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Graham Crackers (Reduced Sugar)

By America's Test Kitchen

Published on April 16, 2020

Yield

Makes 36 crackers

Sugar

2 grams (down from 4)

Graham Crackers (Reduced Sugar)

Ingredients

⅓ cup plus ¼ cup Sucanat (3 ounces/85 grams)¼ cup water 1 tablespoon vanilla extract 1¾ cups (9⅔ ounces/274 grams) graham flour ½ cup (2½ ounces/71 grams) all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1 teaspoon baking powder ½ teaspoon baking soda ½ teaspoon salt 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch pieces and chilled

Before You Begin

You can learn more about Sucanat in

. You can skip grinding the Sucanat in step 1; however, the crackers will have a speckled appearance. Do not shortchange the dough's 30-minute resting time in step 2 or the dough will be difficult to handle.

Instructions

  1. Working in 2 batches, grind Sucanat in spice grinder until fine and powdery, about 1 minute. Combine water and vanilla in bowl.
  2. Process ground Sucanat, graham flour, all-purpose flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in food processor until combined, about 3 seconds. Add chilled butter and process until mixture resembles coarse cornmeal, about 15 seconds. Add vanilla mixture and process until dough comes together, about 20 seconds. Transfer to bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let dough rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
  3. Adjust oven racks to upper-middle and lower-middle positions and heat oven to 300 degrees. Divide dough into 2 equal pieces, shape each piece into 4-inch square, and cover with plastic wrap.
  4. Working with 1 piece of dough at a time, roll between 2 large sheets of parchment paper into 16 by 8-inch rectangle (⅛ inch thick); loosen pieces of parchment from dough occasionally when rolling out. Remove top sheet parchment. Using sharp knife, score dough into eighteen 2⅔-inch squares, then prick each square several times with fork. Slide each parchment with dough onto rimmed baking sheet.
  5. Bake crackers until firm to touch and just beginning to brown around edges, 30 to 35 minutes, switching and rotating sheets halfway through baking. Let crackers cool completely on sheets, then break apart along scored lines. Serve.
Graham Crackers (Reduced Sugar)
Photography by Keller + Keller. Styling by Catrine Kelty.

Graham Crackers (Reduced Sugar)

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By America's Test Kitchen
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Yield

Makes 36 crackers

Sugar

2 grams (down from 4)

Ingredients

⅓ cup plus ¼ cup Sucanat (3 ounces/85 grams)
¼ cup water
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1¾ cups (9⅔ ounces/274 grams) graham flour
½ cup (2½ ounces/71 grams) all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch pieces and chilled

Test Kitchen Techniques

Ingredients

⅓ cup plus ¼ cup Sucanat (3 ounces/85 grams)
¼ cup water
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1¾ cups (9⅔ ounces/274 grams) graham flour
½ cup (2½ ounces/71 grams) all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch pieces and chilled

Test Kitchen Techniques

Ingredients

⅓ cup plus ¼ cup Sucanat (3 ounces/85 grams)
¼ cup water
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1¾ cups (9⅔ ounces/274 grams) graham flour
½ cup (2½ ounces/71 grams) all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch pieces and chilled

Test Kitchen Techniques

Why This Recipe Works

Making graham crackers is surprisingly easy and we loved the idea of being able to control how much and what type of sugar went into them. Although the flavor of honey was nice, we found the added moisture made the dough too soft to work with; Sucanat tasted great and ensured that our dough was easy to roll. Rolling the dough between sheets of parchment made it easy to transfer from the counter to the baking sheet. To achieve a short, flaky texture, we cut chilled butter into the dough using a food processor. Cinnamon and vanilla rounded out the flavor of our crackers.

Before You Begin

You can learn more about Sucanat in

. You can skip grinding the Sucanat in step 1; however, the crackers will have a speckled appearance. Do not shortchange the dough's 30-minute resting time in step 2 or the dough will be difficult to handle.

Instructions

  1. Working in 2 batches, grind Sucanat in spice grinder until fine and powdery, about 1 minute. Combine water and vanilla in bowl.
  2. Process ground Sucanat, graham flour, all-purpose flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in food processor until combined, about 3 seconds. Add chilled butter and process until mixture resembles coarse cornmeal, about 15 seconds. Add vanilla mixture and process until dough comes together, about 20 seconds. Transfer to bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let dough rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
  3. Adjust oven racks to upper-middle and lower-middle positions and heat oven to 300 degrees. Divide dough into 2 equal pieces, shape each piece into 4-inch square, and cover with plastic wrap.
  4. Working with 1 piece of dough at a time, roll between 2 large sheets of parchment paper into 16 by 8-inch rectangle (⅛ inch thick); loosen pieces of parchment from dough occasionally when rolling out. Remove top sheet parchment. Using sharp knife, score dough into eighteen 2⅔-inch squares, then prick each square several times with fork. Slide each parchment with dough onto rimmed baking sheet.
  5. Bake crackers until firm to touch and just beginning to brown around edges, 30 to 35 minutes, switching and rotating sheets halfway through baking. Let crackers cool completely on sheets, then break apart along scored lines. Serve.

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