Don Angie's Pepperoni & Fontina Crackers
Ingredients
Directions
Ingredients
7 ½ oz
Fontina cheese, coarsely grated on a box grater (4 cups)
3 tbsp
unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 tbsp
extra-virgin olive oil
1 ½ oz
pepperoni, coarsely grated on a box grater (⅓ cup)
1 tsp
kosher salt
1 ½ tsp
dried oregano
1 tsp
granulated garlic
1 c
all-purpose flour
3 tbsp
ice water
½ c
finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
Don Angie’s Pepperoni & Fontina Crackers
These are basically fancy Cheez-Its with pepperoni. Enough said. Okay, one more thing. These might sound a little intimidating, but they’re really not that hard to pull off, and worth the extra effort—the end result is both completely delicious and unlike anything you can buy at the store. Go forth and impress your friends!
12 dozen crackers
- In a stand mixer with the paddle, combine the Fontina, butter, olive oil, pepperoni, salt, oregano, and granulated garlic. Mix on medium speed until combined, 1 to 2 minutes. The mixture will be crumbly.
- Add the flour and mix until just combined, about 1 minute. Add the ice water, little by little, and mix on low until a cohesive dough forms, 30 to 45 seconds. Smooth the dough into a ball with your hands if it hasn’t come fully together in the mixer. Split the dough into 2 discs and wrap with plastic wrap. Chill in the refrigerator for a minimum of 1 hour, or up to overnight.
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- Working with one piece at a time, place the dough between two pieces of parchment paper that has been sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Roll the dough with a rolling pin until it’s in a large round about ⅛ inch thick. Remove the top piece of parchment. Using a pizza wheel or paring knife, cut the dough into 1-inch squares (you can keep any imperfect squares around the edges and bake them with the rest). Using a toothpick, create a hole in the center of each square. Carefully transfer the parchment with the unbaked crackers on top to a large baking sheet. Repeat the process with the second disc of dough.
- Bake both pans until the crackers puff up and start to turn golden at the edges, 10 to 15 minutes, rotating the pans from front to back and switching racks halfway through. Remove the crackers from the oven. Leave the oven on and reduce the oven temperature to 200°F.
- Move the crackers around on the baking sheet. Use a paring knife to carefully break up any that have stuck together. Return the crackers to the oven and bake until crispy, an additional 5 to 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and immediately sprinkle with the parmesan. Serve at room temperature. Leftover crackers keep, in an airtight container at room temperature, for up to 2 days.
Reprinted with permission from Italian American. Copyright © 2021 by Angie Rito & Scott Tacinelli with Jamie Feldmar. Photography © 2021 Copyright by Christopher Testani. Published by Clarkson Potter/Publishers, an imprint of Penguin Random House.