Recipe: Cowboy Crackers (homemade crackers using potato chips, flour and cheese)

COWBOY CRACKERS

2 bags (1 3/4 oz each) mesquite-flavored potato chips
3/4 cup shredded Chihuahua or Monterey Jack cheese (3 ounces)
6 tablespoon unsalted butter, chilled, cut in 6 pieces
2 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1/8 tsp salt
4 tbsp ice water

Crush potato chips in a food processor or blender until fine. Add cheese and mix until cheese is finely chopped.

If using a processor, add butter and process briefly until it is chopped to the size of small peas. Add flour, mustard and salt and process just to combine. Remove the cover and sprinkle the 4 tablespoons ice water evenly over the dough. Process just until dough clumps together.

(Or to finish the dough by hand, transfer cheese and potato chips to a mixing bowl. Add butter and mix with a pastry blender until butter is the size of small peas. Add flour, mustard and salt and mix to combine. Add 4 tablespoons ice water and mix with a fork to form a dough.)

Transfer dough to a large plastic food bag. Working through the bag, shape the dough into a ball; flatten into a disk. Refrigerate until it is firm enough to roll, about 30 minutes.

Heat oven to 400 degrees F.

Roll dough to a uniform thickness of 1/4-inch or slightly less. Cut into shapes with a cookie cutter. Transfer to ungreased baking sheet.

Bake until golden, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool. Store in airtight containers.

Makes 48 crackers
Source: Pat Dailey, Staff Writer, Chicago Tribune, November 11, 1993