Have you ever been at a point in your life when you feel a creeping urgency to do stuff?
Important stuff. Fun stuff.
I’m not dead yet stuff.
I’m not getting any younger stuff.
Life Crisis stuff.
I need to stop watching Fall TV and get off my butt stuff.
Eric and I came to this conclusion the other night. We had an amazing conversation about life, goals, and making sure our days are meaningful.
Then we each made lists. Bucket lists. A bucket list is sort of like a to-do list, but much more fun. I’ve made a Fitness Bucket List before too. Some of these things below I’m already working on, but putting them on paper makes them more mindful, real, and exciting. The list is also a great motivator to get off the couch at night and do something other than watch TV!
Write it down. Dream big. Allow yourself to write “crazy” ideas. Some of mine include:
- Learn how to horseback ride. Maybe even do a jump. Don’t die.
- Learn to play the piano. Play at upscale restaurants complete with sparkly evening gown. <—don’t ask.
- Create elaborate Halloween costumes complete with professional make-up.
- Be a fashionista, or at least learn how to dress myself like a grown up instead of leaving the mall with a bottle of nail polish, a necklace, and another bra.
- Write books. Cookbooks. Life books. Picture books. <—working on it
- Manage anxiety better. <—working on it
- Be a peaceful animal rights activist <—working on it
- Take professional photography courses
- Rescue dog from shelter
- Stuff a piñata full of homemade vegan candies and beat the crap out of it with friends. Stuff face.
- Start my own charity
- Make the best vegan brownies of my life. <—Did it
- Live in different parts of the world & travel
- Weight train consistently <—working on it
- Sign up for Toastmasters. Charm and dazzle. Pretend I’m George Clooney.
- Make favourite cracker recipe. Repeat as necessary.
Did it.
I’ve attempted to make crackers on a regular basis, but it never stuck. I realized if I’m ever going to make my own crackers regularly, they had to satisfy the following:
- Healthy ingredients I’d feel good about eating on a regular basis
- Low in added fat
- DELICIOUS
- Quick and easy to throw together
Jackpot.
You might be thinking, how can rolling dough be quick and easy?
I know, I know, no one wants to roll out dough. Even when I see recipes that require rolling, I usually pass them by. Rolling out dough can be scary even for practiced bakers. But this dough is honestly so easy to roll out.
It’s not sticky, rippy, or annoying in any way. Trust me, I would complain bitterly if it was.
In minutes you have crackers ready to go into the oven.
The only work you have to do after that is trying not to burn your tongue when they come out of the oven!
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Easy Vegan & Gluten-Free Crackers
Yield
approx. 35 [1.5”] crackers
Prep time
Cook time
Chill time
10
Total time
Easy, delicious, easy to roll, and endlessly customizable. Doubling the batch is recommended! Inspired by Clean, Green, Simple.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup brown rice flour*
- 1/2 cup whole almonds*, ground into flour (or use 3/4 cup almond flour)
- 2 tbsp ground flax
- 1 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp dried rosemary
- scant 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 2 tbsp sesame seeds
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/2 tsp olive oil
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment. In a high-speed blender or processor, grind almonds into a flour. Do not over process or almonds will release oils. Sift flour before using to remove larger pieces. OR you can use store-bought almond flour.
- In a large bowl, mix together the dry ingredients. Add wet ingredients and mix well with spoon. Knead dough with hands until it comes together. Shape into a ball.
- Place ball of dough on parchment paper or a non-stick mat. Roll out dough until it’s about 1/8th inch thick, or as thin as you can get it without ripping. With a pastry wheel or pizza slicer, slice into crackers.
- Bake at 350°F for 18-20 minutes until slightly golden in colour. I baked mine about 18 mins. and next time I will bake them for a couple mins. longer to get them crisper.
- Cool on baking sheet for 10 mins. Store in air-tight container once fully cool.
Tip:
* Other flours might work in substitution for brown rice flour and almond flour, although keep in mind the flavour will change.
I finally feel like I’ve found “the one”. I’ll be seeing these again real soon, and next time, doubling the batch.
We enjoyed some with almond butter.
Mmm.
Best brownies of my life, you’re next.
What’s on your bucket list?
Do I ever get that urge! Every few months I feel the need to set goals and act on them, as in immediately. It drives my poor husband insane.
Eeeee please send me a batch at college?!
OK, stupid question of the day alert……
Do you think that it would be possible to create brown rice flour by processing uncooked brown rice in a food processor????
These want me to dip them in hummus.
you should!! I ate them with the roasted red pepper hummus. TO DIE FOR.
About the almond flour. Is there a good substitute for it in this recipe? If so would the same be true for other recipes that call for almond flour/meal? Really, of all the things I could develop an allergy to, it had to be tree nuts. I try to find ways around it when possible.
Btw, LOVE the fitness bucket list idea. I’ve already decided I’m going to do a Tough Mudder for my 30th Bday. Also, I’ve been a Green Monster fan for quite a while.
You could probably sub another type of flour if possible. I think many flours would work.
I made these today with oat flour instead of brown rice flour. I kept the almond flour the same. They are fantastic. I love the nutty salty flavor. Thanks so much
I’m glad to hear that Carrie…I will have to try it with oat flour too!
These crackers were super easy to make and so much more healthy than buying a boxed cracker. I used whole wheat flour and they came out perfectly. My 3 year old loves them; she kept stealing the edges while they were cooling! Thanks for the recipe!
Im happy to hear that!
Gorgeous! This looks so great. Check us out some time @ BloomEveryday.wordpress.com – we’d love to share some recipes of ours with you too. :)
I made a “pre-PhD bucket list”… Things that I would like to accomplish beyond the lab bench. I do have publishing and passing candidacy on there, but I also have learning a third language, running 8K, mentoring someone, joining a choir, going to an out-of-province conference, talking about science in a language other than English, growing my LinkedIn contacts list, visiting my relatives in the maritimes, and so on….
These are amazing!! Just made them and am eating them all within less then forty minutes!! I used part chickpea flour as well as the almond and brown rice flour and added sunflower seeds, cumin and chilli powder and baked with thinly sliced garlic ontop. So good. Thanks!!
Thanks for the recipe, will be trying these out. I always enjoy your inspirational posts.
I hope you reconsider horseback riding! Horses (nor any animal) are ours to use! I think of it like this – would I put a saddle and bit on a human so I could ride them around? No, so I wouldn’t do it to an animal that can’t let me know if they’re uncomfortable while I’m using him/her. Nor would you ride your cat or future dog.
Just made these and I’m SOOOOO happy with them!!! Good-bye store-bought crackers!! These were so easy and there’s just enough of them. :) Thanks!
These were delicious and very filling. I used a mix of spelt and oat flour for the rice flour, and I worried they wouldn’t hold together very well because my oats and almonds weren’t that finely ground. They were wonderful! I used black sesame seeds, which looked very pretty. Thanks for the recipe!
Looks good! Can you recommend a great GF bread recipe?
Sorry I dont know of one but I bet there is one here http://glutenfreegoddess.blogspot.com/
Just baked a batch and they are perfect. Yum! Thank you.
Any thoughts on making a slightly sweeter variation? They would be a perfect snack to give my toddler. Obviously would omit the thyme and rosemary, cut back on the salt…but what to add that wouldn’t mess with perfection? A little maple syrup in place of some of the water? Molasses? Hmm. Any feedback appreciated.
I’ve been thinking about a sweeter variation and I think I would add some dry sugar. I will have to try it out soon!
These look AMAZING! I have a strange obsession with crackers at the moment, and I’ve been eating a whole bunch of Ryvita! I have never tried making my own! Thanks Angela. :)
These are AH-mazing!!! Thank you!
OMG these are SO amazing!!!!! I made one batch and then after pulling them out of oven, I whipped up a triple batch
Wow….. these crackers are fantastic! No need to buy gluten-freen crackers anymore, i’ll make them myself. Thank YOU!!!
oh, wow! I tried making these today and the crackers were SOOOO good! thank you very much for the recipe and it’s vegan, YES! in mine, I also added a little chili powder, extra garlic, oats in stead of almond flour—we have this lemon olive oil (Nudo) that really was good in the crackers, too! the whole thing was so fun and easy.
thanks!
~Soledad :D