Grahams

Recipe by: Kim Boyce | from Good to the Grain

Cookstr

Course: Dessert

Total Time: Under 2 Hours

Skill Level: Moderate

Cost: Inexpensive

Photo by: Quentin Bacon

Nothing gets a four-year-old's attention quite as quickly as the mention of graham crackers, or "grahams," as they're called at my daughter's nursery school. Named after Reverend Sylvester Graham, the man who first championed graham flour, these cookies are made with a blend of graham flour (coarsely ground whole wheat), teff flour, and all-purpose flour, for just the right crispness. Most of the sweetness comes from honey and brown sugar, a tablesploon of molasses lending a slightly bitter edge. I like cutting these cookies into the traditional rectangles, but you can use any shape or size that you want. Don't forget the tiny holes!

Yield: Makes sixteen 5-by-2½-inch rectangles

INGREDIENTS

Butter for the baking sheets

dry mix:

1 cup graham flour
½ cup teff flour
¾ cup all-purpose flour
½ cup dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

wet mix:

3 ounces (¾ stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
¼ cup honey
1 tablespoon unsulphured (not blacks trap) molasses
1/3 cup whole milk

finish:

¼ cup sugar
½ teaspoon cinnamon

Directions

1. Sift the dry ingredients into a large bowl, pouring back any bits of flour or other ingredients that may remain in the sifter.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the melted butter, honey, molasses, and milk.

3. Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients. Stir the ingredients into a moist cookie dough, press the dough into a disk, wrap in plastic and chill for a minimum of 1 hour or up to 3 days.

4. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Rub two baking sheets lightly with butter.

5. Dust a work surface with flour. Remove the dough from the refrigerator and divide it in half, working with one half while keeping the other half chilled. Use your hands to flatten the first half until it is ½ inch thick.

6. Dust the counter and both sides of the dough with flour. With a rolling pin, roll out the dough until it's 1/8-inch thick. Move the dough around frequently to make sure it isn't sticking. If it is, slide a pastry scraper under the dough and dust the counter or the dough with flour.

7. Use a sharp floured knife to cut the dough into 5-by-2½-inch rectangles and transfer the shapes onto the baking sheets. Cut these rectangles into the traditional quarters, without seperating them--this keeps the lines showing even after baking. Using a fork or a skewer, press holes into the surface of the cookies.

8. Stir the sugar and cinnamon together and sprinkle each cookie with a few pinches of the mixture.

9. Bake for 15 to 17 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through, The grahams are ready when the edge is a darker shade of brown than the rest of the cookie, Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a rack so the grahams become crisp. If the cookies are not quite crisp enough, next time they either need to bake longer or be rolled out thinner.

10. Repeat with the remaining half of the dough.

11. These cookies are best eaten once cooled. They'll keep in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION

Nutrients per serving (% daily value)

Serving size is 1 graham. Nutritional information includes 1 tablespoon of butter for the baking sheets.

Calories 156kcal (8%)

Calcium 21mg (2%)

Vitamin C 0mg (0%)

Vitamin A 45mcg RAE (1%)

Potassium 82mg

Magnesium 19mg

Protein 2g