Servings: 4 Prep: 15 mins Cook: 45 hr Total: 1 hr
We have words like “crispy” to describe a certain texture. To really hone in on it, you can play with it and say something like “crispity crunch!” That denotes a slightly more positive textural experience. Unfortunately, I’m unaware of a word that describes the sheer delight I experienced when I bit down on my first hazelnut-parmesan cracker. It was possibly the most pleasing toothy nibble that I’d experienced on a low-carb diet. If a word like “beautiful” could be used to describe a texture … I would describe these crackers as … beautiful.
I tried using almond flour. Then, I tried a combination with half almond and half hazelnut. They all tasted great and all had a pleasing texture, but … the almond flavor stayed evident and the crisp was never quite as beautiful. In the end, I decided that pure hazelnut flour is the way to go.
Being as excited with these gluten free crackers as I was, I shared them with many in my world, delivering little bundles of crackers and dip to friends and family. They’re so lovely and dip so nicely. No cracking or breaking apart in the dip. Dip with confidence!
Friends and family loved them and wanted to know how “easy” they were. Herein lays the problem. They’re not tough to make a small batch. However, a full baking tray yields something like 48 small crackers. They’re thin and … go down quickly and effortlessly. They take some time in the oven, which is where the problem comes in. You could put 2 trays in the oven, and get roughly 100 little crackers, but … they’ll lock up your oven for upwards of 45 minutes, before you could produce a second batch. They’re easy to make and for a single batch, you can set a timer, but … for a large amount … for a large gathering, they run the risk of being time consuming.
All this said … I secretly feel they’re worth it! ☺
Note: This recipe will make 1 batch for a single cookie tray, resulting in roughly 45 small (not tiny) crackers. Roughly … “Wheat Thin” sized. For 2 trays … double the recipe!
Crispity Hazelnut-Parmesan Cracker
Print RateIngredients
- 1 cup hazelnut flour
- 1/2 cup parmesan (reggiano) cheese grated, densely packed
- 1 each egg white
- 2 each garlic cloves minced
- 2 tsp fresh oregano (thyme rosemary, sage and/or marjoram), rough chop
- salt pepper and chili flakes, to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 275 F.
- Combine ingredients in a bowl, and mix until a ball of dough has formed.
- Crumbled the dough evenly around a greased sheet of parchment paper or foil. Place another sheet above it, and roll out the dough so that the crumbles form a single thin sheet of dough. Remove the top sheet and play with the dough. It's pretty malleable, so if there are any cracks, you can just push the cracks together. I also pushed the edges in and together and broke off "dangleys" and pushed them into the main body of the dough. In the end, I had a nice rectangular sheet of dough.
- Using a cutting/dividing device (pizza cutter, bench scraper, butter knife, etc.) cut through the dough to form 48 little rectangles. This isn't an exact science and you can adjust the shapes and sizes in any way you see fit. However, if you want precision, you can always measure the rectangle and do a little math. You can also use a ruler or some other straight guide, place it on the dough and run your cutting device along the guide. With math and a good guide, you can create a perfect batch of squares. I'm more rustic myself ... and wing it.
- Place the parchment or foil on a cookie/thin baking tray.
- Bake for roughly 45 minutes, but start checking at 30 minutes. It will crisp on the edges first. You are essentially looking to melt the cheese within the cracker, then remove the moisture. The cracker will darken and firm up. When the sheet is the same even slightly darker color, across the enter sheet (the edges and the center are all the same color), remove the sheet from the oven.
- Let the sheet cool, then pick up the crackers and snap where the perforations were cut.
- Crackers!
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* Learn More: More about this recipe and nutrition …
I love hazelnuts! And these look great. I’m definitely going to have to try these with something awesome on top of them.
Hey Joshua. Thanks! Yes, they were amazing, actually! I’d top them with cheese or deli meats, or dip them into any number of different dip, etc. While they tasted great … it was the final texture that really made them truly special. Thanks, again!
I just made these this afternoon and they were awesome! I have been doing low carb for over a year and my husband just decided to join me and was really missing the crunch of chips and crackers. He really enjoyed these and I just wanted to thank you, its nice to show him that he can really enjoy his food and snacks still. I made a cream cheese/sour cream dip that I seasoned with garlic powder and some all purpose seasoning, it was a nice match up. Thanks again!
Hi Jenn Nette! I?m glad you liked them! They are kind of a special little cracker, aren?t they?! I was blown away by them. After 3 years of no ?crunch? like that ? it was really amazing to me, too! Out of curiosity ? how difficult did you find them to make? Would you recommend them to other fellow low carbers? Are they worth the trouble? That?s also wonderful news about your husband! Always easier when people do this together. Saves time, effort, money and ? it?s just a healthier way to live ? all around!
What a nice surprise, I never expected to actually have you comment back 🙂
They are awesome, and we are still nibbling on them..I.probably wont even cook the dinner that I had planned!
I didn’t find them difficult at all to prepare…I used a standard size cookie sheet and I decided to make a second batch so I could fill the entire pan. I wasn’t sure if the single recipe was supposed to fill the pan or not and after much rolling with my mini pizza dough roller I just couldn’t seem to get them any thinner. I did have to bake them for close to an hour to get the center nice and crisp. It was totally worth it, and I will definitely make again…and might even add some sunflower seeds just for fun.
I definitely agree its nice to have someone to do this with. Its easy to get stuck in a personal rut on the foods you eat if your just doing it for yourself. Having someone else to cook for makes me want to find new recipes to try, and that’s where you come in! I look forward to perusing your site and trying new things. I will make sure I let you know what I try and how I like it. thanks again and I’m sure we’ll be talking again.
Jenn
I always try and respond. I feel it’s important people know I’m real and … that I’m out there and accessible. Yes, the recipe seems to fill about 2/3rds of a standard baking tray. If someone did 1 1/2 times the recipe, it would probably fit one perfectly … but who really has half an egg lying around? 😉 Thanks for the notes on your experience. I hope it helps others! Happy New Year!!
Do you think I could use almond flour?
Tracey, I don’t know HOW I missed this! I’m so sorry! A month later … yes! I know you can use almond flour. I did it with almond flour, hazelnut flour and also a batch which was a combination. The hazelnut flour was far and away my favorite, but the almond flour WILL work.
Hi DJ —
Mom here. I love guacamole! It’s low-carb and very healthy. However, I never eat it because I don’t have any suitable low-carb dipping chips. I have tasted these wonderful crackers of yours, but I am wondering if they would taste really good with guacamole? What do you think? Could they be modified in some way for guacamole? For instance, for me, parmesan cheese and guacamole don’t seem to go together, but maybe…cheddar and guacamole? Or manchego and guacamole? Anyway, these crackers ARE wonderful, but I have been trying to think of a way to have my guacamole — and eat it, too!
Hi Mom! Yes, I wouldn’t really think these would match a guacamole. I recently tried to make a low-carb corn tortilla chip with pureed hominy and cheddar cheese. What a dismal failure! I DO have a recipe for <a href="https://www.djfoodie.com/aspx/m/Baked-Tortilla-Chips">low-carb flour tortilla chips</a>, which would work nicely with guacamole. Unfortunately, they require you to have low-carb tortillas to begin with. You’ve often got some in your freezer. Do you still? Maybe I’ll try another experiment and come up with a more latin flavor profile. Stay tuned!
These look delicious. I’m not seeing what constitutes a *serving* on these hazelnut crackers. Is it *one cracker* that equals net 3.05 net carbs? Thank you.
Hi there, Jan! All my recipes have a serving size in the top-right. In this case, the whole recipe makes 4 servings. A lot comes down to how big you cut the crackers. If you make massive crackers, then … 1 cracker is one serving! However, at the bottom of my description I state one recipe makes about 45 "wheat thin" sized crackers. This implies a single serving is about 12 standard cracker-sized crackers. I hope this helps! 🙂
My oversight … I failed to notice the servings at the top of the recipe. I was looking for it in the nutritional breakdown. I’ll know better next time. Thanks so much for your prompt response. I will be making these!
Are you using fresh parmesan cheese, or the kind in the green jar?
Thanks for what looks like a great recipe. I’m really missing crunchy bites.
Hi Sandy, I’m using freshly grated and haven’t tried it with the green can, but … it "might" work. If you try it, let me know if it does! Or, if you make it with the fresh grated, you’re really in for a treat!
OMG!! Finally a low carb cracker that tastes amazing and has crunch!!! I ate 1/2 of them within 30 minutes lol…oops 🙂 All of the ones I’ve tried making in the last few years have no crunch and taste like cardboard. Ty DJ!! Love your site, its my go to site…
FANTASTIC, PENNY!! That’s how I felt when I first snapped into one. YUMMMMM-OOO!
thanks so much! I can hardly wait to try them. what is a serving size? It is 6 g carbs per cracker (I doubt it).
thanks!
Pat
Wow! The flavor was great, texture crunchy without being crumbly, and perfect for dipping. Now to find a low-cost hazelnut flour (going to try grinding some hazelnuts myself).
Hi Teri … glad you liked ’em! Pat … I’m sorry … I never saw your question, but the answer is … a serving is about 10 to 12 crackers. I hope this helps others! Thanks! 🙂
heres a quick tip I use when I make my jucie pulp flax crackers;
get a few cooling racks and double stack loads of trays you can easily double the amount of crackrs in one batch that way
I think that your nutrition facts for protein are off. I am using a program called calorie count, and I got everything to match but that. It is high I think. Love your recipes!
Hi Katie. Which ingredient concerns you? I am occasionally wrong, but I just double checked and it seems sound. I use the USDA database for my info. They’ve NEVER been wrong! 😉 I am curious to know which ingredient concerns you. In any event, Bob’s Red Mill and the USDA agree with me, near as I can tell. Thanks! 🙂
Made the crackers over the weekend. Perfect, crunchy little bite that went well with the sour cream dip that was also a treat. Didn’t have fresh herbs handy, so I subbed an Italian seasoning blend. I see many possibilities to experiment with seeds & spices ! <3
I’m glad you enjoyed them, Barbara! Thanks for letting us know! 🙂
I just made a batch of these and OMG they are amazeballs! Will definately make these again.
Aren’t they, though, Caroline?! People often complain about the work needed to make them and I say … A. they’re not that hard, really. Mix, squish and bake. B. They’re TOOOOOTALLY worth it! The taste and texture are outstanding. Just … amazeballs! I concur! Good word choice! 😉
Any other ideas other than hazelnut flour? (almond flour?) I’m newer to Low Carbing and haven’t seen this one in the stores in my area
Hi Trish, almond flour will work just fine. It’s also excellent tasting, I just happen to prefer the taste of the hazelnuts in this recipe. When you make it, let me know what you think! 🙂
Hi, DJ! When you say "salt, pepper, and chili flakes to taste," how much do you use? That will give me a good starting point and then I can adjust to my taste if necessary with later batches. Thanks!
Hi Saralyn, I’m honestly not sure! The cheese is fairly salty on its own, so you won’t need a lot of salt. Maybe 1/2 to 1 tsp? Pepper and chili flakes are optional. So, only add those if you like a little kick. For me, I’m a taster. I taste everything! I would taste the dough and adjust the seasoning before fully mixing and rolling. I hope this helps! 🙂
Hi DJ.. Thank you or all your awesome recipes! Can I substitute the Hazelnut flour for almond flour?
To Trish who asked about a sub for hazelnut flour..You can just throw your hazelnuts into a food processor and process them for a bit until they’re in small crumbs. They don’t need to be like actual ‘flour’. It’s called ‘meal’, if you know what I mean. DJ-I love hazelnut in stuff and actually use it half and half in my chocolate OMM with almond meal, instead of flax or something else. It works great! Looking forward to making these for my grandbabies who are coming to stay with us for awhile. Won’t be as spicy but really don’t want them to eat glutinous crackers from the store. Our oldest little guy (4 y) is on the spectrum so while they live with us, I’m going to reduce his gluten intake rather sneakily without mom catching on cuz she’s not really on board! Anyway, love your recipes and looks like this one will be another winner!!
Hi Liesl, yep! Almond flour and Hazelnut flour/meal have been, to me, interchangeable. They look different, and I prefer the taste of the hazelnuts, but … the almond flour is also quite tasty in its own right. Cathy, I’m with you … hazelnuts are the way to go. Way to watch out for your grandchildren, as well. Infuse some good information and food at a young age. I think it’s important! 🙂
Ah ….. Someone gave me this recipe a short time ago and I made a batch up ….. Really, seriously good! I paired them up with a British style cheeseboard including Irish Cheddar and a very good French Brie and they were completely loved!
Hi Olwen, I’m glad you liked it! To this day, it stands as one of my personal favorite recipes. I love it when people finally discover it. Thanks for sharing your experience!
Hi DJ! Thanks for this great recipe. I made them yesterday and have a couple of questions. I thought the Parmesan flavor was too pronounced for me and wonder if there is something I could substitute for half of it? Also, the dough seemed really dry. I had trouble getting it to stick together (although the recipe could not have been easier) Would adding another egg white help with that?
Hi Jean, these are educated guesses, but … "guesses" nonetheless. I suspect you could replace half the parmesan with something like finely grated provolone. This is a lighter flavored cheese and should help minimize the stronger tastes from the parm. You can also likely cut back on the total amount of cheese by 10 to 20%. This should also help. Regarding the dry factor … egg whites have different volumes. My fear is that adding another one will render it too wet. Really the dough IS very dry. It’s almost held in place by the pressure of the rolling pin. There should be just enough moisture to stay clumped when squeezed in your fist. If it doesn’t stay clumped, then I’d suggest adding just a little bit of water. Most of the adhesion occurs when the cheese melts anyway … You just need it wet enough to form and that’s about it. I hope this helps. Please report back! 🙂
Tried this recipe today and loved it! I used almond flour cause that’s what I had on hand and substituted about 1 1/2 tsp Mrs Dash’s spicy blend for the herbs and pepper flakes. I needed to break off the enges as they browned and continued to cook the center an extra 15 mins. They were excellent!
—Reply posted by DJ on 2/12/2015
Awesome! I’m glad you enjoyed them. Slower and lower is typically better with something like this, plus ovens vary somewhat in temperature. Next time go for 250 … or even 225 and set a timer. Check it periodically … and enjoy when evenly colored! Also, make sure it’s equally thin, the entire way through. This will also help even baking. Glad they turned out for you! 🙂
Made these today, smelled amazing in the oven. Very tasty & super easy. Next batch will sub out some of the nut meal for toasted sesame seeds. Maybe just a tablespoon or two. What do you think DJ?
—Reply posted by DJ on 3/9/2015
Hi Libby, I think it’ll work, for sure. That said, to my mind … sesame seeds and parmesan cheese are a combo I wouldn’t personally strive for, but that’s just me. If you think that sounds nice, by all means … go for it! When I first read your comment, I pictured sunflower seeds, not sesame seeds … and I thought that sounded nice. Just a thought. I hope this helps! 🙂
My husband brought back one of my favorite things from Iceland- Smurostur, which is a soft cheese similar to cream cheese with either mushrooms, langostine or shrimp. I was really bummed thinking I was either going to have to skip it, eat it straight up or eat it off a cardboard consistency low carb cracker. These were so good, I don’t think I will ever eat Smurostur without them ever again.
—Reply posted by DJ on 3/9/2015
Interesting! I’ve never heard of Smurostur before. I’m glad the crackers complemented it! (now, off to Google this new Icelandic cheese! 🙂 )
I just made these and they are outstanding!! What is the best way to store them and how long do they stay fresh? Thank you!!
—Reply posted by DJ on 4/1/2015
Hi Anita. YAY!! I’m glad you liked them! What I’ve always done is wait until they’re totally cool (room temperature) and then put them in a Ziploc bag. They’re always eaten pretty quickly, but … I’d say I’ve had them in a bag for upwards of 5 to 6 days and they were excellent on the last day. Zero drop in quality. I wouldn’t go for more than maybe a week, but … they definitely last without getting soft or soggy. I hope this helps!
Do you use fresh parmy or the dry powdery stuff that you find on the shelves? Thank you 🙂
—Reply posted by DJ on 9/15/2015
Fresh grated. I don’t know how well the stuff in the green can will work. It might, but I’ve never tried it. I hope this helps! 🙂
Any recommendations about best flavor profile of dip or topping to pair these with?
—Reply posted by Meredith on 1/21/2016
thanks so much! Sounds perfect!
—Reply posted by DJ on 1/19/2016
Hi Meredith, I have an artichoke pesto dip in the sauces section. This is what I usually pair it with, but … pretty much any kind of Italian flavor profile would work. An olive tapenade, or a roasted pepper pesto, etc. Anything that you’d match with Parmesan Cheese … I think you will LOVE these crackers. They are spectacular! I hope this helps! 🙂
I am new to the KETOGENIC way of life, supporting not only my son but a friend, I also am a caterer and have found these crackers to be a delicious introduction to cocktail time, lunches and snacks. Try it with some laughing Cow, or pate and a cheeseball they are just delicious and I have been asked where to buy them. I love that considering this is a homemade cracker basically very easy to do. Thanks so much for the wonderful recipe.
—Reply posted by DJ on 7/3/2017
Awesome! Glad to hear it. My pleasure! 🙂
Would pecan flour be too much fat for these crackers? Love your recipes!