This has to be one of the easiest green recipes I’ve ever made, aside from the Green Monster. I’ve wanted to make green crackers for a while now, using spinach for the lovely green colour and burst of nutrition. Attempt #1 was adapting the gluten-free crackers with spinach. The dough was super sticky and it was just a big flop. I’ll have to work on that one a bit more.
For attempt #2, I adapted the Homemade Wheat Thins I made a while back:
If you’ve made those crackers you’ll know that the dough rolls easy and they taste much better than the store-bought version. It’s almost impossible not to eat the entire batch in a day…or maybe that’s just me.
The dough isn’t the sticky, annoying dough that you fight with either. I was happy that the spinach crackers also followed suit…
I picked up this shamrock cookie cutter at Bulk Barn the other day and somehow resisted the strong urge to buy Easter stuff…(help me)
As you can see, the dough is a lovely bright green before baking! It’s amazing what 1 cup of spinach can do. Imagine all that green power inside your body…
After baking, they are more of a pale green, but beautiful nonetheless.
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Sneaky Shamrock Spinach Crackers
Yield
32 shamrock crackers or 64 small rectangles
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
Another sneaky way to get in your greens…and no one will be the wiser, especially kids! Crispy but chewy, wholesome, green, and the perfect vehicle for your favourite festive dip or spread.
Adapted from Homemade Wheat Thins.
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups (5 oz) 100% whole wheat flour
- 1 1/2 tbsp sugar
- 1/4 - 1/2 tsp kosher salt, plus extra for sprinkling on
- 1 tsp dried dill weed (or other herbs/spices of choice)
- 4 tbsp Earth Balance (I used soy-free)
- 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp water
- 1 cup fresh spinach (30 grams)
Directions
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or a non-stick mat. Or just use 1 baking sheet and bake 2 separate batches like I did.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, salt, dill).
- With a pastry blender (or two forks), cut in the Earth Balance into the flour mixture until crumbly. See image below.
- In a blender, blend the water and spinach until smooth. Now pour this into the flour and Earth balance mixture. Stir this mixture until it just comes together and then gently knead with hands until it forms a ball. Be sure not to over handle the dough.
- Split the dough in half. On a non-stick mat or lightly floured surface, roll out one half of the dough very thin (1/16th inch). Cut with cookie cutters or with a pizza roller. Gently lift off with fingers and place on prepared sheet. Repeat as necessary. Sprinkle with more salt (I used Herbamare and it tasted amazing!)
- Bake for 9-10 minutes, rotating pan half way through baking to ensure more even baking. Crackers should be lightly golden when ready. My crackers took 10 minutes, but watch closely after 8 minutes. Be careful because they burn quickly. Cool completely on baking sheet and serve immediately. Store leftovers in a glass container.
Don’t be fooled by the long directions…this recipe took me just 10 minutes to throw together! I just like to be detailed for you. :) I was in and out of the kitchen in 30 minutes flat.
To pair with the crackers, I added some hummus into my blender along with a touch of water and some spinach to make this gorgeous BRIGHT green dip!
If you don’t want to make green hummus, you can try making my favourite guacamole for another pop of green.
This batch made about 32 crackers…and they go fast! My suggestion is to double the batch if making for a group. No one wants fight club to break out on the dining room table.
Serve with Homemade Baileys on its own or in a Green Monster, as some of you suggested the other day (really good!). Breakfast on Saturday morning? I think so.
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Remember when I told you that I have news to share, but I wouldn’t know exactly when that would be? In the words of Stephanie Tanner, how rude. bahah
Well, I can finally share the news this weekend…..finally! I don’t know how I’ve waited this long because I’m an incredibly impatient person. By the way, it’s not baby-related news, just in case the Baileys didn’t confirm that for you…More deets to come!
I made hummus with spinach and I had to keep adding more and more spinach to get it as bright green as yours! Tastes awesome though. And the color makes me smile.
I made the shamrock crackers and green hummus today and we loved them both! Thank you!!! Btw, we are obsessing over the blueberry banana pie vegan overnight oats right now – ridiculously delish!! I just put another batch in the fridge for tomorrow morning!!
How adorable! Love this idea!
Ok, so I think it is only appropriate that I finally leave a comment to say… I ABSOLUTELY LOVE YOUR BLOG! Seriously, you make being vegan very easy and extremely delicious. I switched to a vegan diet in July and luckily I found your blog shortly after because it made the transition extremely easy. I look at your blog daily to see what will be on my menu at home. I’ve tried other recipies from other blogs but yours are consistently incredible. Every single recipe is delicious! There is no going wrong. With that said, I thank you because you have made a huge impact on my life as well as my family’s! Who knew a complete stranger could do that? ;)
these are absolutely adorable! what a great idea :) thanks!
Love the addition of the spinach! Going to make these ASAP! Thanks :)
I so have to try these for Christmas with trees & wreath cutters!
These crackers look amazing and I am just dying to make them! My only question (which may sound really stupid) is what Earth Balance do you use? Is it the baking sticks? I clicked on the link for it and it took me to a website with a whole slew of stuff (like milk and shortening) and I just want to make sure I am buying the correct thing when I go to the store. I’m not vegan so I’m not too sure what I’m looking at when I see some of your ingredient lists, hehe. Thanks and I love your website!
Hi Holly, I usually use the soy-free earth balance in the red tub. Any of them will work though. Enjoy!
What is Earth Balance? Does this recipe call for a butter product or a milk product? I found the website online but am unfamiliar with what this recipe is calling for exactly. I would love to make these for this weekend! Thank you :)
Hey Ashley! Earth Balance is a vegan butter substitute, you can read more here: I use the soy-free in the tub http://www.earthbalancenatural.com/product/soy-free-buttery-spread/
Thank you!!! I am making them tonight. :)
I found the dough really moist, has anyone else had this problem? I found I had to add quite a bit more flour (more than 1/2 cup). Overall, the crackers came out great and look fantastic. I am going to serve them with guacamole at a St. Patrick’s Day party tomorrow. Thanks for the recipe!
How much hummus and spinach did you use for the dip?
Just made these with fresh spinach and basil and margarine and they were perfect!! Thanks for sharing
Is it possible to modify these using gluten free flour?
Hi Ange,
I just made this as a test for my son’s upcoming birthday party. (The theme will be something like bears & friends in the forest, so I cut these out in a tree shape.) They turned out light green and a bit brown, so I think I’ll test them again using half all-purpose organic flour with half whole wheat organic flour to see if the green colour comes out a bit better. By any chance, have you tried them with a pinch of spirulina to help them be a bit more green?
We made these to go with soup and they were great! We found them a tad sweet, so we’d use 1 tbsp sugar, and we used less water to ensure that it was still doughy. We would definitely make this again!
I measured the ingredients exactly; but found the batter way too wet to roll out.
Can these shamrock crackers be made gluten free?