Foodwhirl

Whole-grain carrot and cheese crackers

This was an experiment loosely based on a recipe I saw over on foodtale.com.  She drew me in with her beautiful photographs and intrigued me with her carrot and cheese snack crackers.

I wanted to do something similar, but use whole wheat flour and flax-seed meal to increase the nutritional benefits.  I was afraid a straight  substitution would result in a dry, dense batter.

“What would whipped egg whites do if they were introduced to the mix,”  I asked myself.

And the rest, as they say, is history.

These are a light, delicate cracker with a nutty whole-grain flavor and the faintest undertone of carrot.  My husband and four-year-old son devoured them as they came out of the oven (of course, I made them wait until they had cooled adequately and I’d had a chance to snap some photos, but after that they were gone).

Make these for your next party and I guarantee they’ll be a hit (and nobody has to know they’re healthy).

Ingredients:

1 cup carrots, steamed

Reserved water from steaming carrots

2/3 cup white whole wheat flour

1/3 cup flax-seed meal

2 oz. sharp cheddar cheese, finely grated

3 egg whites

1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

1/2 teaspoon salt, divided

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

Begin by combining your egg whites, cream of tartar and half your salt in a stainless steel bowl.  Whip these until they form stiff peaks.

In the bowl of a food processor or blender, place your steamed carrots and process until pureed.  To this add your flour, flax-seed meal, cheese, baking soda, and the rest of the salt. Add reserved steaming water a tablespoon at the time while the mixture processes. When it reaches a paste-like consistency, stop. Remove this mixture to a clean mixing bowl.

Fold the egg whites into the carrot/flour/cheese mixture, maintaining as much of the air as possible.

Spoon the mixture into a ziploc bag fitted with a round pastry tip. You could alternately use a cookie gun or just spread the batter in thin circles on baking sheets (crackers resulting from this method are shown at the top of this post).

For cracker sticks, pipe long, thin lines on silicone baking sheets or greased, foil-lined pans. Bake in a preheated 300F oven for 30 minutes.

This last method will result in long, crispy breadstick-like crackers suitable for dipping, scooping and otherwise slathering with your favorite topping.

Tags: appetizer, carrots, kids

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