Seeds and nuts aren’t supposed to make up a huge part of the grain free diet (they are a little harder to digest for most people) but they’re great for guacamole, and any other dip! They’re also delicious on their own.
Grain free crackers are easy to make in the food processor, and without gluten we don’t have to worry about over processing them making them tough.
Grain Free Crackers made with Sesame and Sunflower Seeds
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted sunflower seeds hulled
- 1 teaspoon sea salt the coarse kind is fine
- 3 cloves of garlic peeled
- 1 cup sesame seeds hulled
- Up to 1/4 cup water
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
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In the bowl of the food processor, using the regular metal blade, combine the sunflower seeds, salt, and garlic. Turn food processor on and let it whir for 2-3 minutes until the seeds have turned into a dense flour. Add in the sesame seeds and pulse to mix (the sesame seeds don't need to mix all the way in). Slowly add in the water, a couple tablespoons at a time, until the seeds all clump together in a ball. Remove and knead to distribute the sesame seeds through the sunflower seed mixture. The mixture isn't a very pretty color at this point, but it improves beautifully with baking.
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Between parchment paper, roll the dough out until it is very thin for crisper crackers, or up to 1/4 inch thick for more sturdy crackers, in as close to a rectangle shape as possible. Using the parchment paper, flip the whole rectangle of dough onto a cookie sheet, keep the crackers on a layer of parchment paper to bake for easy removal. Cut into rectangles with a pizza cutter or sharp knife. We'll use the cut lines to break the crackers on after they're cooked.
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Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown. Allow to cool while still on the cookie sheet, then break along scored lines and serve.
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These look delicious. I’ve done a couple of grain free crackers on my site, but I’ve not used this particular combination. I’ll have to give yours a whirl!
Awesome! I’ve been looking for a good gluten free cracker recipe for a long time. How does it taste with pumpkin seeds?
Thanks!
The pumpkin seeds are great too- they just make the crackers more green (or at least the seeds that I got did). I didn’t notice a huge taste difference.
wow. This thread was ages ago. Anyone still reading this? Do you need to do anything to prepare the pumpkin seeds or just use them as they are?
Thanks
For improved digestibility, I would soak the hulled pumpkin seeds overnight in a slightly salty water solution, per this article: http://www.marksdailyapple.com/soaking-seeds-and-nuts/#axzz1qthoN0PX
Make sure they dry well before processing them.
Hope it helps!
If I soak my seeds first, can I use them while still damp and just add less/no water when processing? I’m just wondering if they might be easier to blend of there is some moisture? I don’t have a food processor and I’m looking for the simplest way to make these with minimal investment and without large appliances.
Thanks!
Yes! You may need to dry them in the dehydrator for a bit though, I think when they’re completely swelled with water the dough might be too moist.
Thank you for this! I have a daughter-in-law who has celiac and I will definitely be making some of these for her. :)
This recipe looks fantastic. I have seen similar ones, but nothing this simple.
Thanks!
I made these gf crackers this morning! They are so delicious that I hope we can save a few for tomorrow! I have made others, and these are definitley the best yet! Thanks so much!
Jean Finch
Fantastic tip about the sticks, thank you x 3.
I have been making these crackers for years, although 1/2 c grated Parmesan cheese is added to the food processor. A tip for rolling, place a wooden paint stir stick on either side of the dough before placing a second piece of parchment on top. When rolling, the thickness of the wood keeps the mixture a perfect thickness. Tape 2 sticks together for either side, for a thicker cracker..
I love this tip!! Wow! Thanks!
These will be perfect to pack for our son on our upcoming trip! Thank you for an egg, dairy, & grain-free recipe. :)
Blessings,
Michele
Oh wow, do you have someone in your family who is egg, dairy AND grain free? I tried taking Hannah off of eggs and dairy (she’s always off grains) for a couple weeks and it was hard coming up with food to feed her! Thankfully her issue didn’t seem to be eggs or dairy and they’re back in her diet now.
My son is dairy, egg, & gluten-free; my daughter & I are both gluten-free, but I love having grain-free options, too. :) I’m making them right now! I’m subbing cinnamon instead of garlic for this batch.
Thanks!
Michele
Thanks for clearing that up! It looks like we all reached a very happy solution. I have been in email contact with the site owner all day and he has been working to make us all happy, which I think is awesome. I think the resolution was ingenious too- to have the ingredients list show in a search engine but have it link directly to you for directions, which will drive even more traffic your way :)
Kudos to us all for keeping cool heads. And double yay for all of us who share our recipes and ways to manage eating better/healthier foods ;)
Have you tried to sprout sesame seeds? That is the next thing I want to try, wondering if there were any tricks you learned if you have sprouted them before. Thanks for the post. Yours is one of my favorite blogs :)
Thanks Ceitllyn! I haven’t tried to sprout sesame seeds yet, though I have soaked sunflower seeds in saltwater then dehydrated them recently- really good! Can you let me know how they turn out if you do sprout them?
Will these work without the sunflower seeds? We are a GAPS family on stage 4 right now. I’ve been making pumpkin crackers. Just soaked pumpkin seeds(that’s been dehydrated & ground) and egg.
Yup, they’ll work with just pumpkin seeds :)
Is there any way i can do this without a food processor? Maybe using a Blender or maybe process sunflower seeds in my coffee grinder before proceeding.. Any thoughts?
You may be able to do this with a blender, just pulse rather than running so it doesn’t turn into sunflower butter :)
Can you use tahini and skip the water?
Could I substitute something for the sesame seeds? My son is allergic.
Gerbs pumpkin seeds can be a substitute for the sesame seed just combine the sunflower seeds and it should work out fine. My son is allergic to nuts (except almonds) but almonds can work as a sesame seed sub. as well.
Can these be made without the sesame seeds?
can you make these without sesame seeds? They make me sick, but these crackers look so good!
Delicious crackers. Tip: Put dough on 1 sheet of parchment paper cut to size for your baking sheet.
Place a large size of Suran Wrap to cover the dough and roll out. Once rolled out, simply pick up the parchment paper and place on baking sheet. Much easier than using two pieces of parchment paper
and you can see what you’re doing.
I am so excited to find your site with all these recipes~~~ I’ve been diagnosed with a gluten allergy as well as chronic Candida. So, to say my foods have been limited is an understatement! But, as I continue to research options, this is becoming fun and a hobby of finding new and unique recipes and ways to substitute my old ways.
Thank You!!!
These are delicious! Used a mixture of sunflower and pumpkin seeds. Also substituted almond flour for the sesame seeds that I didn’t have. Thanks again for a wonderful GAPS recipe to cheer our day!
I’ve been making these regularly and have experimented with several variations. Our favorites are Parmesan, garlic, basil and raisin, cinnamon, honey. The raisen crackers have to be watched carefully because honey tends to burn easier.
These are pretty tasty! Would not recommend using that much garlic though, I used one clove and it was perfect, guess it’s up to individual taste. I also combined pumpkin and sunflower seeds that I already had soaked and mixed, they had a touch of cayenne in them so it added to the flavor as well.
I am so impressed with these crackers and can’t thank you enough for posting this recipe. Being on the GAPS diet is quite the challenge, especially in terms of satiating my need for a crunchy snack, and this recipe is such a lifesaver. I was skeptical as the aroma of the mixed ingredients wasn’t that appetizing, but definitely knew something was up when I opened the oven after twenty minutes had passed as they smelled delicious at that point. I followed your recipe almost exactly, except having added a bit more water and one additional garlic clove and they turned out great. They have the texture of a Cheez-It and the flavor a bit like Wheat Thins, but better. For me, the recipe yielded about 45 crackers. I’ve already eaten more than 2 rows. Looking forward to adding parmesan cheese as someone else suggested and/or topping these with cheddar cheese slices and/or peanut butter. So many possibilities! Thanks again for posting this.
I will definitely try this. Thanks for this GF recipe.
I really like them, they are verrrrrrrrrrry good!!!
Just made these for my daughter with Type One Diabetes. They are so easy to make and she loves them! Thank you!!!
We just made those. They are nice and crunchy. The only thing is that they have a bitter after taste. They aren’t burnt,so would you have an idea why is that? We followed the exact recipe. Thanks! N
This is a simple and delicious recipe. Parchment paper is a must. And I really appreciate the suggestion to use two paint-stirring sticks as a guide for rolling out a consistent thickness of crackers. I’m going to add flax seed and parmesan cheese next batch. Yum!
I LOVE THESE CRACKERS! Do you have the nutritional breakdown, at least approximations? Mainly carb count? Is there any?
I am looking forward to trying this recipe. I was having a bit of a hard time because I wanted to see how thick you were rolling the crackers & what your dough looked like in the processor but the camera was mostly trained on your upper torso.