Flax Seed Crackers

Lately, the Raw Food Diet has been catching my interest. So I picked up a book called, "Raw Foods for Busy People" by Jordan Maerin. In it was a recipe for Flax Crackers I gave a try for it looked simple and I needed to use up my flax seeds. I wasn't bad for something with only flax seeds and water. Very healthy tasting and quite brittle so it wouldn't be a good cracker for dipping. Next time I might try their variations for more flavor. Here's the recipe:

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FLAX CRACKERS

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Try this experiment: Soak 1/4 cup of flax seeds in 1/2 cup of water for 3 hours. Stick your finger in it. Now you know why flax crackers are so easy to make: It's the goo!

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2 cups flax seeds

4 cups water

Salt, spices or vegetables (see below)

1/2 cup sesame or hemp seeds (optional)

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For a blender-free version, soak flax seeds as described above, spread the flax seed goo onto solid dehydrator sheets, and sprinkle with you choice of salt, garlic powder, Italian seasonings, cayenne, or Chinese 5-spice.

For more complex flavors, you can use a blender to liquefy the veggies and spices of your choice in the water, before adding to the flax seeds for soaking (see below). If using wet vegetables, like tomatoes, reduce the water to 3 cups.

Dehydrate for 8-12 hours, and then move crackers to slotted trays and dehydrate for 4-8 hours more, or until crisp.

A stiff spatula works well to spread the flax goo onto the dehydrator sheets. If you don't have enough solid dehydrator sheeds for all the goo you've got, you can spread the goo onto pieces of waxed paper. If you use waxed paper, however, you must watch your drykng time carefully and remove the crackers from the paper after about 3-4 hours. If the crackers are left on waxed paper for too long, they'll be stubbornly stuck together.

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Sample Variations:

Mexican Flax Crackers: Blend water with gfresh tomatoes, cilantro, lime juice, peppers, garlic and salt.

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Italian Flax Crackers: Blend water with tomatoes, zucchini, garlic, Italian seasoning, fresh basil, olives, bell peppers, and salt.

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Asian Flax Crackers: Blend water with Nama Shoyu, lemon juice, cilantro, peppers, garlic and Chinese 5-spice.

(Since the recipe didn't say at what temperature to set the dehydrator, I set it at 135*F and it ended up drying in half the time stated.)