Can you hear it yet? It’s the rustle of tinsel and the hint of a Home Alone soundtrack playing in the back of your mind… because although it’s not quite yet December, you know it’s time to start planning.
Which is why, from now until the end of the year, I’m going to be sharing with you some simple, whole, plant-based recipes that will be perfect for Christmas and the holiday season.
First up are these Sun Dried Tomato and Olive Crackers, which are absolutely delicious! (So make a batch now and then keep making them for each and every December occasion).
I absolutely love savoury snacks – way more than sweets (although you can’t beat a good crumble or a mince pie-themed treat at this time of year) – so for me, the ‘nibbles’ are never overlooked. After all, you need something slightly salty and tempting to go with that festive fizz…
Speaking of nibbles, here are my top 5 favourite snacks to accompany these crackers:
- cherry tomatoes;
- more olives;
- mushroom pâté;
- pickles; and
- vegan cheese! I think I’ll be experimenting with some smoked cashew cheese this holiday, which will be delicious with the light spice of this recipe.
So here’s why you’ll want to make these crackers today:
- they’re really easy to make;
- light on ingredients;
- whole-food, wholesome and wholly-tasty;
- just perfect with a glass of wine or beer; and
- a super alternative to buying supermarket snacks and canapés!
This is a really good base recipe to adapt to your own tastes (and the time you want to spend making them). I used some cute Autumn-shaped cookie cutters for this batch, but you can just as easily cut the dough into squares or straws (which saves on time, too).
If you don’t fancy sun dried tomatoes, leave them out; and if you don’t want to make your own tapenade, use shop-bought instead. Simple!
What flavour combinations will be in your Christmas crackers?
- Dry ingredients
- 150g wholemeal flour
- 2 tsp dried rosemary
- ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
- Black pepper
- Wet ingredients
- 4 tbsp water
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tsp tapenade
- 4 sun dried tomatoes (about 15g), rehydrated & chopped small
- Optional flavourings
- Nutritional yeast
- lemon zest
- Heat the oven to 200°C / 400°F / Gas Mark 6.
- Sift the flour into a mixing bowl and mix in the remaining dry ingredients.
- Stir in the wet ingredients, then combine into a dough using your hands. It should come together to form a smooth ball, but if it feels a little dry, add more water a few drops at a time.
- Roll flat between two sheets of parchment paper (this saves using extra flour - the dough is quite sticky), to about 2mm.
- Cut the cookies into shapes or straws as desired.
- Place on a parchment-lined baking tray and cook on the middle shelf for 15-20 minutes, or until crisp.
If using sun dried tomatoes kept in oil, mop up the excess with kitchen paper and adjust the amount of oil in the recipe as necessary.
For more canapé ideas, how about these Mini Kalamata Quiches, some Oil-Free Potato Wedges or these BBQ Tofu Wings.
What do you mean by ‘whole meal’ flour? Whole wheat? Or something else? Thanks.
Hi Mary! Wholemeal flour is what’s known in the UK as whole wheat flour in the US 🙂