I will admit that I really enjoy a good cracker. I've shared several here before—
Nooch Crackers,
Cornmeal and Cheddar Crackers,
Pea, Parmesan, and Rosemary Crackers—all wonderful and delicious options. Today, though, I have this recipe for
Sunflower Crackers that I've been anxious to share, but have been waiting for the right time. These crackers are very easy to make, super tasty (is it bad to admit I ate half the batch in one go??),
and they're gluten free, vegan, and paleo-friendly.
Often, we think of gluten free foods as flavorless and compare them to recyclable materials, like paper and cardboard. Don't let me fool you, there are some truly bad gluten free foods out there. Recipes where no matter how much sugar/salt/fat you throw at them, they taste like sawdust. The landscape is really changing, though. With a greater focus on fresh, local foods and a whole heap of recipe developers seeing "gluten free" as a creative challenge (rather than hindrance), recipes are getting better.
There are more high quality ingredients available and folks are exploring things they previously hadn't. Ingredients like oat flour and quinoa flour are showing up more and more often. Chickpea (aka Garbanzo Bean) Flour is increasingly popular for making pizza and crackers. Arrowroot and Tapioca Starch are showing up places they previously had not. Add to this the focus on grain-free eating that the paleo diet has brought to the forefront, and you have a huge variety of delicious, reliable recipes for nearly everything under the sun.
Now more than ever, gluten free recipes are becoming so good that people truly cannot tell the difference. This cracker that is somehow gluten free, paleo-friendly, and vegan, is a perfect example. Here is a cracker you can serve at a party without mentioning which diet it's accommodating, and folks will gobble them up (trust me, I watched this happen at the office).
Our test kitchen has combined sunflower seed meal (made by pulsing sunflowers in a food processor) and tapioca flour to create these crisp, flavorful crackers that everyone will enjoy. Here, we've topped them with mashed avocado and sliced kumquats. Sure, it sounds weird, but it's surprisingly delicious. They'd be wonderful with a charcuterie plate, topped with a nice cheese, dolloped with a fruit spread, or just devoured plain. If you've decided to accept that crackers just cannot be a part of your gluten free diet, think again.
There are more high quality ingredients available and folks are exploring things they previously hadn't. Ingredients like oat flour and quinoa flour are showing up more and more often. Chickpea (aka Garbanzo Bean) Flour is increasingly popular for making pizza and crackers. Arrowroot and Tapioca Starch are showing up places they previously had not. Add to this the focus on grain-free eating that the paleo diet has brought to the forefront, and you have a huge variety of delicious, reliable recipes for nearly everything under the sun.
Now more than ever, gluten free recipes are becoming so good that people truly cannot tell the difference. This cracker that is somehow gluten free, paleo-friendly, and vegan, is a perfect example. Here is a cracker you can serve at a party without mentioning which diet it's accommodating, and folks will gobble them up (trust me, I watched this happen at the office).
Our test kitchen has combined sunflower seed meal (made by pulsing sunflowers in a food processor) and tapioca flour to create these crisp, flavorful crackers that everyone will enjoy. Here, we've topped them with mashed avocado and sliced kumquats. Sure, it sounds weird, but it's surprisingly delicious. They'd be wonderful with a charcuterie plate, topped with a nice cheese, dolloped with a fruit spread, or just devoured plain. If you've decided to accept that crackers just cannot be a part of your gluten free diet, think again.
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