High Raw Cheez Crackers with Almond (or Peanut) Butter
March 7, 2013
in Crackers and Flatbreads · Raw · Slow Food
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Raw Peanut Butter Crackers from An Unrefined Vegan

Why do you want to climb Mount Everest?
Because it’s there.
– George Mallory to a New York Times reporter, 1923

Why did I want recreate a former teenage favorite – Austin Cheese Crackers with Peanut Butter?  Because my dehydrator was there.  I once had a raging one-pack-a-day addiction.  My mother enabled my habit by including the pocket-sized packets in care boxes she mailed to my college dorm. When those supplies ran out, I’d scrounge for quarters for the vending machine or save up so I could buy bulk packages to satisfy my ceaseless craving for the salty, nutty, eerily bright orange snack cracker filled with something that resembled peanut butter.

Austin Cheese PB Crackers

My object of my addiction.

I kicked the habit long before I gave up cheese and animal products.  Went cold turkey.  There was just something about that orange color that nagged at me.  But I never forgot the thrill I got tearing open a package and devouring all six, perfectly square peanut butter sandwiches (probably washed down with an icy, cold Coke – another habit I kicked long ago).

The dehydrator was there.  I was there.  So I made raw cheez crackers with almond butter.

Raw Peanut Butter Crackers from An Unrefined Vegan

One year ago today: Orange Poppyseed Waffles with Blueberry Sauce

 

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High Raw Cheez Crackers with Peanut Butter

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  • Author: Annie
  • Prep Time: 10
  • Cook Time: 480
  • Total Time: 1440
  • Yield: 128 1x
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Description

As a kid, I loved those bright orange crackers filled with sweet peanut butter. As a grown-up, the ingredient list scares the heck out of me! So I made my own raw version with carrot, apple, flax, and a touch of maple syrup.

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 cup flaxseed meal
  • 1/4 cup raw coconut flour
  • 1/2 cup nutritional yeast
  • 2 medium-sized carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
  • 1 apple, cored and cut into chunks
  • 1 1/2 cups almonds, soaked for 8–10 hours, rinsed and drained
  • 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 tsp. white miso
  • 1 Tbsp. maple syrup

Instructions

  1. In a large bowl, combine the flaxseed meal, coconut flour and the nutritional yeast. Set aside.
  2. In a food processor, grind the almonds into a crumbly meal – don’t over process, otherwise you’ll have almond butter. Not a bad thing, but not what you’re looking for here. Empty the almond meal into the bowl w/ the flaxseed mixture. Process the carrots and apple until you have a nice mash. Scrape the mixture into the big bowl.
  3. Add the remaining ingredients and stir until thoroughly mixed. The mixture should be moist but hold together when pressed.
  4. Divide the mixture in two and spread one half on a dehydrator tray that has been covered with a non-stick drying sheet. You’ll just about be able to cover the full sheet. To get an even surface, I cover the dough with another non-stick sheet and gently roll with a rolling pin. Carefully lift off the non-stick sheet. Once the dough has been rolled out, gently score the surface into squares.
  5. Place the trays in the middle of the dehydrator and set the temperature to 145F. Dehydrate for 30 minutes, then reduce the heat to 115F and dehydrate for an additional 6-8 hours or until the cracker are very crispy all the way through.
  6. About halfway through the process, I carefully transfer the dough to a dehydrator screen.

Notes

  • Make these 100% raw by using agave nectar.
  • I have not tried this recipe using an oven – but give it a go, if you are adventuresome. Spread the dough on baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Set the oven to its lowest temperature, leave the door open a bit and bake until crispy.

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Raw Peanut Butter Crackers from An Unrefined Vegan

 

68 thoughts on “High Raw Cheez Crackers with Almond (or Peanut) Butter”

  1. Shira

    Oh my goodness! These look too good – and those original snacks…the type of food I could only dream my mother would give me. Truthfully never had a cheese cracker with peanut butter but it’s safe to say I’m craving one now! Yummy! I’m tempted to try these in my oven since my dehydrators are long gone 🙂 I want at least ONE back!

    Reply ↓
  3. tearoomdelights

    I’ve never seen the commercial ones but yours look much better. Do you have anything other than peanut butter on them? They look as if they might be nice crumbled onto a bowl of thick pureed soup.

    Reply ↓
      1. Ally

        Thanks. I thought Patty’s suggestion was a good one. I’ll do that. I’m going to make them on Sunday. I’ll let you know how it goes. 🙂

  5. Cauldrons and Cupcakes

    Those commercial crackers look… well… scary!

    But your home-made snacks look delish. Shame that nutritional yeast just kills me.I might have to have a play around and see what I can come up with as a substitute.

    Great recipe! 😀 xx

    Reply ↓
    1. An Unrefined Vegan

      Hehe, yeah, I agree. These days I wouldn’t touch those crackers with a ten foot pole! I’ll bet you could leave out the nutritional yeast. Maybe just add an additional carrot or apple. You’ll just get a sweeter cracker which ain’t a bad thing at all!

      Reply ↓
  8. Little Sis

    I am VERY excited to give these a go. I am a cracker lover and I have a “proof” setting on the oven. I think that means I’m good to go! Thanks so much for sharing!

    Reply ↓
  9. Somer

    I used to be addicted to these too! I love your rendition! Would you believe there’s a cheese cracker in my line up soon? My kids have missed goldfish crackers incredibly! xx

    Reply ↓
      1. Somer

        I’m still trying to perfect them. They’re good, but not as flaky as I hoped, probably because I made them without oil….

      3. Somer

        Ah well. Not sure if I’ll keep tackling it, it’s supposed to go up tomorrow (how’s that for single white female) chow down…crackers…. haha!

  12. narf77

    I love it when one of my food heroes gets some piece of kitchen equipment that I underutilise because suddenly the possibilities are endless! I have used my dehydrator for dehydrating fruit, for drying out dog treats (my usual use) and for making lurid and strange fruit leathers for my children out of yoghurt and fruit purees. They look fantastic and you can use non dairy yoghurt with streaks of fruit puree through it but my children are in their 20’s and don’t eat much fruit leather these days so the dogs get the greatest use of my excalibur HOWEVER now that Annie is on the case, I might just get some good use out of it! Cheers Annie, as usual you make raw food fun 🙂

    Reply ↓
    1. An Unrefined Vegan

      (Picturing myself in a flowing cape, hands on hips – ready to conquer the world) I haven’t tried the fruit leathers yet. Stuck on crackers at the moment. And tortilla chips. Cannot get past the tortilla chips.

      Reply ↓
    3. An Unrefined Vegan

      Here you go, Fran!! This is slightly modified from Matthew Kenney’s book, Everyday Raw.

      1 3/4 cup flaxseed meal
      2 cups frozen corn, thawed
      2 medium-sized yellow squash (if you don’t have yellow squash use 4 cups total frozen corn)
      1 1/3 cups water
      2 tbsp. olive oil
      1 tbsp. cumin
      3/4 small red or white onion
      1 clove garlic
      pinch salt
      1 tbsp. lime juice
      2 tsp. chili powder

      Place flaxseed meal, cumin and chili powder in a large bowl. Blend all remaining ingredients in a food processor and process until nice and smooth. Pour mixture into flaxseed mixture and stir, stir, stir until blended. Spread mixture over an entire dehydrator sheet to about 1/8″ thickness (mine all fit on one tray – but divide if necessary), lightly score into desired shapes and place in dehydrator. Dehydrate at 115F for a few hours, then carefully flip tray and remove sheet. Return tray to dehydrator and dry for 12-24 hours.

      Reply ↓
      1. narf77

        Cheers for that Annie :). I am going to mess about with some of my home grown corn from our recent harvest. We didn’t get much but it should taste good in these. I might also change out that chilli powder because you guys use something different to what we do for “chilli powder”. I tried one of Somers soups and almost killed myself because we use 100% cayenne pepper powder for “chilli powder” and she said that your chilli powder is sort of a combination for making chilli’s and is a whole lot milder. I might also add some nutritiona yeast to make them a bit cheezy and some pureed capsicum to give that added bite to the cheeziness :). Can’t wait to see how these babies turn out 🙂

      2. An Unrefined Vegan

        Oh for sure – chili powder is a much different beast than cayenne! And I forgot to mention that apparently frozen (thawed) corn works better than fresh in this recipe. And nutritional yeast is a great addition! Let me know how it turns out!

      3. narf77

        I could always freeze my corn first 😉 I certainly will let you know. Might even put some carrot pulp in to give a bit of that cheezy goodness colour 😉

  13. Brittany

    I used to LOVE those Austin crackers. All of them really, especially the double cheesey ones. I am impressed with these dehydrator crackers!! They look amazing, and man would I have a hard time stopping after 6!

    Reply ↓
  14. Penny Parsnip

    They were Lance crackers where I grew up, but I ate them before every after school play rehearsal in junior high. I’ll try this in the oven for you. But what is coconut flour? Can I just grind some unsweetened coconut in my food processor?

    Reply ↓
    1. An Unrefined Vegan

      Ahhh, Lance! I remember that brand name as well. Let me know how it goes in the oven and I’ll update the post (fingers crossed…). Oh – let’s see – coconut flour. I snagged this from another blog: “It is made from the fiber leftover from making coconut milk, which is then ground to a powder. At this point, it doesn’t have much oil left, so can’t provide the health benefits that you would get from coconut oil.” I buy from Bob’s Red Mill, FYI.

      Reply ↓
  16. biggsis

    Oh ho! A fellow alien-orange-cracker-p.b.-sandwich-former-addict. Yes, those and diet Dr. Pepper (agh!) got me through some late nights with textbooks. I’ll let Little Sis try in her oven and then will have to have a go myself….. although I’d LOVE a dehydrator. Thanks for tackling this one!

    Reply ↓
  17. Becky

    YUM! Those look fantastical. I have been wanting to find an alternative to boxed crackers. Do you think you could do these in the oven at a low temp for a shorter time, if you weren’t trying to keep it raw?

    Reply ↓
  18. Courtney

    I must be weird because I have always thought the peanut butter filled cheese crackers sound gross. Even as a kid. Cheese and peanut butter? Together? Hmmm. It must be good, though, because everyone else seems to love it! I am glad you were able to recreate a healthier version of it 🙂

    Courtney

    Reply ↓
    1. An Unrefined Vegan

      You had much better taste than I 😉 – you’re right, though. The idea of cheese and peanut butter together. Ugh! One would never add a slice of cheddar cheese to a PB sandwich. Somehow it worked w/ these crackers. Maybe it’s because there wasn’t a huge cheese flavor.

      Reply ↓
  22. Richa

    thats a lot of dehydrator porn.. those crackers look amazing..
    and thank god i never got hooked on to coke.. hubbs however is still working on kicking that habit.. if i can just find a coke is cruel to animals video somewhere.

    Reply ↓
  24. Cadry's Kitchen

    Fun post! It’s such good fodder to use old junk food cravings as the jumping off point for newer, healthier re-imaginings! My college equivalent was Pepsi and Twinkies. I called that breakfast!

    Reply ↓
  25. laurasmess

    Wow, those crackers look amazing! I’ve never thought of making anything but baked crackers but your dehydrated ones actually look so crispy. I’ll definitely give them a go, especially since I’ve recently invested in a huge jar of coconut oil! Thanks for your recipe!

    Reply ↓

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