Paleo and GF Crackers

This is a very simple recipe, one that would be fun for children to help with or make depending on their age. They can help mix the dough, roll it out and even cut them into crackers. They may however need some help putting them in and taking them out of the hot oven, again depending on their age. My apologies for the cell phone photos, my internet is down for a few days while we wait for a new line to be installed, so I am having to post this from my phone, I hope to get higher quality, instructional photos up in the future.
I hadn't made crackers for a while, but two of my girls were sick with the stomach flu and were asking for crackers so I thought I would whip out a batch really quickly for them. In the past I've always made them with spices and they have tasted like Italian or pizza crust flavor. But today since the girls were sick I made them plain, and used the opportunity to experimented using Sunflower Seed flour for part of the flour. We really liked the nice nutty flavor that the Sunflower Seed Flour imparts. The idea for making Sunflower seed flour is does not come from me, it comes from a wonderful post written by the Paleo Parents  last week using a Blendtec. I however, have been using the technique found on my post and video for making almond flour at home, and am happy to share that it can be made inexpensively with a Coffee grinder. Sunflower Seeds are much cheaper ( like $3-$4 less per pound than almonds) and using a coffee grinder you will end up with a wonderful, fine flour, perfect for baking (unless of course you already own a Blentec or Vitamix).  Another huge advantage to grinding your own nut/seed flours is that you can soak them in advance, dehydrate them and then grind them into flour removing many of the anti-nutrients and making them more easily digestible (here is a little information on soaking : The Healthy Home Economist or How to soak and dehydrate nuts and seeds by: Mommypotamus if you are interested).
Feel free to experiment with these cracker recipes using different seasonings or maybe adding a couple tablespoons of sesame or poppy seeds.
I will give both recipes I've used for making Paleo and GF Crackers so that you may try them both if you like:

Paleo and GF Crackers 

( With Sunflower Seed Flour and almond flour)

1 cup almond flour ( I made my own so if you are using store bought you may want to decrease this slightly)
1 cup of homemade sunflower seed flour, finely ground
1 egg, slightly beaten
1 tsp sea salt ( scant)
1 1/2 TBSP  melted butter or olive oil ( your choice and does change the flavor slightly)
Seasonings or seeds of your choice

Combine all of the above ingredients in a bowl, mixing well to be sure it's well combined. Then knead the dough into a round ball, place on large piece of parchment paper, flatten with your hands slightly. Cover with another piece of parchment paper and roll out dough with a rolling pin, until its nice and evenly thin ( approximately 1/8"). Peel off top layer of parchment paper and using a pizza cutter, cut your dough into squares or whatever shape you would like. Slide the parchment paper onto a baking sheet and bake at 325 degrees for 20-30 minutes or until done, ovens vary so much it's a good idea to watch them closely the first time you make them. I also removed the ones on the edges and put the rest back in to finish baking as the edges will cook faster. Remove from the oven and let cool, I used the tip of a sharp knife to break or separate them where they stuck together. And that's it, then you get to enjoy them or store them in a airtight container ( ours rarely last that long). We got about 3 1/2 dozen crackers out of this.

Paleo And GF Crackers #2 

( all almond flour)
*updated 2/11/13

2 slightly heaping cups of almond flour ( I make my own unblanched almond flour)
2 eggs, slightly beaten
3 TBSP good quality olive oil ( or butter)
1/2 tsp sea salt (or more)
Garlic powder to taste ( about 1/4-1/2 tsp)
Dried Basil to taste ( about 1/2-1 tsp)
Oregano (about 1/4 tsp)
Rosemary ( optional)

Combine all of the above ingredients in a bowl and mix well until combined. Then knead the dough into a ball, place on a large sheet of parchment paper and flatten with your hands. Then cover with another sheet of parchment paper and roll out with a rolling pin until its thin ( about 1/8"). Then remove the top layer of paper and using a pizza cutter, cut dough into crackers. Slide the parchment paper onto a baking sheet and bake in a preheated oven of 325 degrees for about 20-30 minutes removing the ones on the edges as the get done more quickly and allowing the middle to finish baking. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely, enjoy or store in an airtight container!

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