Polly want a cracker?

Have you ever thought of making homemade crackers? I hadn't, until I ran across this recipe on Smitten Kitchen. These Parmesan cream crackers are a nice little treat. They are thicker than a store-bought cracker and extremely easy to make. After rolling out the dough, I cut it with one of my kids' playdough accessories to make the crackers look more like the real thing. Feel free to get creative. You could spread something on them or serve them with soup.

THE RECIPE:

1 c. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 c. grated fresh Parmesan cheese
4 Tbsp. unsalted butter*
1/4 c. cream or half-and-half

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, or lightly dust with flour. Put flour, salt, cheese and butter in bowl of food processor. Pulse until combined. (You could do it by hand with a pastry blender.) Add cream and mix until dough forms. (You'll probably have to finish combining it by hand.)

Roll out dough on lightly floured surface until it's a fourth-inch thick or less. From into individual crackers -- mine were about an inch and a half long. Place on baking sheet and poke with fork. Bake until moderately browned, about 12 minutes. I think mine took longer. Cool completely on rack before eating so they will be dry and crisp. Makes about 30 crackers.

*If you are using salted butter, reduce the amount of salt in the recipe by half.