you ain't a thang if you aint got that... crunch?

yep, it's time for 

FLAX CRACKERS!!!

ok, i've been playing around w/ flax this weekend.  i've made many MANY batches. we were all in desperate need of a savory, salty crunch.

so i went out and bought the various flax crackers in the shops and at the farmer's market stands.

NOT.
CHEAP.

 and i figured out that it's really a lot more simple than those folks make you believe.  also, it costs you about as much to prepare as buying a bag of crappy potato chips.

ready?

ok then.

start with this:

i made two different batches this weekend, playing with textures n'all.  one, i only used WHOLE flax seed.  the other, i used 2/3 - 1/3 proportions.

to both, though, i added about a 1/4 cup of these:

and a 1/4 cup of these:

i also added some sunflower seeds to the 2nd batch, just to play around a bit.

so anywayze, all you REALLY have to do is put about a cup of the flax seed (or flax seed/flax meal) mixture into a mixing bowl, and add enough water to cover the mess by about a half an inch.

let it soak for 20 minutes or so, then stir around the goop and add some flavor.

i added some dehydrated vegetables, onions, garlic powder, cumin, paprika, and cayenne.

oh.  and a little bit of salt.

you don't need it, but you might want a TBSP of olive oil in the mixture.  one i used IN the mix, the other i drizzled a little on the top before i sprinkled sea salt.  both ways turned out just grand.

so the whole goopy/gloopy mess pretty much looks like the above picture.  then just line a sheet pan w/ a piece of parchment paper and plop it on.

spread the mess out w/ a spatula till it's evenly distributed around the whole pan.  

at this point, you can score the gloopy mess w/ a butter knife or pizza cutter, or you can just bake it whole. 

i tend to lean more towards the rustic side, so i like to just leave it and break it into pieces after it's cooled.

pop it in a 350F oven for 30 minutes.  then TURN. OFF. THE. HEAT.

and let it sit in the oven for ONE MORE HOUR.

it should come out of the oven looking like this:

and here are the two different crackers we ended up with.  the ones on the left are the whole seeded ones.  and the ones on the right contain some flax meal as well.  

i'm not sure i have a preference.  the ground ones did have more of a "crackery" feel to them, though.

but i'll bet a bit of brie would be nice w/ either...

FLAX Crackers 

1 cup flax seed (whole seed)  or 2/3 cup whole seed and 1/3 cup meal

3/4 cup of water (or more)

1 TBSP olive oil (optional)

1 tsp salt

2-3 TBSP EACH chia seed, sesame seed

Optional seasonings:

• 1 tsp Cumin
• 1 tsp Paprika
• 1 tsp Garlic Powder
• 1 tsp Dehydrated Onion
• 2 tsp Dehydrated assorted vegetables
• 1/4 tsp Cayenne pepper

Preheat oven to 350F

Mix flax seed w/ water in mixing bowl.  Water should cover flax seed by at least 1/2 inch.  Add more water if needed.  Let sit at least 20 minutes, until goopy mass is formed.  Add olive oil, salt, additional seeds and seasonings.  Mix well.  Transfer to one or two parchment lined sheet pans and evenly spread mixture to sides.  At this point, you may want to sprinkle some sea salt over the top for a more salty cracker.

Place sheet pans in oven for 30 minutes.  Turn off oven and let pans sit in warm oven for an additional one hour.

Remove from oven, let cool, then break into cracker pieces.  Store in air tight container for as long as you can stand it.