Saturday, August 21, 2010

parmesan thyme crackers - my worst fear manifested

P8250268I can not reiterate this enough: I am obsessed with the Barefoot Contessa. Everything she makes looks, well, fucking awesome. A while back I saw her making these (hear me out) ...crackers. Not just any old store-bought cardboard tasting square pieces of flour and butter. No, no, no. These were parmesan cheese and thyme crackers, rolled up and cut into dainty cute little medallions. How hard can crackers be to make? I mean, I'm practically a professional baker at this point.

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These cheesy and herb-full crackers are gonna kick the socks off those Ritz crackers any day.

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Fast forward an hour: I'm having a panic attack. I chilled the dough, as stated, but for some odd reason I could not cut my cute little medallions without them breaking apart! I tried and tried, but all that was left were crumbles of cheesy dough. Instead, I tried an old trick I used for my similarly crumbly macadamia nut shortbread- I literally dumped the whole thing into a baking pan, packed it down, and hoped for the best.

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My worst possible fear has manifested- I have created something delicious, but it is not presentable in any way shape or form. I was lucky if I could crumble a piece that was bigger than a quarter.

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My dream may have been in shambles (literally), but my spirit was not. I had big hopes for these little guys, and trust me, I'll find a way to reuse these broken pieces of deliciousness.

---RECIPE---
Taken from Ina Garten.

ingredients:
1 stick) unsalted butter
3 ounces grated Parmesan
1+1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

directions:
1. Place the butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and mix until creamy. Add the Parmesan, flour, salt, thyme and pepper and combine.
2. Dump the dough on a lightly floured board and roll into a 13-inch long log. Wrap the log in plastic wrap and place in the freezer for 30 minutes to harden.
3. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Cut the log crosswise into 1/4 to 1/2-inch thick slices. Place the slices on a sheet pan and bake for 22 minutes.

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