Paprika & Cheddar Diamonds

The Cheesemonger’s Kitchen was a Christmas gift from our daughter, Rachel. It’s full of color photos – my favorite part of any recipe, so I’ve been reading and planning. So far, I’ve made their Red Chili and Cheddar Diamonds, twice. Both times, I substituted La Chinata Hot Smoked Paprika for the Red Chili. The paprika adds the perfect complement to the cheese in color, flavor, and just a bit of heat.

These cheesy crackers have a wonderful addictive crunch. There easy to make, give yourself time to let the dough rest for an hour

Ingredients

1 cup (125 g) all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon hot smoked paprika
4 tablespoons (56 g) unsalted butter, chilled and diced
8 ounces (225 g) best-quality aged Cheddar cheese,grated
3 – 6 tablespoons water

Directions

Combine flour with salt and paprika
Cut in the butter until it resembles a coarse meal
Mix in cheese
Add enough water to get the dough to form a ball
Wrap the dough in plastic warp and chill for one hour
Preheat oven to 350 F (180 C)
Roll dough to 1/8 inch (3 mm) thickness, the exact thickness is important to get a light puffy cracker
Cut the dough with a knife, fluted pastry cutter, or cookie cutter
Place on a parchment covered baking sheet, giving them just enough room so they’re not touching
Bake for 30 minutes, or until the crackers begin to brown and are crunchy
Cool completely, they can be stored in an airtight container for a week, but they’re better the first couple of days