My Children Hate Me.

My early afternoon snow day went something like this:

"Are you guys hungry?" "No mom, we just ate breakfast."

"Are you guys wanting something to eat?" "NO, MOM, WE JUST ATE!"

"Ok, well, how about you put your toys away, then!"

"We're hungry! Right NOW! We want snacks!"

They cleaned first, and once again I earned my title as the WORST. MOM. EVER. My middle child muttered, "I don't like my mom." The oldest screamed, with poorly feigned indignation, "That wasn't nice! Don't say you don't like your mom!" (Mainly so I would hear it, you know.)

So the fact that they went from not hungry to MUST EAT NOW, means I needed something quick...We call it a French lunch when my husband isn't around.

The kids go nuts over this. Basically, it's Vermont extra sharp cheddar, homemade Wheat thins (getting there in a minute, don't worry) and sliced seasonal fruit. Being January, that's just apples, but in the summer, this is a wonderful treat.

There are any number of GREAT copy cat recipes for wheat thins out there. I'm talking dozens. A couple are based off King Arthur Flour, and there are some others that only call for flour, oil, water, and salt.

After trying out a couple, I melded the two.

1/2 Cup rye flour
1/2 Cup whole wheat flour
3/4 Cup white whole wheat flour

1 1/2 Cup all purpose flour.
3 T Sugar

Whisk these together in a large bowl. Sprinkle in a bit of paprika or a bit of cayenne.

3/4 Teaspoon salt
1/3 C oil
1 C hot water
1/2 vanilla

Put this in a larger tupperware container and shake it until it's a cloudy emulsification. You want to actually close the lid. I didn't have it sealed last night, and the dog took an oil water bath as did my kitchen floor. But the crackers still turned out.

Mix this into the flour mixture. You will need to use your hands at the end.

Flour a work surface and a rolling pin, and divide the door into four sections. After you roll it out, really as thin as you can get it, fold it into fours and then unfold on a piece of parchment. Sprinkle with coarse salt, and roll one more time to press the salt into the dough lightly. Use a pizza cutter to cut 1 1/2 inch squares, and slide the parchment onto a cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for roughly a half an hour, checking after about 20 minutes to remove crackers along the edges that are already crisp and brown.
Slide the parchment off the cookie sheet and let cool, before you put in an air tight container.

Repeat with the other three sections.

Be warned, they are addictive and ridiculously easy to make.
And right now, my kids like me again, until I tell them to take their naps.