DIY Cheez-Its

Le hubster found a homemade version of cheez-it on the web. I love cheez-its and was so excited to make these when I got the chance. However, I think I did a fatal substitution that might've messed it up.


Ingredients:
1.5 cups finely grated sharp cheddar cheese
4 tbs unsalted butter, softened
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 cup + 2 tbs all-purpose flour
2 tbs cornstarch (I subbed with rice flour. BAD.)
2-3 tbs water

Directions:
Using a stand mixer fitted with a paddle, combine cheese, butter, salt, and pepper until combined and starting to stick to sides of mixing bowl, about 30 seconds. 

Add flour and cornstarch and mix until combined, about 1 minute. Add 2 tbs of water and mix until dough ball forms, about 10 seconds. Add remaining 1 tablespoon water if needed.

Transfer dough to floured counter and flatten into a disk. I made mine rectangular. Wrap in plastic, and refrigerate until chilled, about 30 minutes.

Adjust oven racks to upper-middle and lower-middle positions and heat oven to 375°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Unwrap dough onto well floured counter and roll to 1/16 inch thickness. 

Cut into 1-inch squares using beveled-edge ravioli cutter. I just used a regular ole knife and cut out squares as best I could. Then, using the blunt end of a skewer, poke a hole in the center of each square. I didn't really look and just poked holes everywhere since my cheez-its were larger than 1-inch cubes.

1 of 2 trays

Bake until light golden around edges, about 14 minutes (keep an eye on your cheez-its! The original recipe calls for 18 minutes but ours were done at around 14 or 15 minutes). Switch and rotate the sheets halfway through baking. Let cool completely on baking sheets. I didn't switch or rotate it at all so the one top (R) on was darker than the lower one (L). 

They were delicious! fresh and warm right out of the oven. And the taste was perfectly cheezy. However, after they cooled down, they weren't crunchy at all. Even toasting again in a toaster didn't give them back their crunch. :( I need to try this again with cornstarch to see if they'll keep their crunchy texture. Other than that, they were quite yummy!