Ritz-Style Gluten Free Crackers

Step 1

Preheat your oven to 375°F. Line rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper and set them aside.

Step 2

In a large bowl, place the flour, xanthan gum, baking powder, sugar, paprika and salt, and whisk to combine well.

Step 3

Using a standard size grater, grate the cold butter into the large bowl of dry ingredients, stopping occasionally to flour the butter to keep it separated. Toss to coat the butter in the dry ingredients.

Step 4

Add the vegetable oil, and stir to combine. Add about 1/4 cup of the ice water, and stir to combine. Add more water by the half-teaspoonful as necessary to bring the dough together.

Step 5

Press the dough into a disk, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator to chill for about 10 minutes or until firm.

Step 6

Remove the chilled dough from the refrigerator and place on a lightly floured surface.

Step 7

Sprinkle lightly with more flour on both sides of the dough and roll out until a bit more than 1/8-inch thick, moving and turning the dough, and sprinkling with extra flour as necessary to keep it from sticking.

Step 8

Using a scalloped-edge 1 3/4-inch round cookie cutter, cut out shapes.

Step 9

Place the shapes about 1-inch apart from one another on the prepared baking sheets. With a toothpick, poke four to six holes toward the center of each cracker to help them rise.

Step 10

Gather and reroll the scraps to cut out crackers until you’ve used up the dough.

Step 11

Place the baking sheets, one at a time, in the center of the preheated oven and bake until the crackers are just beginning to brown, about 7 minutes.

Step 12

Remove from the oven, brush the crackers with the melted butter and sprinkle with extra salt.

Step 13

Allow to cool on the baking sheet. They will crisp as they cool.

Step 14

The crackers can be stored in a sealed glass container at room temperature and should maintain their texture that way.