Honey Graham Crackers

These homemade graham crackers are not overly sweet and have just the right amount of spice from the cinnamon, nutmeg, and cardamom. My daughters love them. My favorite way to eat them is with a smear of peanut butter and a few chocolate chips on top. I also love to grind them into a crumb for the crust of my New York–Style Cheesecake.

One final note: To quote my kids, “These are better than store-bought.”

Enough said.

MAKES ABOUT 50 (2½ BY 2½-INCH) CRACKERS • TOTAL TIME: 3 HOURS

INGREDIENTS:

1½ cups whole wheat flour

1½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

¾ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon baking soda

¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

¼ teaspoon ground cardamom

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature

⅓ cup packed dark brown sugar

⅓ cup honey

1½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract

½ cup heavy cream

DIRECTIONS:

• In a large bowl, sift together both flours, the baking powder, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cardamom. Set aside.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter, brown sugar, honey, and vanilla.
• Spoon in the flour mixture, alternating with the heavy cream, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a spatula as needed. Once the dough forms, it should be firm and resemble sugar cookie dough. Divide the dough in half, form into rectangular discs, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 2 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats.
• On a lightly floured work surface, roll out one dough disc to ⅛ inch thick. Using a 2½ by 2½-inch square cutter (or measure with a ruler), cut squares from the dough and place them about ¼ of an inch apart on the baking sheets.
• Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown.
• Allow the graham crackers to cool on the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack and repeat with the second disc of dough. Once cool, store in an airtight container at room temperature for 1 to 2 weeks.

SIMPLY SCRATCH TIP

For a little extra sweetness, sometimes I sprinkle a little turbinado sugar on top before baking.