Skip to Content

Easy Cocoa Crackers

This tiny heart-shaped cracker? It’s for you. And for my kids. And for my family. And for my dear friends who amaze me with their kindness, generosity and willingness to go above and beyond. It’s for those bleak moments made better by a kind word or a thoughtful gesture. It’s for everyday reminders that you love and are loved.

Paige and I made these Easy Cocoa Crackers this afternoon. It was spontaneous — something that sprang from an assignment I was working on. Originally, we were going to head out to the store, but something made me slow down and re-plan my afternoon so that we could spend it in the kitchen instead. I’m glad we did.

To make these crackers, you need these little cookie cutters (you can find them at Michael’s, Williams-Sonoma, etc) that are about 1-inch. They’re perfect for so many things like cutting out shaped bits of cheese, sausage and sandwiches or making fancy little butter pats.

They are also perfect for little hands to use to cut out these itty bitty crackers from pie crust dough. It’s such a simple and easy thing to do, which makes these absolutely perfect for a cooking with kids project. Paige cut out many of the crackers herself, carefully pressing the cutter into the dough and then pulling the dough away for me to place onto the prepared cookie sheet. Love the teamwork in cooking.

Once the dough is all cut, you place the pieces onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. They don’t spread, so you can place them pretty close together without worries. And if you are out of parchment, nonstick aluminum foil works too. Finally, you spray them with cooking oil spray and season them. We used hot cocoa mix, which gave them a subtly sweet flavor that everyone raved about.

And Paige? She was so happy and proud to have made these. She couldn’t wait to share some with Will for his afterschool snack. Amazing how little things can really mean so much … isn’t it?

Easy Cocoa Crackers

Easy Cocoa Crackers

Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients

  • 1 Pillsbury Pie Crust
  • cooking oil spray
  • 1 packet hot cocoa mix

Instructions

  1. Allow the pie crust to soften a room temperature for 30 minutes.
  2. Once the pie crust has softened up, preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper (out of parchment? Nonstick aluminum foil works too).
  3. Unroll the pie crust onto a cutting board. Using mini cookie cutters (about 1" large), cut the dough into shapes and place them all on the prepared cookie sheet. They can be super close together but shouldn't touch.
  4. Once all the crust is used, spray the cut shapes quickly with cooking oil spray. Then sprinkle the dough with cocoa mix. I use a couple of pinches per cracker.
  5. Slide the baking sheet into the oven and cook for 6-7 minutes until the crackers are lightly browned. Remove from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes before handling. Eat immediately or store in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

 

Erika @ Gluten Free Diet Guide

Thursday 1st of December 2011

Oh wow, you just blew my mind. Let me explain.

We have a gluten free house because of my husband's celiac disease. While I'm not affected personally by this condition (I can still eat gluten), we don't allow many of my favorite gluteny snacky things in the house. Cheezits would be one for me, and Teddy Grahams would be one for my kids.

My mind is spinning with little gluten free cracker possibilities now...

Thank you so much for the inspiration!

sarah

Thursday 1st of December 2011

Oh, Erika, that's awesome! Thanks so much for commenting.

Kate

Wednesday 30th of November 2011

I have these little cookie cutters and this is a great use for them!

sarah

Thursday 1st of December 2011

I have a bit of an addition to them, Kate. Love the little shapes!

Dana at Cooking at Cafe D

Wednesday 30th of November 2011

Love this idea. I just pinned them at http://pinterest.com/pin/644731643/ for you.

I think I'll try them with the cocoa, and then I think I'll top some others with just a pinch of cayenne, or maybe Parmesan cheese. Yum.

So simple. So cute! Thanks for sharing!

sarah

Thursday 1st of December 2011

Thank you so much, Dana! And yes, there are so many possibilities (I've been working on others too ;) )

Cate O'Malley

Wednesday 30th of November 2011

Make it a heart, and you know I'm there. Love this post. :)

Erica

Wednesday 30th of November 2011

Great recipe! I can use different cocoa powder as well right?

sarah

Wednesday 30th of November 2011

Hi Erica, it needs to be hot cocoa mix, which is sweetened. Cocoa powder isn't sweetened so that's not a good fit here.

Skip to Recipe