Homemade Cheese Crackers
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If you’ve ever flipped over a box of Goldfish crackers and read the ingredient list you know there’s a lot going on in there that doesn’t need to be. These homemade cheese crackers are the answer to that. Real sharp cheddar, real butter, flour, a few simple seasonings, and a little cold water. That’s it. They go into the food processor, come together into a dough in about five minutes, chill for 20, roll out, cut, and bake. The result is a crispy, deeply cheesy, genuinely satisfying cracker that your kids will love just as much as the orange bag from the store, except you know exactly what’s in every single one.
They make about 240 to 250 small crackers from one batch which sounds like a lot until you watch a bowl of them disappear in about ten minutes.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- The ingredient list is six things you already have in your kitchen and nothing you can’t pronounce. Real food, real flavor.
- The food processor does almost all the work. This is not a complicated or time-consuming recipe despite producing something that looks and tastes impressively homemade.
- They’re genuinely crispy and deeply cheesy in a way that feels satisfying and snack-worthy without any of the additives or preservatives that come in the store-bought version.
- One batch makes a huge amount which means you’re set for snacking for several days.
Ingredients Needed to Make Homemade Cheese Crackers
- Sharp cheddar cheese: the primary flavor driver. Grate it yourself from a block for the best result. Sharp cheddar specifically produces a bold, distinct cheese flavor that comes through in every cracker.
- Butter: grated cold and added directly to the food processor. The cold fat is what creates a flaky, crispy cracker texture rather than a dense one.
- All-purpose flour: the structural base that holds everything together and gives the crackers their crunch.
- Salt: seasons the dough throughout. The crackers are pleasantly salty without any added flaky salt on top but a light sprinkle before baking adds a nice finishing touch if you want it.
- Garlic powder and onion powder: add a subtle savory depth that rounds out the sharp cheddar flavor without being detectable as a distinct seasoning.
- Cold water: added gradually just until the dough comes together. Don’t add more than you need.
- Flaky sea salt: optional finishing touch sprinkled on top before baking.
How to Make Homemade Cheese Crackers
Step 1: Make the Dough
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Add the grated cheddar, grated cold butter, flour, salt, garlic powder, and onion powder to the food processor. Process until crumbly and combined. With the processor running slowly drizzle in cold water until the dough just comes together. Divide into two discs, wrap, and refrigerate for 15 to 20 minutes.
Step 2: Roll and Cut
Remove one disc at a time and roll out to about 1/4 inch thick on a lightly floured surface. Cut into small squares or use a fish-shaped cutter. Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Poke a small hole in each cracker with a toothpick.
Step 3: Bake and Cool
Bake for 9 to 11 minutes until golden brown. Let cool completely on the pan before serving. They’ll crisp up fully as they cool.
Storing
Store in a sealed airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. They stay crispy well when properly sealed. For longer storage freeze in a sealed bag for up to 2 months and let thaw at room temperature before serving.
How to Serve Homemade Cheese Crackers
Serve in a bowl as a standalone snack or alongside soup for dipping. They’re excellent with a simple cheese board, scattered over a bowl of tomato soup, or packed into lunchboxes as a real food alternative to the store-bought version. Once you start making these regularly you’ll find yourself reaching for them constantly.
What People Ask About Homemade Cheese Crackers
Why do I need to grate my own cheese?
Pre-shredded cheese from a bag is coated with cellulose or other anti-caking agents that prevent the shreds from sticking together in the bag. Those same coatings interfere with how the cheese incorporates into the dough in the food processor and can produce a grainy, uneven texture in the finished cracker. Freshly grated cheese from a block melts into the dough smoothly and evenly and produces a noticeably better cracker.
Why grate the butter instead of cubing it?
Grating the butter produces very small pieces of cold fat that distribute evenly throughout the flour mixture much faster than larger butter cubes would. The small pieces also stay cold longer during processing which is important for producing a crispy, flaky cracker texture. Softened or melted butter incorporates too completely and produces a denser, less crispy result.
Why poke a hole in each cracker?
The hole allows steam to escape from the center of each cracker during baking. Without it the crackers can puff up in the center and produce an uneven, slightly hollow result instead of a flat, uniformly crispy one. A simple poke with a toothpick before baking solves it.
Why do they need to cool completely before eating?
The crackers come out of the oven slightly soft and finish crisping as the moisture evaporates during cooling. Eating them warm can give the impression that they didn’t bake long enough when they actually just need a few minutes to set. Give them 10 to 15 minutes to cool on the pan and they’ll be perfectly crispy.
Can I use a different cheese?
Yes. White cheddar produces a slightly milder, slightly more buttery flavor. Gruyère adds a nuttier, more complex character. Parmesan produces a very savory, intensely flavored cracker with a slightly harder texture. Pepper Jack adds a mild heat throughout. Sharp cheddar is specifically recommended for the boldest, most recognizable cheese cracker flavor but experimenting with other hard cheeses is one of the most fun parts of making these from scratch.
Homemade Cheese Crackers
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Add the grated cheddar, grated butter, flour, salt, garlic powder, and onion powder to a food processor. Process until crumbly and well combined.
- With the processor running slowly drizzle in the cold water until the dough begins to come together. Add only as much water as needed — you may not use the full 2 tablespoons.
- Once the dough holds together when pressed remove it from the food processor and divide into 2 equal discs. Wrap and refrigerate for 15 to 20 minutes.
- Remove one disc from the refrigerator and roll out to about 1/4 inch thick on a lightly floured surface.
- Cut into small squares or use a small fish-shaped cutter. Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Poke a small hole in each cracker with a toothpick to prevent puffing.
- Bake for 9 to 11 minutes until golden brown. Let cool completely before serving. They crisp up as they cool.
Notes
- Grate the cheese and butter yourself rather than using pre-shredded. Pre-shredded cheese has anti-caking coatings that prevent it from processing smoothly into the dough. Freshly grated incorporates evenly and produces a better texture throughout every cracker.
- Grating the butter cold and adding it directly from the grater keeps it from warming up too quickly in the food processor which is what helps create a flaky, crispy cracker rather than a dense one.
- Don’t over-add the water. Add it slowly with the processor running and stop the second the dough holds together when pressed. Too much water makes the dough sticky and the crackers tough rather than crispy.
- Let them cool completely before eating. They’ll feel slightly soft right out of the oven and crisp up fully as they cool. Don’t judge them warm.
