Homemade Graham Crackers and Caramel S’mores

Today I’m wrapping up my week of S’mores recipes. I was really struggling with what to make as my last recipe for the week… There are lots of great S’mores inspired recipes to choose from, but Hubby suggested making graham crackers and S’mores at home, so I went with it.

I set out to find a homemade graham cracker recipe and Smitten Kitchen came to the top of the list. These crackers are really easy to make. The only tough part is all the chilling times required. I didn’t have a cut little crinkle cutter, so my crackers have straight edges, but I’m ok with that.

They also aren’t perfectly square because I couldn’t find my baking ruler… It’s probably in the huge stack of dishes in the sink. The OCD side of me was a little annoyed at the non-perfect-square-ness of them, but I’ll be ok.

These graham crackers taste similar to what you’d get at the store. In all honesty, if I had it to do again, I probably would have picked a different S’mores recipe to feature. The grahams were good, but not a ton better than store bought. Some things (like marshmallows) are a million times better made at home, but these were just a tiny bit better, so I probably will stick with store bought graham crackers from here on out…
Update: Hubby and I had one of these a couple days after they got stored in a ziplock bag in our pantry. We both looked at each other after the first bite. They were a LOT better a couple days later. The honey graham flavor really came out. So now I’d have to say I would make these again at home!

Of course I had to use these homemade graham crackers with the homemade marshmallows to make some S’mores at home. We have a gas stove top so we just used the flames to toast our marshmallows. To kick things up a notch, we used Ghirardelli chocolate squares filled with caramel (Hubby LOVES caramel). I’ve heard S’mores made with Reeces cups are really good too!

Two Years Ago: M&M Cookies
Three Years Ago: White Chocolate and Blueberry Cupcakes and Sweet Potato Home Fries

Homemade Graham Crackers

Yield: 48 2x2 in crackers

Ingredients:

For the Dough
2 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons (375 grams) flour
1 cup (176 grams) dark brown sugar, lightly packed
1 tsp (6 grams) baking soda
3/4 tsp kosher or coarse sea salt (4 grams)
7 Tbsp (3 1/2 ounces or 100 grams) unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch cubes and frozen
1/3 cup (114 grams) mild-flavored honey, such as clover
5 Tbsp (77 grams) milk, full-fat is best
2 Tbsp (27 grams) pure vanilla extract

For the Topping (optional)
3 tablespoons (43 grams) granulated sugar
1 teaspoon (5 grams) ground cinnamon

Directions:

Make the dough
Combine the flour, brown sugar, baking soda, and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade or in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Pulse or mix on low to incorporate. Add the butter and pulse on and off on and off, or mix on low, until the mixture is the consistency of a coarse meal.

If you don't have a food processor or electric mixer, you can cut the ingredients together with a pastry blender. Just make sure they're very well incorporated.

In a small bowl, whisk together the honey, milk, and vanilla extract. Add to the flour mixture and pulse on and off a few times or mix on low until the dough barely comes together. It will be very soft and sticky. Lay out a large piece of plastic wrap and dust it lightly with flour, then turn the dough out onto it and pat it into a rectangle about 1-inch thick. Wrap it, then chill it until firm, about 2 hours or overnight. Meanwhile, prepare the topping, if using, by combining the sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and setting aside.

Roll out the crackers
Divide the dough in half and return one half to the refrigerator. Sift an even layer of flour onto the work surface and roll the dough into a long rectangle about 1/8 inch thick. The dough will be sticky, so flour as necessary. Cut into 2x2 inch squares.

Place the crackers on one or two parchment-lined baking sheets and sprinkle with the topping. Chill until firm, about 30 to 45 minutes in the fridge or 15 to 20 minutes in the freezer. Repeat with the second batch of dough. Finally, gather any scraps together into a ball, chill until firm, and re-roll.
Adjust the oven rack to the upper and lower positions and preheat the oven to 350°F.

Decorate the crackers
Using a toothpick or skewer, prick the dough to form two dotted rows about 1/2 inch for each side of the dividing line.

Bake for 15 to 25 minutes, until browned and slightly firm to the touch, rotating the sheets halfway through to ensure even baking.

Recipe from Smitten Kitchen

Don’t forget about my Power of Pink Challenge – make something PINK by the end of the month to raise Breast Cancer Awareness!