Gluten Free Sesame Crackers

Welcome 2016!  A new year is like a clean, empty book waiting to be filled with new projects, activities, and wonderful new memories.  It's a fresh start and often a time to make the decision to improve on things in ourselves.  Often this involves healthy eating and exercise.  

I think it is human nature to strive for change and then find it is not easy to follow through.  We need encouragement and reminders until our new endeavour becomes a habit.  This is why I look at healthy eating as a journey.  It doesn't happen overnight, but by adding one healthy ingredient at a time.  

 

One basic ingredient that I have started using as part of a healthier diet is Sea Salt.  This doesn't seem like a huge change but it took a little while before I was completely comfortable with it.  Some sea salts are not white like regular table salt and they can clump together a bit.  Now that I am used to it I don't even think about it. 

Five reasons to switch to Sea Salt:            

1. Our bodies need salt.  The chemical compound sodium chloride helps to regulate our fluid balance and helps our nerves and muscles to work properly
2. Most table salt has been heat processed and stripped of it's natural trace minerals, bleached, then treated with a chemical anti-caking agent.
3. For an alkaline diet sea salt is s great choice.  It helps the body get rid of excess acid through elimination.
4. Sea salt helps our bodies maintain a healthy electrolyte balance.
5. Real sea salt contains an abundance of essential trace minerals, including calcium, magnesium, iron, copper, zinc, and iodine that are readily absorbed by our bodies.

Since giving up gluten I have tried various types of crackers from a few different stores and I found one that I really liked.  Guess what, the store stopped carrying them!  Don't you hate it when that happens?  So I had two choices, order them by the case from Amazon or make my own.  Since I didn't want to wait for delivery I opted to make some myself.

These Sesame Crackers have a nice mild flavour so they are great with your favourite cheese ball and they have a nice texture.  They are also easy and can be ready in about half an hour.

   

Gluten Free Sesame Crackers

• 3/4 cup almond flour
• 3/4 cup Gluten Free Flour Blend
• 2 Tbsp. toasted sesame seeds 
• 1/2 tsp. sea salt (plus more for sprinkling) 
• 1/2 tsp. honey
• 2 Tbsp.  olive oil or melted butter
• 1 egg
• 1 Tbsp. cold water

In a medium sized mixing bowl combine dry ingredients. In a small bowl combine liquids and add all at once to the dry.  Stir until mixture comes together to form a ball.  Divide the dough into two equal balls.  Cut three pieces of parchment paper to fit two of your cookie sheets and spread a small amount of oil on all three.  Roll out one ball of cracker dough between two sheets of parchment.  Remove the top sheet and place the bottom piece of parchment along with the cracker dough on one cookie sheet.  Using a pizza cutter cut crackers into squares and sprinkle with some sea salt.  Repeat with the second ball, reusing the top sheet of parchment.

 

Bake at 375 degrees for 10 minutes or until crackers are starting to brown.  Remove from oven and let the crackers completely cool on the cookie sheets.  Break crackers apart and store in an airtight container.