There is something satisfying about making your own crackers from scratch. With a buttery, flaky texture and plenty of real cheddar cheese, these homemade cheese crackers are far more flavorful than anything you'll find in a box.
They're easy enough to make for an afternoon snack but also elegant enough to serve on a cheese board, alongside soups, or with a cold beer when friends stop by. The dough comes together in minutes with simple pantry ingredients, and you can customize each batch with your favorite toppings, from sesame seeds to poppy seeds or caraway.
Whether you cut them into classic squares, triangles, or fun cookie-cutter shapes, these crackers disappear quickly every time I make them.
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Easy to customize with herbs, spices, and seeds
- Made with real cheddar cheese for rich, savory flavor
- Crisp, buttery texture with no preservatives
- Easy dough that mixes together in minutes
- Great for parties, holidays, and lunch boxes
- Freezer-friendly before or after baking
Ingredients Needed
- All-purpose flour- Regular all-purpose flour gives the crackers just the right balance between crispness and tenderness.
- Salt- A small amount of salt seasons the dough and enhances the cheese flavor.
- Cold Unsalted Butter- Cold butter creates flaky layers, just like in pie dough. Keep it refrigerated until you're ready to use it.
- Cheddar Cheese- Sharp cheddar is my favorite because it gives these crackers plenty of cheesy flavor. Medium cheddar, Gruyère, Gouda, Emmental, mozzarella, or even feta cheese also work well if you'd like to experiment. For the best texture, grate your own cheese instead of using pre-shredded varieties, which often contain anti-caking agents that can slightly affect the dough.
- Sour Cream- Sour cream adds richness and helps create a tender, flavorful cracker.
- Egg Yolk- Brushing the crackers with egg gives them their beautiful golden color.
Optional Toppings
Before baking, sprinkle the crackers with:
- Sesame seeds
- Poppy seeds
- Caraway seeds
- Flaky sea salt
- Everything Bagel seasoning
- Fresh cracked black pepper
Special tools
- Food processor- this is optional. The dough can be made by hand as well.
- Baking sheet
- Rolling Pin
- Pastry cutter
- Dough Scraper
- Pastry Wheel Cutter or this one
How to Make Homemade Cheese Crackers
The recipe resembles the same method for making a pie crust.
Prepare the Dough
Step 1. Combine the flour and salt in a large bowl or the bowl of a food processor.
Step 2. Add the cold butter and pulse (or cut it into the flour with a pastry cutter) until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
Step 3. Mix in the shredded cheese and sour cream just until a dough forms. Avoid overworking the dough, as that can make the crackers less tender.
Step 4. Shape the dough into a disc, wrap it well, and refrigerate for at least one hour.
Roll and Cut
Step 1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).
Step 2. Divide the chilled dough into two portions.
Step 3. On a lightly floured surface or directly on parchment paper, roll the dough to about ⅛ inch (3 mm) thick.
Step 4. Use a pizza cutter or sharp knife to cut squares, then divide each square diagonally into triangles if desired. You can also use cookie cutters for fun shapes.
Step 5. Transfer the crackers to a parchment-lined baking sheet if you rolled them on the counter. Prick each cracker with a fork to help prevent puffing during baking.
Finish and Bake
Step 1. Brush the crackers lightly with beaten egg yolk.
Step 2. Sprinkle with your favorite seeds or flaky salt.
Step 3. Bake for 14 to 18 minutes, depending on thickness, until the edges are lightly golden.
Step 4. Allow them to cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack. They become crispier as they cool.
Expert Tips
- Rotate the baking sheet halfway through baking for even browning.
- Use freshly shredded cheese whenever possible for the best flavor and texture.
- Keep the butter cold until you're ready to mix the dough.
- Don't skip chilling the dough-it makes rolling much easier.
- If the dough becomes soft while rolling, place it back in the refrigerator for 15 minutes.
- Thin crackers bake up crispier, while slightly thicker ones stay more tender.
Variations
This recipe is easy to customize. Try adding:
- Smoked paprika
- Garlic powder
- Onion powder
- Fresh cracked pepper
- Cayenne pepper
- Dried rosemary
- Dried thyme
- Fresh herbs
- Parmesan mixed with cheddar
- Everything Bagel seasoning
Frequently Asked Questions
They probably need another minute or two in the oven. Baking time depends on how thin the dough is rolled. Remember that the crackers also become crispier as they cool.
Yes. The dough can stay refrigerated for up to two days before baking or frozen for up to three months.
Yes, you can freeze the dough. You could make a double batch and use half of it, freezing the rest for later use. These types of dough last in the freezer for up to three months.
Docking the dough allows steam to escape during baking and helps keep the crackers flat and evenly crisp.
Yes. Simply reduce the added salt in the recipe by about half.
No. A pastry cutter or even your fingertips work perfectly for cutting the butter into the flour.
Serving Suggestions
These savory crackers are delicious served with:
- Cheese boards
- Charcuterie platters
- Hummus
- Spinach dip
- Beer cheese dip
- Cream cheese spreads
- Tomato soup
- Chili
- A cold beer or a glass of white wine
They also make a wonderful homemade gift when packaged in a decorative tin or jar.
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📖 Recipe
Easy Homemade Cheese Crackers
Ingredients
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1½ teaspoon salt
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter cold and cubed
- 2 cups shredded cheese Cheddar Mozzarella, Gruyere etc.
- ¾ cup sour cream
- 1 egg yolk for brushing the crackers before baking
- Optional: Sesame seeds poppy seeds, caraway seeds etc.
Instructions
- Mix flour and salt together in a bowl.
- Add cold, cubed butter and mix it in the flour until you obtain a sandy mixture.
- Add the cheese and the sour cream and mix until you obtain a stiff dough.
- If the dough is too sticky, dust it with a teaspoon of flour and lightly knead it to incorporate the flour.
- Wrap dough in foil and place it in the refrigerator for an hour.
- Preheat oven to 180C/350F.
- Take the dough out and split it in two parts.
- Cover a baking tray with parchment paper.
- Roll out the dough on the parchment paper, aprox ⅛ of an inch thick(3mm).
- Use a pizza cutter to slice the dough sheet in squares, then in triangles.
- Pinch each triangle with a fork.
- Beat one egg and brush each triangle of dough with it.
- Sprinkle poppy seeds, sesame seeds or caraway over the dough and bake the crackers at 350F/180C for 15 minutes until golden brown.
- Repeat the process with the second piece of dough.
Notes
- At Room Temperature: Store the cooled crackers in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
- Freeze the Dough: Wrap the dough tightly in plastic wrap and place it in a freezer-safe bag. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before rolling and baking.
- Freeze the Baked Crackers: Allow the crackers to cool completely before freezing them in airtight freezer bags or containers for up to 3 months.
Clayton RUMBEL says
My partner and I are very fond of our daily fruit, vegetable and citrus-fruit juice (I usually make three days worth at a time) so I am always on the look out for other uses of the residual pulp.. The fruit pulp I use in a sweet cake, and the veggie one in soups. Today I wanted to make savoury crackers. For my partner I need to use gluten free flours and try for lactose free dairy.
When I saw your recipe I immediately knew it would work well with veggie pulp.
The results are excellent.
Do you want the details of my changes and a couple of photos?
Thanks
Clayton
Debi says
These were so dry I could not roll them out. Seems like it is missing some liquid
The Bossy Kitchen says
Debi, With all due respect, if you measured the flour right, the dough should not be dry. If you pack the flour into your cup, you end up with too much. The dough should have the consistency of biscuit dough, which is indeed a little bit on the dry side but still easy to roll. There is plenty of sour cream and butter in the recipe to make the dough moist. Also, did you gather the dough together and make it into a square, so you can refrigerate it? this is when the dough comes together.
Talina says
I agree that it is probably missing something. Mine was also super dry.
Talina says
Just finished baking the first batch and I totally agree with Debi. The recipe by itself was no where near wet enough for it to even look like a dough. I added probably almost 1/2 a cup of water and more sour cream than the recipe called for. I did have to really work the dough to get the water incorporated which overmixed the dough leading to a much crunchier cracker. Which I thought was good. Not enough cheese flavor for my taste and I did add garlic powder which made them yummy! I did have to bake them for about 25 minutes because of the extra water.
Gabriela says
Thank you for your feedback and for trying out the recipe. I wanted to address some of the points you mentioned to help ensure the best results.
It's important to measure the flour correctly. When flour is packed into a measuring cup, it can lead to using more flour than intended, resulting in a dry dough. I recommend measuring the flour by weight (in grams) using a kitchen scale for more accuracy. The exact amounts are available in the recipe card.
Adding extra water or sour cream will alter the balance of ingredients, which is likely why your baking time increased due to excess moisture. Additionally, there's no need to knead the dough extensively, as this recipe is similar to a biscuit or pie crust, where minimal handling is key. Some dry spots in the dough are normal and will come together after refrigeration. If you ever made a pie crust, you understand what I am talking about.
The recipe includes 3 cups of flour and 2 cups of cheese, which provides a balanced amount of cheese. Rest assured, all my recipes are tested multiple times, and they do work when followed as written. I encourage you to read both the recipe card and the full article for additional tips and details that may help.
While I strive to create recipes that are easy to follow, I cannot control adjustments made in individual kitchens. I hope you give the recipe another try and follow it as closely as possible.
Thank you for your understanding, and I appreciate your continued support. I’m happy to answer any further questions you may have.
FM Smith says
Frankly, these crackers should be BANNED! The recipe is perfect. I do not have a food processor, so I used the dough hook with my Kitchen Aid. The dough came together beautifully, and I was able to form two disks with no difficulty. I did not use the egg wash; the crackers are lovely looking without it. They are really good.