Stamped Cheese Crackers
Have you ever thought to yourself: I need an art project that I can also eat? No? Well, your kids certainly have. These stamped cheese crackers were a total experiment and we are pumped that they worked out!
This is essentially a cheese dough (like they use for cheez-its). However, we are not cutting out perfect little squares– a tedious and decidedly not kid-friendly process. Instead we roll it out like a sheet of paper and stamp it with food coloring.
Feel free to mix up cheese types. I’m envisioning white cheddar stamped cheese crackers on which any color food coloring would be super cool. Don’t have stamps? Try using a brush to paint the food coloring on or do some tie-dye! The world is your toddler’s oyster with this one!
How to include kids:
- Older kids can help earlier in the process: grating cheese and dumping things into the food processor.
- Younger kids can press food processor buttons and review ingredients, but the real fun starts after the dough is made.*
- All kids can exercise their creativity by stamping, painting, or simply rubbing the food coloring into the dough!
- Do Note: Watch out, the food coloring will get messy and can stain fabrics! It’s fine for hands and mouths, and will eventually come out of skin. But there’s no returning that expensive white chair to white if your kid rubs their food coloring fingers all over it.
*This dough can be pre-made and chilled in the refrigerator for up to two days. Doing this prep prior to including the kids is a fantastic way to keep younger kiddos on board!
Stamped Cheese Crackers
Ingredients
- 12 tablespoons butter
- 4 tablespoons ice water
- 3 cups shredded cheddar cheese about 12 ounces
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 3 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- food coloring
- cleaned rubber stamps or paint brushes
Instructions
Prepare Dough
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Chop butter into 1" cubes and place in freezer.
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Prepare ice water and set aside.
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Grate the cheese and combine it with the flour, cornstarch, and salt in a food processor. Pulse until cheese is fully incorporated.
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Remove the frozen butter cubes and add them to the food processor as it runs.
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Add in water, one tablespoon at a time and pulse until dough begins to form larger balls.
Chill Dough
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Separate the dough into two equal portions on parchment paper.
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Pat into roughly 6" squares.
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Cover and chill for 45 minutes or up to 2 days.
Stamp
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Roll dough out into larger squares roughly 1/4" thick.
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Squirt small amount of food coloring onto plates and spread thin with a brush or paper towel on the plate.
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Dip (clean) rubber stamps into food coloring and gently press onto dough to create patterns.
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Continue until all dough has been stamped.
Bake
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Preheat oven to 350F and cover baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats.
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Cut around each stamp to create individual crackers and place on baking sheet.
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Bake for 10 minutes, turn the tray, and bake for 10 more minutes.
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Let cool/dry completely before handling!
