German Knäckebrot

I brought home some delicious Knäckebrot when I came back from Germany at the end of the summer, and I knew right away that this would be something I would have to tackle, and try making myself. The word Knäckebrot literally translates to "crisp bread" and that is pretty much what it is. A thin, crispy bread that is amost like a cracker.

The Knäckebrot I brought was something the bakery down the street at my Oma's house made daily, and it had lots of good seeds on it. It is super good with things like hummus.


Here is my own version of it, for which you'll need:
1/2 c. rye flour
1 1/2 c. white flour
2 tbsp. Earth Balance
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 c. water
sesame seeds
raw sunflower seeds

Mix all of the ingredients, minus the seeds, until the dough is smooth, yet a tad sticky. Add 2 tbsp. sesame seeds to the dough. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Let rest for 20 minutes. Take about a handful sized ball of the dough and roll out into a 1/8 thin rectangular shape. Sprinkle on the sunflower seeds, and make sure to press them firmly into the dough. Sprinkle sesame seeds on top, and press those into the dough firmly again. If you do not do this step sufficiently, your Knäckebrot will bake, and the seeds will simple fall off. And you do not want that to happen.

Also, be sure to take a fork and poke lots of holes into the dough, that way it stays flat while baking, and you don't end up with a flat bread that has lots of puffy areas.

Bake for about 18 minutes, and check on your Knäckebrot, let it bake until the edges are golden brown. You might end up baking them for a total of 20 minutues, but towards the end, you want to keep an eye on them, so they do not burn.


Serve plain, with jam, hummus, any sort of spreadable goodness and enjoy!