Homemade Cheez-Its
You may or may not know what a Cheez-It is but I give you fair warning that these are so tasty and easy to make that you will be peeking in your refrigerator to see if you have an 8oz block of cheese just asking to be baked into crispy cheddar perfection. That’s what these crackers are- crispy cheddar perfection.
I’m always baking up sweets for holidays and family celebrations so you can imagine my dad’s surprise when I handed him a package of crackers for Father’s Day. He was not only surprised but he was delighted!
You see these crackers are referred to as “Grandpa Crackers” in our home. Four Year Old Foodie gave them this name as a toddler since he rarely sees Grandpa without a box somewhere nearby. The best part is that my son got to use a cool pastry wheel and toothpicks – how awesome is it when your mom lets you touch 2 sharp things in 1 day? He was feeling very proud of himself.
Homemade Cheez-Its Recipe
Ingredients
- 8 oz sharp cheddar cheese, grated
- 3 Tablespoons of unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 Tablespoon vegetable shortening*
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup flour
- 2 Tablespoons ice water
- Coarse salt for sprinkling
Instructions
- Combine cheese, butter, shortening, and salt in the bowl of your mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. The mixture will be crumbly.
- Slowly add flour and then the ice water. You may add a few more drops of water to help it come together but be careful not to add too much. You don’t want a wet dough.
- Pat the dough into 2 discs and wrap in plastic wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes (or longer).
- Preheat oven to 375⁰F.
- Using parchment paper or a silicone mat roll each disc to 1/8 inch or less and cut into 1 inch squares (a pastry wheel or pizza wheel is easiest). Use a toothpick to punch a hole into the center of each square.
- If you have difficulty separating and transferring the crackers onto the baking sheet return the parchment paper/mat to the refrigerator for 10 minutes (while you roll out the 2nd dough disc).
- Bake for 10 – 15 minutes or until puffed and browning around the edges. If you pull them out too soon and the crackers don’t have the desired crispiness you want then simply return them to the oven for 2-3 more minutes.
- Move crackers to a cooling rack. Makes about 7 dozen crackers.
I’ve seen other people who have said these pair well with a good chardonnay. Um…my family eats them with tuna salad.
189 Comments on “Homemade Cheez-Its”
Katrina these are ADORABLE. They look so perfect and MUCH better than the store bought kind. You are one cool Mamma 🙂
Oh god, HEAD EXPLODE.
I saw you post a cheeze-its link on twitter and all I can think now is "OMG NEED."
This look awesome, Katrina…I will have to make time in my life to make these…and then devour them all. Nom nom nom!
These are phenom. We're totally gonna make these. I will NOT, however, let my 36-year old play with sharp things 🙂
People really don't know what a cheez-it is?! These look fantastic!
I love doing spins of popular store bought crackers and cookies, making them homemade is not only fun but everything tastes so much better! You're awesome!
These are terrific!
Dang girl, you never seem to stop amazing me. These are easier to make than I would have thought. Although, I need to get one of those cool pastry wheels. And your son did an excellent job with poking the holes!! I love cheez-its too!
Wow! I have to try these! We eat cheez-its like crazy in our house.
These look so tasty! My husband is always snacking on savory things and I really do not make salty snacks, but you have inspired me. Bookmarked this post. Thanks for sharing.
You are so sweet – you can call me whatever you want 🙂
Wowowowo , they look amazing , I have to try them , Gotta go buy a block of cheese now 🙂 .
YUM! I love cheeze-its!! These look so yummy, almost a little puffy oh gosh…*mouth watering*
Oops… Sorry, Katrina! BIG blooper there :p I'm SO embarassed! Forgive me, please! 🙂
Fabulous recipe, Kate! Cannot wait to try them… Thank you for sharing…
This is bookmarked for sure! I have a recipe for homemade wheat thins too…I love making things from scratch rather than buying a box. Love your pics too! 🙂
Wow these cheeze-its look like the real deal!!!! Nice job. They look delicious!!!
Thanks for sharing this recipe. Never heard of making these before and I know that these will be a hit with my little guy too.
Wow, no cheez-its here and now I don't have to complain! I am DEFINITELY going to try these. Yours are so good looking!
These look so incredibly delicious! It's shame my oven takes so long to heat up or I'd be making them right now, but I've printed the recipe to make them later this week! Beautiful pictures too.
Can't wait to try this, ASAP!!!! Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Are you serious? These are like the greatest things I've seen all year. I'm ADDICTED to cheez-its, especially the white cheddar ones. I can't wait to make these!!!
Chees-Its are my FAVORITE. Will definitely be trying these!!
This is the best! They look simple enough to make, off to grab some cheese now.
Please don't apologize! THANK YOU!! I must have been too darn excited to share this recipe with you all! lol Thank you!
This is one of our favorite crackers, too. I will be trying this recipe for sure. Thanks!
This recipe is most definitely bookmarked! Cheez-Its are addictive! But these look so much cuter than the originals! Great job with these! Wish I had a bowlful right now! : )
That's a great recipe! One of the best i've seen this week 😉
Those look so much more delicious than the packaged kind. What beautiful work. I love the serving bowl. Happy Sunday! 🙂
O-M-GOODNESS!!! My folks are going to absolutely love these! I'm sure that when school starts again, these will be a favorite lunch snack for my daughter and her friends! You completely rocked this one 🙂
Sorry to point this out, there might be a typo… Should Step 1 include flour as stuff to put in the bowl?
These look amazing – so much better than the store bought version. I cannot wait to try them even though that could be very dangerous!
These look like they could become addictive! 🙂
I can get so addicted to these. Great gift idea!
They look amazing! I was wondering how you made the edges so perfect!
Love all the ideas your commenters have – like adding the tabasco and you could use a little fish cookie cutter to make these look like goldfish. I can't buy Cheez-Its because we're not able to control ourselves with a whole box. But maybe for our next family get-together I could bake these for special sharing.
I will be making these, one of my households favorite snacks.
I have heard so much about them and now I have the tried and tested recipe! The pictures are wonderful!
I make these with virtually an identical recipe and they really are so addictive arn't they! Dangerously unfilling and light meaning i eat far too many without realising 🙂 mine dont look halllff as pretty as yours though! i might just have to invest in a pastry wheel now..
He thought he was big stuff! 🙂
That cutter was from my husband years ago. It is from WIlliams Sonoma and I ♥ it! 🙂
Mmm that would be great! Just replace some of the water with it – sounds yummy!
They truly are the real deal! I thought they were too soft at first but a few more minutes in the oven crisped them right up! I realize I could have rolled them even thinner. Next time!
I LOVE these Katrina, I have an obsession with crackers of all sorts and these look very tempting. Your homemade version rocks! can't wait to try them! Thanks for sharing!
Cute post! "My mom let me use sharp things!" Too funny! These look awesome. I love that you know exactly what is going into them. Bookmarked!
WOW!! I have always said I think my son has an addiction to cheese crackers – cheese its, cheese nips, goldfish, whales etc! He will LOVE these!!! Wish I had the cool pastry cutter!
So cool and cute that your little ones could help too! Ooh do you think I could add in tabasco and it would bake alright? I totally want to try to make my own crackers. I need to set aside some time to be home and do this mini project!
Do they taste like the real thing? I've never made homemade crackers of any sort. These look great and are totally making me want cheese or something cheesey mmmmm.
WOWWWWWW I totally love this..,my kids can eat(an me lol) like a box of cheez-its so this is so perfect..Amazing really!!I have to try it next week!!!!
Yes my sons love goldsish crackes too! 🙂 Such a simple recipe. I hope you let me know if you try it out!
Thanks for sharing! My niece and nephew are addicted to goldfish..same difference ya know. I can make these with them 🙂