Bush Crackers

The Little Luxuries of Life

African Bush Crackers

 
Living in the wilds of Africa, there isn’t always access to life’s little luxuries.

Grilled meat and coal-baked potatoes are all very well and good. Mmm… especially with a cold beer after a hot day… but sometimes a glass of wine and bit of cheese is very appealing. And, if you happen to have that glass of wine and morsel of aged cheddar, you may be looking around for a cracker or two to round it off.

And, just supposing someone has finished the last water biscuit! Now what?

Never fear! Just whip up a pile of our African bush crackers – ready in 20 minutes – they’re the perfect vehicle for any cheese…

Thinly rolled before baking and sprinkled with spices, they make a healthy, MSG free substitute for chips, good with a dip – Heavenly with guacamole!
 

African Bush Crackers Edging

 
Only, please do your body and the planet a favor and use real flour, the kind your granny’s mother would recognize. Not the GM’d, franken-food, Monsanto keeps us all supplied with. The organic, stone ground, non-GM flour used in this recipe comes from the other side of the country, 1500 miles (2400 km) away and I fight with myself because of the food-miles and the ecological footprint.

The only solution seems to be not to eat so much bread, fewer cakes, less cookies and it certainly helps the waistline. Occasionally though, when our bushveld bread is finished, the urge for something undeniably wheaty hits and it’s for those times these African bush crackers are so useful.
 

African Bush Crackers Segment

African Bush Crackers

Yield: approximately 2 dozen

Ingredients:

• 1 Cup (+ extra for dusting) Organic, non GM, unbleached, stone ground, brown bread flour
• 1/3 tsp sun dried natural sea salt
• 4 tsp (20 ml) extra virgin olive oil
• 6 Tbsp warm water – maybe a drop more or less depending on the flour’s moisture content

African Bush Crackers Sheet. And They do Mostly Break on the Line

Method:

Mix the flour and salt in a medium sized bowl. Make a hollow in the center of the flour mixture and into this, pour the water and oil. Use a dinner knife to mix until the dough is gathered together, adding more water (drop by drop) if too dry or more flour (1/2 tsp at a time) if too wet. The dough should form a slightly rubbery ball. Lightly dust a cutting board with flour, divide the dough in half and roll each half out thinly into a rough rectangle, about 9” x 13” (23cm x 33cm). The thinner the dough is rolled, the crispier the crackers will be.

Prick all over lightly with a fork, – stops bubbles forming – score gently (don’t cut all the way through) with a sharp knife into cracker sized squares. Don’t stress if it’s not perfect. That rustic, hand-made look is all part of the charm.

You can even sprinkle with a few grains of coarse Himalayan Salt and pat into the dough to stick a little. Onto a floured baking sheet, fifteen to twenty minutes in a medium (350F or 180C) oven and et voilà! You have scrumptious crisp bread that breaks easily into a fresh pile of African bush crackers.

You will be surprised how tasty these are. They will remind you of what real crackers used to taste like.