Easy Homemade Oyster Crackers #BreadBakers

Easy homemade oyster crackers are puffs of buttery, slightly salty dough, rolled thin and baked to crisp perfection. Float them in your favorite chowder!

Had it not been for this month’s Bread Bakers challenge, I don’t think it would ever have occurred to me to make my own crackers. Crackers are thin and crispy and light. And they come in a box.

But after just a little research, I found out that people all over the world are making homemade crackers! There are recipes for saltines, wheat thins, ritz crackers, water crackers and even homemade cheesy goldfish. I so wanted to make those but I couldn’t find a tiny fish cutter. Is it still a cheesy goldfish cracker if it’s round? No, nah, nope.

The decision was made when I ran across a recipe for homemade oyster crackers on Serious Eats because crab and scallop chowder was already on my menu. And everybody knows that a good seafood chowder needs some light and crunchy oyster crackers floating on the top. Maybe someone in Dubai sells them but I haven't found them yet.

Easy Homemade Oyster Crackers

No oysters were harmed in the making of these crackers. The story goes that these delightful little round crackers were first eaten with oyster stew so that is how they got their name. If you don’t feel like fiddling with a round cutter, by all means use a sharp knife or pizza cutter to make small squares instead.

Ingredients
1 1/8 cup or 140g all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons or 28g cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/4 in or 1/2cm cubes
1/3 cup or 80ml cold water, plus additional as needed

Method
Whisk your flour, salt, sugar, and baking powder together in a medium bowl.  Or sift them together into the bowl.

Add the bits of butter into the flour and use a pastry cutter or two knives to work the butter into the flour until it resembles slightly damp sand.

Add the cold water a little at a time and use a fork to mix it through the flour until it begins to stick together like a soft dough. You may not need it all or you may need just a little bit more. This is just like making pie crust, but with way less fat.

Knead the dough for a few turns on a lightly floured surface and then roll it into a ball. Cover it with the mixing bowl and leave it to rest for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, adjust your oven rack to the middle position and preheat oven to 375°F or 190°C. Line two baking pans with baking parchment or silicone liners.

Once the dough has rested, cut it into two equal pieces and wrap the second one in cling film. Set aside.

Lightly flour your rolling pin and work surface and roll the dough out to a thickness of about 1/8th inch or 3mm. This is about the same thickness as two US quarters stacked on one another or a single UK one pound coin, if you have either of those handy to compare.

Use a large decorating tip (I used a Wilton 124) or a small fondant cutter to cut the dough into small circles. Transfer to your prepared baking sheet. You can put them fairly close together because they don't really puff out from the sides.

You can also use a sharp knife or pizza cutter to cut the dough into small squares instead of using a decorating tip, although putting a Q-tip through the tip does make it very easy to poke the dough out should it get stuck.

Form a ball out of the leftover dough and roll it out and cut shapes again. Repeat the process with the other half of the dough until all the little oyster crackers have been cut out.

Bake the crackers one pan at a time on that middle shelf, until the crackers are golden brown.

Remove from the oven and leave to cool completely before storing in an airtight container.

This makes about 2 1/2 cups or 175g of easy homemade oyster crackers.

Enjoy as a crunchy snack or float some in your favorite chowder or soup.

Check out all the other creative crackers we have for you this month! Many thanks to our host, Sue of Palatable Pastime for this great theme.

• Coconut Cheese Crackers from Gayathri's Cook Spot
• Crispy Homemade Cheddar Crackers from Palatable Pastime
• Dried Fruit Crackers from Cook's Hideout
• Easy Homemade Oyster Crackers from Food Lust People Love
• Freshly Baked Methi Crackers from The Mad Scientist's Kitchen
• Garlicky Chickpea Flour Crackers from Ambrosia
• Parmesan Herb Crackers from Spill the Spices
• Sourdough Crackers with Chilli and Garlic from Sonlicious
• Sourdough Crackers with Gruyère and Thyme from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Spicy Popcorn Crisps from What Smells So Good?
• Spicy Potato Crackers from Mayuri's Jikoni
• Sweet & Savory Crackers from All That's Left Are The Crumbs
• Vegan Herbed Crackers from Sizzling Tastebuds
• Vegan Whole Wheat Crackers from Sneha's Recipe

#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. Follow our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated each month on this home page.

We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient.

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Spicy Beef Curry Calzones #BakingBloggers

Spicy Beef Curry Calzones feature a thick rich beef curry inside and a soft naan bread outside. They are like eating your curry by scooping it up with naan, but in a less messy, more portable way.

This month our theme for Baking Bloggers is, you might have guessed, calzones. If I can be honest, I was sorely tempted to call these guys Spicy Beef Curry Naan-zones. But I was afraid no one would know what I meant.

Sure, I could have made a calzone with a more traditional Italian filling, as some of my fellow bloggers have done - and they all sound delicious! Make sure to scroll to the bottom of this post to see the list. But everything you see on this blog is made in my kitchen and consumed by my family or friends. (And occasionally the folks at my husband’s office.) And I really, really felt like eating curry!

Spicy Beef Curry Calzones or Naan-zones

Nothing fancy about the spicy beef curry, except the addition of carrots and peas because I love the pops of color in the deep red sauce. (And we should all eat more peas.) The outer bread itself is made by adapting my favorite naan bread recipe so this is a traditional combo, just put together in a non-traditional way, probably offending both Italian and Indian mamas. I'm sorry (not sorry) they are so good!

Ingredients - for 8 calzones
For the beef curry:
4 oz or 120ml all butter ghee or sub a light oil like canola
1 lb or 450g tender beef, cut in 1 in or 2cm cubes
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon cayenne
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
3 cardamom pods
1 short stick cinnamon (3 in or 8cm) or 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 medium onion, peeled and minced
2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
1 14oz /400g can chopped tomatoes
1 medium carrot, peeled and cut in pea sized cubes
1 medium potato, peeled and cubed
1/2 cup or 60g frozen peas, thawed
salt
pinch sugar

For the naan dough:
1  (.25 ounce or 7g) package active dry yeast
1 3/4 cups or 415ml warm water
1/8 cup or 25g sugar
3 tablespoons milk
1 egg
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
4 1/2 - 5 cups or 560-625g flour
1/4 cup or 60g butter or ghee, melted

Method
Heat a lidded frying pan over a medium heat and add the ghee or oil. Fry the meat cubes in batched until lightly browned on all sides, then remove from the pan with a slotted spoon, cover and set aside.

Add the spices and fry for 1 minute making sure you just toast them. Don't let them burn! Add the onion and garlic to the pan and cook over a low heat until soft.

Return the beef to the pan, add the can of tomatoes and bring to the boil. Turn the heat down and simmer, covered, for about 1 hour, or until the meat is tender.

Add the potato and carrot about halfway through the cooking time. Right at the end, add the peas. Season with salt and sugar to taste when done.  Set aside to cool. Once cool, fish through the curry and remove the cinnamon stick, if using, and cardamom pods. No one wants to bite into them in the middle of a lovely calzone.

Meanwhile, get on with making the naan dough.

In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water with one teaspoon of the sugar. Let stand about 10 minutes, until frothy. (If it doesn't foam up, your yeast is dead. Buy some more and start again.)

Stir in the rest of the sugar, milk, egg, salt, and enough flour to make a soft dough. You may not use all of the flour.

Knead for 6 to 8 minutes on a lightly floured surface, or until smooth. Place dough in a well-oiled bowl, cover with a damp cloth, and set aside to rise.

Let it rise 1 hour, until the dough has doubled in volume. Punch down dough. Cut the dough into 8 equal pieces. Roll them into balls, and place on a floured tray or plate.

Sprinkle lightly with flour. Cover with a towel, and allow to rise until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.

Near the end of the second rising, preheat your oven to 375°F or 190°C and line your baking pans with baking parchment or silicone liners.

Roll one ball of dough out into a thin circle about 8 1/2 in or 22cm across. Dampen the edges of the circle with water using your clean hands or a pastry brush. Put about 1/2 cup or 125g of cooled spicy beef curry on one side of the circle.

Gently lift the other side up and over, pressing the air out as you stick the edges of the two halves together.

Starting on one side of the semi circle, crimp the edges to seal the calzones. Continue until all of the calzones have been filled and formed.

Transfer the calzones to your baking trays, leaving enough room between them so that they can rise while baking. (I was overly cautious and put two to a pan but truly, three would have fit.) Brush the tops lightly with melted ghee or butter.

Bake in your preheated oven for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown and puffed.

Enjoy!

Many thanks to this month's host (and organizer) of Baking Bloggers, Sue of Palatable Pastime. Check out all the lovely calzones we are sharing this month.

• 100% Whole Wheat Veggie Calzone by Sneha's Recipe
• All Mixed Up Calzone by Sid's Sea Palm Cooking
• Calzoni Quattro Stagioni by Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Classic Ham and Ricotta Calzone by Palatable Pastime
• Loaded Vegetable Calzone by Hardly A Goddess
• Mushroom Spinach and Goat Cheese Calzone by Our Good Life
• Spicy Beef Curry Calzones by Food Lust People Love
• Spinach, Ricotta, and Three-Meat Calzone by Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Toddler Friendly Calzones by A Day in the Life on the Farm

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Fresh Pear Walnut Cranberry Salad

Sweet, sharp and crunchy, this fresh pear walnut cranberry salad is the perfect accompaniment to any rich dish, especially one made with blue cheese.

A couple of days ago I shared a recipe for a potato chip crust savory cheesecake and promised to add the side salad soon. Here it is!

Fresh Pear Walnut Cranberry Salad

This recipe is easily doubled or even trebled. Serve it with your favorite quiche or my savory cheesecake.

Ingredients
For the dressing:
2 tablespoons maple syrup
2 tablespoons walnut vinegar (or sub white balsamic)
2 tablespoons canola or other light salad oil
1/2 teaspoon whole grain mustard
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

For the salad:
3 tablespoons thinly sliced onion (1/2 a small one or about 20g)
3 medium pears
small handful dried cranberries, chopped
1/4 cup or about 8-9 walnut halves
Optional: watercress – I added some in at the last minute before serving, so that it didn’t wilt before we could eat it.

Method
Whisk together all of the dressing ingredients in a small bowl and add in the onions. Leave them to marinate for about 10 minutes. This accomplishes two goals: to mellow the sharp burn of the onions and to infuse the dressing with a delightfully mild onion flavor.

Core and cut your pears into thin slices, stirring them into the dressing as you do, which will stop them turning brown.

Add in the cranberries and walnuts and stir well. Refrigerate, covered with cling film, until ready to serve. Toss with a few handfuls of watercress just before serving, if desired.

Enjoy!

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