Break out the Rolling Pin!
Do you think rolling pins are passé? I mean as a cooking utensil, not as the chosen weapon of cartoon wives trying to keep a misbehaving husband in line. Ready-made crusts notwithstanding, I think there are probably plenty of “from-scratch” bakers out there who would be lost without a rolling pin. It also seems to me they would be the ultimate family heirloom, very practical and practically indestructible.
If you have handy that ancient, heavy wooden pin mom used, or if you’ve gone all 21st century and have a steel or marble pin, this recipe gives you an excuse to exercise those triceps and deltoids with some rolling pin repetitions, and create Christmas cheese crackers at the same time.
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You’ll need:
1 cup of butter or margarine, softened
1 cup (4 ounces) grated sharp cheddar cheese
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons chopped chives
1 teaspoon whole caraway seed
1 teaspoon steak sauce
¼ teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon salt
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, beat butter and cheese until well blended, using the lowest speed of an electric mixer. Add the next 5 ingredients, mix until a soft dough forms. On a lightly floured surface reminiscent of a Christmas Eve dusting of snow, use a rolling pin to roll out dough to thickness of ¼ inch. Use a tree-shaped cookie cutter to cut out the crackers. Transfer to a greased baking sheet. Sprinkle salt over the crackers. Bake 12 to 15 minutes or until crackers are the color of Jeanie’s (from the song) hair.
Cool completely on a wire rack and store (a moot point if your family gets really hungry wrapping all those gifts they got you) in an airtight container.
This recipe makes 3 ½ dozen crackers and is a nice change from cookies. Although some of us (see last week) don’t necessarily want a change from cookies.
