I need help making tasty flax crackers!

[Missrawdiva]

At first I was making flax crackers by just grinding them in a coffee grinder, then adding agave nector and putting them in the dehydrator. Well, they came out tasting more like a DIRT cracker with agave added in. I had to FORCE myself to eat it! Then, when I went to my Level 1 class, Dr.Bloem had some flax crackers, and his were good. He told me to soak them first. So, I did soak them and then I put them in the food processor and added some cinamon and raw agave and I made sure I spread them out flatter, and they taster better.. but not like his. He had " golden" flax seeds. Is there a difference in taste between the dark flax seeds and golden flax seeds? And does anyone have some EASY recipes for flax crackers. My dark flax cracker is ok.. but I can still taste a hint of the "earth" in it.. lol
I do like to eat them because it helps me to be more "regular"

[RowanC]

Missrawdiva, email me privately and I'll give you some hints.

[girlsmiley]

I just started grinding the flax seeds for my crackers ... I do like the whole seeds too so my next batch may be half-and-half. I have also added sesame seeds and pumpkin seeds for variety :p

I have the round dehydrator. I take the flax seeds, grind them, soak them in filtered water with some garlic and onion seasonings (GarlicGarlic and OnionOnion from Tastefully Simple). Spread them on the plastic tray thing and dehydrate away ... usually I do this in the evening, soaking for a couple of hours and then put them in the dehydrator before I go to bed. In the morning I flip them and when I get home I have delicious crackers!

I have not tried to make sweet flax seed crackers yet ... I'm an onion and garlic girl :rolleyes:

Oh, and I only use the golden flax seeds so I don't know how the dark ones taste.

[madmel]

missrawdiva,

I have always used the brown flax until somebody here on RFT told me that the golden flax tastes way better. For me in Asia it's difficult (and expensive) to get the golden flax, but every effort (and expense) was worth it. It tastes a lot different, a more subtle mild taste, brown flax can have a very strong own taste.

I like simple flax crackers and a really nice and easy recipe is some ripe banana, golden flax, some almond flour (just ground up almonds) and some cinnamon. Lovely for the sweet tooth. Delicious with some honey or raw jam made from berries.

I also still love the onion bread, I never grow tired of making and eating it. Sometimes I use less onions but more flax (whole and ground) and sesame. A nice savoury cracker thing, goes very well with avos, tomatoes and onions on top.

cheers,
madmel

[carolg]

Made some flax crackers with no onions. I soaked brown flax for about 30-45 minutes, then blended with celery, tomatoes, garlic. I even forgot carrots which I normally use. Without the onions it was good, but onion surely does have a nicer flavor. Poured them into rounds so it's pizza to me.
carolg

[exurb]

Is there a difference in taste between the dark flax seeds and golden flax seeds?

huge difference. Golden are much better tasting.

You can also blend out the flax with other things, buckwheat, corn, whatever... oats, rye, in addition to lots of veggies, sundried tomatoes, herbs, etc...

[Revvell]

Alissa's book has some wonderful flax crackers.

Revvell

[Dara]

I have been making a cracker that I think goes well with everything from Nut Cheeses to Guacamole. In a food processor combine 1 1/2 cups golden flax seeds previously soaked for 4-8 hours in 2 1/2 cups of filtered water with 2 TBS nama shoyu, 2 TBS organic maple syrup, 1 1/2 tsp chili powder, 1/2 tsp garam masala, 1/2 tsp ground cayenne pepper, 1/2 tsp minced onion and 1/2 tsp minced garlic. Using an offset spatula spread the flaxseed mixture in a 1/8" thick layer on a Teflex sheet. This mixture will cover 2 Teflex sheets. Dehydrate at 105 degrees until firm enough to flip. Continue to dehydrate until crisp. This usually takes approximately 24 - 30 hours depending on the humidity. :o

[Carmella]

I have always used the brown flax until somebody here on RFT told me that the golden flax tastes way better. For me in Asia it's difficult (and expensive) to get the golden flax, but every effort (and expense) was worth it. It tastes a lot different, a more subtle mild taste, brown flax can have a very strong own taste.

I also still love the onion bread, I never grow tired of making and eating it. Sometimes I use less onions but more flax (whole and ground) and sesame. A nice savoury cracker thing, goes very well with avos, tomatoes and onions on top.

cheers,
madmel

Thanks madmel for the tip. I, too, have been wondering about the difference...

BTW, I am also addicted to the onion bread. It's my favorite so far. I've also tried your no oil version and love it! To me, the onion taste ends up stronger though than in the original version so I might try cutting down a little more next time.

And speaking of crackers, I just took 3 different batches out of my new Excalibur this morning. Wow! I can't believe how it was so much faster and easier than with my hand-made dehydrator. It works like a dream! :D

I just gotta figure a more effective way of spreading the batter as I find it the most time consuming part of the whole process.

Oh yeah, I've noticed that some crackers (like Mindi's Ritz crackers or Alissa's burger bun that I make into thin pizza crusts) turn up all curled/wavy, specially around the edges. Any idea why?

Thanks,
Carmella

[madmel]

Hey Carmelia,

you're welcome!

I use white large onions for the onion bread without oil - they are very mild in flavor. What I also tried is chopping the onions first in the fp, then rinse them a couple of times with water and pre-dehydrate them for two hours or so.

I have also bought the Excalibur a while ago and while it was quite expensive for me (I live in Asia, need a custom made plug/cord/voltage), it was worth it. It's not only good for the raw things, but it really is a versatile tool in my kitchen.

Everything you put in your dehydrator will dry from the outside to the inside - the larger you spread the batter, the drier will the outside be. The corners are drier than the middle. You might try out cutting the spread out dough when it's still moist.

cheers,
madmel

[carolg]

I find the Excalibur useful, but always aim to fill every tray up even if it means stoirng in a plastic container later on. Just makes sense to me to make bunches vs. few. Maybe it was my upbringing as my parents always bought in things in 2, 3, 4 instead of just one thing of something.

Thanks for tips on onion bread. Still need to get around to that recipe. Have lots of white onions too.
carolg

[Maria]

I've struggled with the taste of flax crackers (was a former chip-aholic) ;). I now make flax crackers from ground flax seeds and soaked oat groats, plus spices. They turn out really crispy and remind me more of the crackers I used to love.

[Carmella]

madmel,
Thanks for the tips... Will try them next time which, unfortunately, could be a while as it looks like I've got a month's supply of crackers! LOL I suppose I could freeze some...

As for cutting, I've being using a pizza cutter after I flip them. I was wondering though whether I could score them at the very beginning but am now sure if that would damage the teflex sheets. Any thoughts on that?

How do you spread the dough? I've been sort of dumping it on the teflex and then spreading it with a spatula but it seems to take ages. I've heard about the "spreading as though frosting a cake" theory but haven't tried it yet for lack of an offset spatula. Have you?

carolg,
I'm totally like you, making lots at once. I find that, in the end, it does save energy and make much more sense. I gotta admit though that when I ordered the Excalibur, I thought that there was no way I would manage to fill it right up yet I did it! I like to make at least 3 recipes at once, say some crackers and a couple of cookies, and then fill the rest of the trays with soaked seeds and nuts so that they are all ready to use for future recipes which don't call for soaking.

You just gotta try the onion bread recipe! Yum Yum!

Carmella

[madmel]

Hi Carmelia,

I spread my dough with my hands - spatula doesn't work for me. Hands are less messy and the dough is more even this way.

I cut the dough pretty early, they are still (very) moist when I do that - I don't use a sharp knife, but a butter knife (that's how we call it in Europe). It's a smallish knife that's not sharp at all. It's used for taking and spreading butter from the butter pot. You can anything that's not sharp, e.g. a ruler, the back of a knife and so on.

cheers,
madmel

[Carmella]

Thanks madmel!
I'll try using my hands next time... I recently made sauerkraut that I massaged with my feet and I found that it's actually fun to "get dirty"! :D

[madmel]

As long as your feet get dirty and not the kraut :D

I enjoy working with my hands and I often find it easier to use them to spread dough or mix things than using a tool.

[Carmella]

(Laughter) :D
Actually, yesterday, I was proudly telling my good friend and neighbor about my first batch of sauerkraut. I asked him to taste it to see whether it's ready as I've never had sauerkraut before. And just as he was about to taste, I casually mentioned me using my feet... :D It dawned on me then how weird that sounded! Of course, I hurried up to clarify that I washed those just before...Hi!Hi!
Your comment just reminded me of this little vignette...

Bye for now,
Carmella

[rawolive]

Missrawdiva, email me privately and I'll give you some hints.


RowanC, Can you tell all of us on the forum instead of just privately? Why be private about it? Sharing is always nice. I think everybody would like to know how to do this.

[denisedeland]

Flax Crackers

4 cups whole flax seeds, soaked 4-6 hours
1/3 to 1/2 cup Braggs Aminos
juice of 2-3 lemons

Soak flax seeds for 4 to 6 hours in purified water. You will then have a gelatinous mixture, be sure to keep moist and loose for spreading. Add Braggs and lemon juice to taste and mix well. Spread mixture as thin as possible on your dehydrator trays with a teflex sheet on top. Keep your hands wet as this will help on spreading the flax seeds (or use a spatula) Dehydrate at 105 degees for 5-6 hours and then flip the mixture and remove the teflex sheet. Continue dehydrating until the mixture completely dry. Approximately 5-6 hours.

Optional:

You could add garlic, onions, carrot juice, taco seasoning, Italian seasoning, chili powder, cumin in any combination. Be creative and make up your own recipe.

[GlimR]

I use my hands too...wet them in between if they need it....helps the batter spread very thin. I wait till the crackers are completely dry then just fold them over, breaking them into pieces.

madmel........am trying your sweet cracker idea......sounds good~ :)
Drying right now~

[Carmella]

Hey madmel,

Just got my latest batch of onion bread out of the Excalibur and it's just amazing! By far THE best I've made! I used the golden flax (for the first time) with just a little brown flax. I also threw in a few extra tbs of ground pumpkin seeds.

I'm in love all over again!!! :D

Ooops, forgot to mention I also used your trick of spreading the batter by hand. Wow! Couldn't believe how much quicker and easier it was! Yay! I ended up using a spatula just to finish off the edges. Thanks again for this awesome tip!

Carmella

[madmel]

Hey madmel,

Just got my latest batch of onion bread out of the Excalibur and it's just amazing! By far THE best I've made! I used the golden flax (for the first time) with just a little brown flax. I also threw in a few extra tbs of ground pumpkin seeds.

I'm in love all over again!!! :D

Ooops, forgot to mention I also used your trick of spreading the batter by hand. Wow! Couldn't believe how much quicker and easier it was! Yay! I ended up using a spatula just to finish off the edges. Thanks again for this awesome tip!

Carmella

Yay, Carmelia,

I am soooo happy it worked! Isn't the golden flax amazing? Pumpkin seeds also go well with this, so do pine nuts and sunflower seeds. Or some sesame. I just LOVE the onion bread although I am only enduring (not enjoying) some of its "windy" consequences...

The best thing about spreading it with your hand is that you can lick you fingers afterwards :D

melanie

[Carmella]

Yay, Carmelia,

I am soooo happy it worked! Isn't the golden flax amazing? Pumpkin seeds also go well with this, so do pine nuts and sunflower seeds. Or some sesame. I just LOVE the onion bread although I am only enduring (not enjoying) some of its "windy" consequences...

The best thing about spreading it with your hand is that you can lick you fingers afterwards :D

melanie

Hey Mel,

It always blows my mind that I'm able to converse with someone on the other side of the planet! LOL :D You just gotta love technology!

Boy, am I glad I read your post recommending the golden flax! If I thought I was addicted to the onion bread before...

Don and I are also super sensitive to raw onion. So whenever a recipe calls for them, we put leek or green onions instead, which somehow don't feel as strong and difficult to digest. The first time I made onion bread, we were bracing ourselves for the expected "windy consequences", as you call them (Hi!Hi!) but...they never came! Yay! We figured the dehydration process took care of that. So, I'm just surprised you still have to deal with those... Are you sure now you're not doing more than just licking your fingers and eating the raw dough in big large mouthfuls!!! :D

Enjoy your weekend...

Carmella

[madmel]

I'm a digital girl. Which means without my laptop, digicam, iPod and cell phone I am close to nothing :D

I gotta admit: I LOVE onion... I can eat onions all the time. Not the really strong kinds, but I just love onions. White, red, pink. Love them all. Most of all with tomatoes. So on my onion bread you will find tomatoes and onions, sometimes some avo.

I just had some cut up tomatoes, lots of diced onions and parsley (the one with the bigger, smoother leaves) and some pepper and ACV and in it goes. Or runs rather... Sometimes I also dice some cuke, I love cuke too!

So I know that not the onion bread is the culprit, but my overall heavy onion consumption. I guess in my next life I will be reborn as an onion or garlic :D

Have a good Sunday
mel