Homemade Cheesy Squares

I have a friend who LOVES cheese-flavored crackers. And by love, I mean the first time that he offered me food at his apartment, my choices were Cheez-Its and Goldfish. And I must say, that while visiting this friend, I delight in that glorious, cheesy, salty snack — a rare commodity in my house, mostly because my roommates and I just don’t have the will power.

This past week I was I handed a surplus cheddar cheese from the good people of Trickling Springs Union Market.(Ok, I work there on Saturdays and get hooked up with some goods.) I knew I had to be creative in order to keep these blocks of cheese from going bad. (Note: Cheese isn’t porous. If your cheese has some moldy spots on it, cut those off and keep on eating.)

What would you do with so much cheese? (Kristy McCarron/DC on Heels)

Okay so with blocks of beautiful cheddar cheese (raw, white, goat’s cheddar cheese, to be exact), I did some research, and tested out a Cheez-It recipe. Food friends, these homemade Cheez-Its are SO easy and SO good. They’ve got the buttery, salty crisp that makes them impossible to put down and just enough tang of a good cheddar. I will say, next time I make them I’d probably cut back a bit on the butter, but they are certainly a great alternative to those perfect orange squares.

Raw Goat Cheddar Cheese Cheez-Its

(adapted from Smitten Kitchen)

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese (I bet most semi-hard cheeses would work)
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/8 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt

 
Directions

Combine all ingredients in food processor. Mix until well combined — ingredients will mass together into a ball. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Roll out dough until about 1/8 inch thin between two pieces of parchment paper. Cut into squares (a pizza slicer or pasta cutter may work best) or whatever shape you’d like! Bake on a parchment-lined baking sheet for 12-15 minutes or until just turning brown on the edges. Remove from oven, let cool on rack.

Homemade white cheesy squares (Kristy McCarron/DC on Heels)

And if you get really into it, I’d suggest picking up these mini fish cut-outs for that familiar favorite.

Kristy McCarron

Food blogger Kristy has been in love with food ever since she was building restaurants out of her plastic kitchen set at age 5. Now, she spends most of her free time exploring new markets, visiting local farms and perfecting the art of bread baking. Originally from Philly, she dreams of living in the mountains of New England or the Pacific Northwest someday.