Homemade Wheat Thins and scrummy cheese . . .

 

 I was recently sent some samples of the  Laughing Cow light range cheese triangles in the newest flavors Emmenthal and Blue Cheese.  Did I mention they are "light?"    Yes, they are light, with there only being 25 calories in each triangle!

I have a confession to make.  I am a Laughing Cow virgin.  Yes, tis true.  I have never eaten Laughing Cow triangles.   I suppose because we don't have any children in the house, they are just not something I have ever bought, or even thought about buying.  They just haven't been on my radar I guess.



I guess I am a bit of a cheese snob, which sounds really wierd coming from the mouth of a person who only ever ate Kraft Singles American Cheese or Velveeta the whole time I was growing up.  Real cheese never passed my lips.  I was afraid to even try it.  I just thought I wouldn't like it.  I was an adult before I tried real cheese and I have to say that once I tried it, I fell in love with it, and have been ever since.



I love Emmental cheese.  It has a lovely nutty and fruity taste.  I was intrigued at the thought of a Processed cheese triangle flavoured with Emmental . . . what would it taste like?  Would it be close to the real thing?   hmmm . . .




It tasted really good . . . and just like Emmental!   Sweet and nutty!

I adore Blue Cheeses . . . Stilton, Danish, Gorgonzola . . . I love them all.  Would the Laughing Cow Blue Cheese triangles  measure up???



I was most pleasantly surprised.   They most definitely did taste good and most definitely had the beautiful tang of a mild blue cheese.   I enjoyed them.

 

Spreadable and a good source of calcium the new Laughing Cow triangles are available in grocery shops throughout the country, and at only 25 calories  and 1.5g of fat per triangle they make a nice low fat snack!  I think they would also be a great addition to children's lunch boxes and with picnic season here, they would be great in the picnic basket as well!



Knowing that they are spreadable I was really wanting something crisp and tasty to spread them on and so I thought this would be the perfect time to make my own crackers . . . well, for two reasons really . . . one:  homemade always tastes better than store bought and two:  I didn't want to ask Todd to pop down to the shops to get me any.  Besides he never comes back with what I wanted him to get . . . it's a man thing I think.



It also gave me a chance to use my favourite cookie cutter . . .I love the little dimples it puts into things . . . so cute.   I found the perfect recipe via the King Arthur Flour Whole Grain Baking Book.   I love wheat thins, so wholesome and tasty.   I thought I would give their recipe a try, never guessing that . . .



I would fall completely and utterly in love with them.  Believe it or not these taste even BETTER than the original Wheat Thin crackers.  Tis totally true.  These are fabulous!

 

They were really, really tasty spread with both flavors of the Laughing Cow triangles!   That's what Todd and I had for lunch today, and it was a really scrummy, light lunch . . . you get a lot of mileage out of one of those triangles I have to say.  The flavor is so nice that a little goes a long way.



And those crackers . . . so crisp and tasty.   Almost addictive to say the least.  Do give them a try.  Thank you King Arthur . . .

*Homemade Wheat Thins*
Makes about 3 dozen crackers

Printable Recipe 

Easy to make and even more delicious than the store bought ones.  Adapted lightly from a recipe on the King Arthur Baking site.

155g whole wheat flour (1 1/4 cups)

1 1/2 TBS golden caster sugar

1/2 tsp fine sea salt

1/4 tsp sweet paprika

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/8 tsp ground black pepper

4 TBS unsalted butter, cold and cut into bits

60ml cold water (1/4 cup)

Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6.  Line two large baking sheets with baking parchment paper.  Set aside.

Measure the flour, sugar, salt, paprika, garlic powder and black pepper into the bowl of a food processor.   Blitz to combine.   Drop in the butter bits and process for about 20 seconds until well combined and the mixture resembles fine bread crumbs.   With the motor going, add the cold water slowly and process until the mixture begins to clump together and form a ball.  (Alternately you can rub the butter into the flour mixture with your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine bread crumbs and add the water by hand.)

Tip out onto a lightly floured surface and roll out as thinly as you can.  Ideally the thinner they are the crisper the cracker you will have.  Cut them into rectangles with a pizza cutter, or like me with a really cool cookie cutter which has a fluted edge and makes dimples in the crackers.  Transfer to the baking sheets.   Sprinkle with a bit more fine sea salt if you so desire and bake for 6 to 8 minutes until golden brown and crisp.   Allow the crackers to cool on the baking sheets before storing in an airtight container.   Delicious!

Many thanks to the people at Three Pipe (Charlotte) and The Laughing Cow for spreading the love and sending me these tasty samples!