XI that may be able to replace my addiction…

My partner this week was Heaven is Chocolate, Cheese and Carbs – and her recipes certainly are heavenly. I picked this one because of my peculiar addiction to cinnamon, and the snackability factor. These are great for dessert, a snack, and even with breakfast. They are toasty and crisp, with a savory cinnamon seasoning that satisfies a sweet craving.

The only change I made was that I used molasses & sugar (I’ve been experimenting with molasses recently – I think it’s a new favorite) rather than just sugar, and I also added a bit more cinnamon – I’m not sure how much extra; I just kept sprinkling 🙂

Cinnamon Sugar Crackers

Ingredients
2.5 cups flour (I used whole wheat)
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon molasses
4 tablespoons olive oil
3/4 cup cold water

topping:
3 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 400F.
2. Thoroughly mix together dry ingredients: flour, sugar, cinnamon, and salt.
3. Mix together the molasses and oil, then add to the dry ingredients, along with half of the water. Continue to add water to get a rough, dry dough. Knead on a floured surface until you have a cohesive ball.
4. Divide the dough into 4 quarters. On a piece of parchment paper, the dough as thin as possible. (I actually should have rolled mine a little thinner.) Cut the dough into squares (or another shape, as desired), and prick with a fork. Sprinkle generously with the cinnamon sugar mix. (I had some left over – but not much.)

5. Bake for about 15 minutes, or until golden brown. (Note: if you put molasses and extra cinnamon, these will be a bit darker than golden brown!) Turn the sheet halfway through. While the first batch is baking, roll out another quarter.
6. Let the crackers cool before breaking them apart. If you don’t eat them all in one sitting, store them in a ziploc bag to preserve freshness. ENJOY!

Summing up: like I said earlier, I really enjoyed these crackers – flavorful and light, but satisfying.

There is another variation on this recipe that I’ll probably try – same as this, but with herbs instead of cinnamon and sugar. I have CSA oregano and rosemary that I dried, and I think they’d be excellent. Bobby loves herbs almost as much as I love cinnamon, so I don’t think those would last long either.