High altitude tested, toasty and extra crispy homemade whole wheat crackers, sprinkled with everything bagel seasoning. These rustic crackers are hearty and crunchy, perfect for snacking on with cheese and olives, or for dipping in hummus.

You might also love these high altitude recipes for chewy homemade bagels, honey whole wheat sandwich bread, and whole wheat graham crackers.

WHY YOU’LL LOVE THIS RECIPE

Simple Ingredients. You don’t need many ingredients to make these whole wheat crackers, just flour, salt, olive oil and water, and a few spices.

Hearty and Crunchy. The whole wheat flour adds a wholesome, nutty flavor to the crackers that’s just delicious. These are not a soft, buttery, ritz-type cracker, but something a little more rustic and extra crunchy, which I really like.

High Altitude Tested. I develop all the recipes on my site for Denver’s altitude of 5,280 feet. If you’re at a lower or higher elevation, please see my FAQs for guidance on adjusting recipes for your altitude. With no yeast or leavening in the dough, today’s recipe will work at any altitude, though.

TOOLS AND EQUIPMENT

• Rolling Pin. I like a large, straight French-style rolling pin (no handles), but use what you’re comfortable with for rolling out the dough.
• Parchment Paper. Since you’ll be rolling the dough pretty thin, you’ll need to roll it out on parchment paper, then place the paper and dough onto the baking sheet.
• Pizza Cutter or Rolling Pastry Wheel Cutter. This tool is helpful for cutting the crackers. However, you can also use a bench scraper, or just a sharp knife.
• Baking Sheet. You’ll need one large baking sheet (15×20 inches) or two half sheet pans (13×18 inches). If you use one large baking sheet, you can bake the crackers on the center oven rack. For two baking sheets, bake them on the upper and lower racks, rotating the pans halfway through baking.

INGREDIENTS

• Flour. I used half all-purpose flour and half whole wheat flour, to give the crackers structure and strength.
• Salt and Pepper. Flavor.
• Olive Oil. Adds flavor, but also fat, for a crispy texture.
• Water. Moistens the dough and binds it together.
• Everything Bagel Seasoning. This spice mix typically contains poppy seeds, sesame seeds, dried garlic, dried onion and salt, and it’s great on these whole wheat crackers. You can, of course, use any seasoning, herbs or spices that you like. For other flavor ideas for your crackers, such as rosemary, Parmesan or thyme, see the recipe variations section of my No Knead Bread Recipe.

INSTRUCTIONS

MAKE THE DOUGH.

• Preheat the oven to 325 F, and position a rack in the center of the oven (for one large baking sheet) or in the upper and lower thirds of the oven (for two half sheet pans).
• In a bowl, combine the flour, salt and pepper. If you’re adding any herbs or spices to the dough, add them now.
• Stir in 2 tablespoons of the oil and 3/4 cup of water, adding more water, a little at a time, until the dough comes together. The dough should be moist and slightly sticky, not dry or crumbly.

• Biscuits (Premium Packaging)

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ROLL AND CUT THE DOUGH.

• Lay a piece of parchment paper on the counter, and sprinkle the paper with flour. Scrape the dough out of the bowl onto the floured paper. Sprinkle the top of the dough with flour.
• Use a rolling pin to roll the dough out thinly, using more flour as needed to keep it from sticking to the rolling pin. The dough should roll out easily; if it’s stiff, crumbly or hard to work with, then you didn’t add enough water. Once you’re done rolling out the dough, use a pastry brush to brush away the excess flour.
• Baker’s Note: If you have a large enough baking sheet to bake all the crackers on one pan, roll the dough out to 14×18 inches on one sheet of parchment paper. If you’re using two pans, divide the dough in half, and roll each half out to 14×9 inches on separate pieces of parchment paper.

• Now lift the paper and place the paper and dough on the baking sheet. Brush the dough with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil, then sprinkle with the everything bagel seasoning. Lightly press the seasoning into the dough. Lastly, use a fork to lightly prick the dough all over, to prevent the crackers from puffing up.
• Use a pizza cutter or pastry wheel cutter, or just a bench scraper or sharp knife to cut the crackers into squares or rectangles. They don’t need to be perfectly uniform, since these are meant to be a bit rustic.

BAKE THE CRACKERS.

• Bake the crackers (one pan on the center oven rack, or two pans on the upper and lower racks and rotating them halfway through) for about 35-50 minutes, until crisp. The crackers will shrink a little and pull apart from each other as they dry out in the oven, and their edges may even twist or curl up; this is all part of their rustic charm. For extra toasty, extra crunchy crackers, bake them for the full 50 minutes.
• Cool the crackers completely before storing them in an airtight container or freezer bag.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

CAN I MAKE THESE WITH 100% WHOLE WHEAT FLOUR?

You certainly can use just whole wheat flour, if you don’t want to use a combination of all purpose and whole wheat flours. You may need to add a little more water, and dough made with just whole wheat flour tends to be a little harder to work with.

HOW LONG DO HOMEMADE CRACKERS STAY CRUNCHY?

Your crackers will stay crunchy for a long time, at least for several weeks in your pantry, if not longer. Just be sure to let them cool completely before storing them in a freezer bag or container, so that the escaping steam doesn’t soften them.

WHAT ARE SOME OTHER SPICES I CAN USE TO SEASON MY CRACKERS?

I have quite a few suggested spice pairings listed in the recipe variations section of my no knead artisan bread, which would also work for these crackers.