After being tired of not finding great Knäckebröd(Scandinavian Crisp Bread) in the stores around my neighborhood in East Village, I started to make my own. Traditionally they are made as round wafers with a hole in the middle so you can store them hanging on a stick in the roof. They are often made with rye flour and rolled out with a special rolling pin with knobs. However I usually don’t use this tool and I like my home made knäckebröd as small crackers flavored with either or a combination of some: caraway seeds, fennel seeds, sesame or rosemary. My recipe is based on Alice Brax knäckebröd recipe.
Knäckebröd Crackers
- Total Time: 3 hours
- Yield: Approximately 60 crackers 1x
Description
These homemade Knäckebröd crackers are a delightful Scandinavian treat, perfect for snacking or serving with cheese. Customize them with your favorite seeds or herbs for added flavor.
Ingredients
- 25 grams fresh yeast
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 200 ml (almost 1 cup) yogurt
- 400 ml (1 2/3 cup) water
- 600 ml (2 1/2 cup) rye flour
- about 600 ml (2 1/2 cup) regular flour
- 100-200 ml (1/2 - 1 cup) additional regular flour for kneading
- Optional: caraway seeds, fennel seeds, sesame seeds, or rosemary for flavoring
Instructions
- Warm the yogurt with the water to 37°C (100°F).
- Dissolve the yeast in some of the warm yogurt mixture.
- Add the rest of the liquid and blend in honey and rye flour. The dough will be quite sticky.
- Cover the bowl with a cloth and let it rise for about 1 hour at room temperature.
- Preheat the oven to 200°C (390°F).
- Turn the dough onto a floured surface and knead it with the additional regular flour until it is smooth and elastic.
- Divide the dough into smaller portions and roll each out thinly using a regular rolling pin or a rolling pin with knobs for texture.
- Cut the dough into desired cracker shapes and place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Optionally, sprinkle with caraway seeds, fennel seeds, sesame seeds, or rosemary for added flavor.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 10-15 minutes or until the crackers are golden brown and crisp.
- Let the crackers cool on a wire rack before serving or storing.
Notes
For a more traditional texture, use a rolling pin with knobs. Store the crackers in an airtight container to keep them crisp. Experiment with different seeds or herbs to find your favorite flavor combination.
- Prep Time: 2 hours
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Category: Snack
- Cuisine: Scandinavian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cracker
- Calories: 50
- Sugar: 1
- Sodium: 10
- Fat: 0.5
- Carbohydrates: 10
- Fiber: 1
- Protein: 2
- Cholesterol: 1
I have been wanting to try this recipe–I’ve also seen a version in the Ojakangas “Great Scandinavian Baking Book.” Are they anything like the Finnish Ryvita crackers (though likely not as thin…)? We use them to eat our hummus! Thanks for this and the cute illustrations, as always.
Thanks Sara,
If you roll them super thin you will get a much lighter and thinner cracker than Ryvita (which is one of my favorites). My crackers are also crispier than Ryvita “softer” texture.