i need a recipe for raw crackers that works

[cureteipsum]

I need a recipe for raw crackers that works and doesn't take 20 hours to dehydrate. I don't want to run up the electric bill making crackers, especially since i've had so many failed attempts and its just such a waste, not only of ingredients but of electricity, too. The crackers end up wet on the bottom after 12 hours at 110 degrees. Somehow that doesn't seem right. I didn't make them too thick..maybe about 1/4 inch. Sometimes they are gummy. Or they taste bad. Or the flaxseeds are still whole because they are too small to be caught by the food processor blades. I am so frustrated! Help! Why do i suck at this?

[Revvell]

Well, unless the recipe calls for ground flaxseeds, then they do stay whole. If they're supposed to be ground, grind them first in a coffee grinder.

Alissa's crackers are wonderful!

Hard to say what you're doing "wrong" when we don't know what you're doing.
Do you flip them?

Revvell

[trinity082482]

Make something more whole and less moist.. like mix in sesame seeds with flax seeds and salba seeds and hemp seeds and add a little spice and a tad bit of olive oil to coat it together and it might not hold together on the spoon but press together in the dehydrator and it will dry solid in less than 12 hours.

[tvillemom]

Are you flipping your crackers? I know they will stay wet on the bottom (the side that is on the texflex) if you don't flip them over, and when you flip them, they should be on the mesh sheet (not the texflex). I have found that I actually think the cracker gets crisper when I soak the flaxseeds whole, and then mix them with whatever seasoning. I have found the crispiest crackers I've tried were just soaked flaxseeds, spread out on the sheet and sprinkled with sea salt and garlic (you could always use another spice or flavoring)

Hope this helps...and yes, sometimes it does take about a day....
So when I make a batch, I try to fill up the dehydrator as much as possible!!
(and if you don't want to make a HUGE batch of crackers, until you get the hang of it, try dehydrating other veggies (like zuchini chips) or fruits)

Good luck.
Wendi

[tvillemom]

Oh here's another tip....

I use my hands, and wet them (clean of course) and spread out the cracker as thin as I can get it without seeing the texflex. I bet mine are about 1/8 of an inch...maybe this is why yours are "mushy"??

Just a thought.

Wendi

[Glow Worm]

do you have a vitamix? that helps to grind all seeds.
the thinner you spread your batter, the less time it'll take to dry.

here's a no fail recipe...equal parts flax seeds to nuts, water to equal total amount of dry goods....blend, spread, dehydrate, flip, eat.

here's what i do, but you can change the amounts and type....
1 c flax seeds (if you only have a food processor, i suggest buying ground flax)
1 c walnuts (a food processor will do a good job chopping these)
1/4 sunflower seeds
2 c water
salt

In a vitamix blender, grind flax seeds, walnuts, and sunflower seeds. Then add water and blend again. If batter looks thin, don't worry, if you let it sit in the vitamix for a few minutes, it will thicken on it's own. Pour onto telflex sheet and sprinkle with salt, dehydrate at 105F. My crackers will dry in 2 days, but it all depends on how thick and if you flip.
If you like sweet crackers, drizzle honey on the batter after you spread it.

[baltochef]

cureteipsum

When I make crackers I like to soak the seeds overnight..

For flax, this releases the muciligineaous properties, that helps bind everything together..

I use an offset icing spatula dipped in cold water to spread the mixture evenly over the surface of the Teflex sheet..

The thicker that you want the finished cracker to be, the longer it will have to remain in the dehydrator to reach the "snap" stage of crispness..

As tvillemom has pointed out already, flipping the crackers over off of the Teflex sheet onto the perforated insert of the tray will greatly speed up the drying process..

By laying another dehydrator tray & it's perforated insert on top of the partially dehydrated cracker mixture, you should be able to easily flip both trays & the cracker mixture safely over..

Then remove the first tray & the perforated insert..

If necessary, use as long of a icing spatula that you have, to loosen the cracker mixture off of the Teflex sheet..

Otherwise, carefully peel the Teflex sheet away from the cracker mixture; smoothing things out with a spatula, if needed..

Return the cracker mixture to the dehydrator to continue dehydrating until as dry & crispy as you like your crackers to be..

Even though it seems as if the dehydrator is using large amounts of electricity; in actuality they do not consume very much at all..

I don't remember which thread I read this in over the past several months that pointed this out, but I believe it was here at Alissa's; or perhaps at the Living & raw Foods Community Support forum..

For me it's not so much the electricity consumption of the dehydrator that bothers me, as much as the noise pollution that it generates..

Although my 9-tray Excalibur is a great tool, I find myself not using it as much due to the anoyance of the fan motor constantly running in the background..

As I live in a small rowhouse, there is really no place to put it to get away from the noise..

Bruce

[MainelyRaw]

I find that putting crackers on parchment paper (used unbleached if you can) vs. teflex cuts down on the drying time. And no clean up.

Susan Brewer
Living on Live Teacher
Southern Maine
www.rawfoodclasses.com

[baltochef]

MainelyRaw

The crackers taking less time to dehydrate on parchment paper as opposed to the Teflex sheet makes a lot of sense..

The paper, even though it has a coating, is still somewhat porous..

The crackers, any food really, will be drying from the underside at the same time that they are drying out from the topside, just at a slower rate..

Just a guess,but this probably speeds up the dehydrating process by from 10-20 percent over using the Teflex sheets..

Bruce