Crackers have long been a popular delicacy, and were usually eaten as a snack with tea. Gradually, healthy homemade crackers replaced store-bought ones with different flavors and aromas. But store-bought crackers contain a variety of trans fats, flavor enhancers, preservatives and flavorings that have a negative effect on the human body. You can replace such harmful fast food with the same crackers, only in a homemade interpretation.
The benefits of homemade crackers
Homemade crackers not only do not contain harmful components, but also have certain beneficial properties. Homemade crackers contain a lot of fiber, which has a positive effect on the digestive system.
Content:
- The benefits of homemade crackers
- Harm of crackers
- Calorie content of crackers and BJU
- Chemical composition
- Subtleties of cooking
- Areas of application
- Recipes for making crackers with flavor
The chemical composition of the product also contains the amino acid lysine, B vitamins, sodium, potassium, iron, and calcium. In other words, all the useful and nutritious substances that fresh bread has are fully preserved after drying. Many nutritionists and gastroenterologists claim that crackers are much healthier for the body than freshly baked bread. It is thanks to its high usefulness and complete absence of harm that people who want to lose weight, as well as leading a healthy lifestyle, began to add the product to their diet. It is worth noting that wheat crackers are less healthy than rye crackers. Rye crackers contain more nutrients and beneficial substances with low calorie content.
The product is easily digested by the body, which is why it is often prescribed by doctors in the postoperative period, after serious illnesses or severe poisoning - the product is high in carbohydrates, therefore, it provokes the production of energy, without causing any overload on the gastrointestinal tract.
Harm of crackers
In fact, the harm of crackers is minimal. The negative impact on the body can only increase due to a violation of production technology. During home preparation, no artificial additives are added to the product, but the cooking process itself can turn the product from healthy to harmful. It is not recommended to fry crackers in a frying pan in vegetable oil; during such preparation, the product is saturated with carcinogens, which can trigger the development of cancer cells. The most useful and effective way to prepare the product is to dry the bread slices in the microwave or oven. After drying, you can sprinkle them with a little olive oil and add high-quality natural spices to taste.
Another harm to the product is irregular use. It’s difficult to eat a lot of regular bread, but it’s easy to crunch on crackers, which can result in rapid weight gain. It is for this reason that it is recommended to consume even a healthy product in moderation, without fanaticism.
Sweet loaf croutons with milk and egg - proven recipe
Ingredients:
- cow's milk, pasteurized – 400 ml;
- chicken eggs, selected – 2 pcs.;
- granulated sugar – 1.5 tbsp. l.;
- table salt – 0.5 tsp;
- loaf – 8-10 slices;
- vegetable (sunflower) oil without odor and additives – 70-100 ml (as needed).
How to fry:
- Pour milk into a large bowl.
- Add the eggs, carefully breaking their shells.
- Also add sugar and salt. Mix the mixture with a whisk or fork; a mixer is not required for this. The task is to bring the liquid to maximum homogeneity, dissolve salt and granulated sugar.
- Cut the loaf (preferably yesterday's, but fresh can also be used) into slices of approximately the same thickness (about 1.5-2 cm).
- Pour deodorized oil into a frying pan and heat well over medium heat. Dip each piece of bread into the milk-egg mixture and place in a frying pan. Once the surface of the croutons has set, slightly reduce the heat intensity. Fry the bread until the desired degree of browning on one side, turn over and finish cooking the second side.
- Serve immediately after cooking. If desired, they can be sprinkled with sugar or powdered sugar, poured with honey, jam, condensed milk, and decorated with chopped fruits or berries.
Calorie content of crackers and BJU
Small pieces of white bread, which were dried, are an excellent snack, addition to breakfasts, dinners, they are often added to salads, cream soups, and if chopped, they are simply irreplaceable for breading.
The product is quite high in calories, therefore, its consumption must be dosed.
One hundred grams of white bread crackers saturate the body with 331 kilocalories. The product contains BJU:
- carbohydrates – 72 g;
- fats – 1.5 g;
- proteins – 11 g.
One hundred grams of rye bread crackers saturate the body with 336 kilocalories. The product contains BZHU in the following quantities:
- carbohydrates – 70 grams;
- fats – 1 gram;
- proteins – 16 grams.
Grandma's recipe with sour cream
A universal way to please children and grandchildren. Delicious aromatic croutons from the oven with sour cream. For the recipe you will need 1 sliced loaf, 50-60 g of thick sour cream, the same amount of sugar. If desired, sprinkle the pieces with ground cinnamon before baking.
I know you won't find eggs in the recipe. But the method was still published. Why? Yes, because it turns out amazingly delicious. We invite you to choose. Use sour cream or a chicken egg beaten until foamy according to the recipe. Both are delicious.
Cooking principle:
- Cut the bread into pieces. Did you take a square loaf? Each piece will make 4 small squares - enough for one bite.
- Take a piece. Dip one side into sour cream. Dip in sugar. Sugar grains should stick to sour cream. No more is needed. Place the pieces on a baking sheet.
- Sprinkle ground cinnamon on top of the sugar if desired. There are other options. Mix sugar with cinnamon or vanilla. Or use brown cane sugar.
Bake in an oven preheated to 200℃ for 10-15 minutes.
| Proteins, g | Fats, g | Carbohydrates, g | Calorie content, kcal | |
| Total | 32,1 | 25,8 | 236,7 | 1328,1 |
| Per 100 g | 6,6 | 5,3 | 48,8 | 273,8 |
The number in the general nutrition table is 8.
Subtleties of cooking
There are an incredible number of homemade cracker recipes, but the basic principles remain the same. How to make crackers healthy and nutritious? One of the simplest and most reliable ways is to dry the crushed slices of bread in the oven.
During the drying process, the product loses at least 2/3 of its moisture volume, therefore, the drying duration will directly depend on the degree of moisture of the bread itself.
The oven temperature should be 120 degrees. The baking sheet is not placed in a cold oven, but in a preheated oven. On average, the product will be ready in half an hour. If you need to prepare the product as quickly as possible, the temperature in the oven should be 200 degrees, but be sure to turn the crackers after 5 minutes, otherwise they will burn. Can crackers be cooked in the microwave? Of course you can, the cooking process will be much faster, the main thing is to choose the right mode.
Unsweetened croutons with milk, egg and cheese - step-by-step recipe with photos
The composition of the dish is as follows:
- bread (loaf) – about 500-600 g;
- hard (semi-hard) cheese – 100-120 g;
- chicken eggs (category C-1) – 5 pcs.;
- milk – 100 ml;
- salt – 1-2 pinches (to taste);
- Sunflower oil (deodorized) – as much as needed for frying.
How to fry:
- Carefully break the eggshells and place them in a bowl of suitable size. Add a small amount of salt. Whisk until the salt crystals dissolve.
- Pour milk into a bowl, stir. You can also add your favorite spices and herbs.
- Cut the cheese into thin, almost transparent slices. You can use cheese that is sold in plates. Almost any variety can be used, depending on your taste preferences and the filling of the refrigerator.
- Dip 4 moderately thin bread slices into the mixture prepared the day before. Place in a frying pan with well-heated oil. There is no need to add too much oil. If it gets absorbed into the bread too quickly, add a little more. Cook over medium heat until crispy crust appears.
- When one side is browned, flip them over and prick them with a fork. Place cheese on the prepared side of two pieces. Fry the second side for 2-3 minutes. Then place the empty slices on the cheese toast.
- Serve warm before the melted cheese has time to set.
Areas of application
Crackers are actively used in cooking in the form of croutons, crushed croutons or breadcrumbs. Toast is an ideal complement to cream soups and various purees. To prepare croutons, fry a slice of bread in a frying pan with a small amount of olive oil, garlic, rosemary and other spices. Ordinary crackers will perfectly complement vegetable soups, meat side dishes, salads with crackers and even desserts.
Breadcrumbs - dried pieces of bread in the oven and crushed into crumbs, are actively used in the preparation of such dishes as: cauliflower in breadcrumbs, chop in breadcrumbs, fillet in breadcrumbs, cutlets in breadcrumbs, Kiev cutlet, etc.
How to cook? We prepare the meat, minced meat or vegetables (marinate, season with spices), put a bowl with beaten egg yolk and a bowl with breadcrumbs, you can also use flour. First you need to immerse the product in the egg, then in the flour, again in the egg, then in the bread crumbs. If you need a denser breading layer, the process with bread crumbs can be done twice - but do not get carried away, as the product may end up with a pronounced bready taste.
Toasts from black (gray) bread with garlic, milk and beaten egg
Ingredients:
- bread - half a loaf of gray or black bread;
- garlic – 1 clove;
- chicken eggs – 3 pcs. (category CO);
- table salt (finely ground) - on the tip of a knife;
- milk – 100-150 ml;
- ground mixture of peppers (or just black) – a pinch (to taste);
- sunflower oil, without additives and odor – 100-150 ml;
- fresh or dried herbs - a few pinches.
How to cook:
- Cut the bread into thin slices, the optimal thickness is about 2 cm. If you have slightly dried bread, it is better to use it.
- Prepare a deep bowl into which to crush a medium-sized clove of garlic using a press. Add eggs there, pour a little milk. You can rely on the amount indicated in the recipe, or you can add it by eye: the egg-milk mass should not be too liquid, otherwise you won’t get a golden brown crust.
- Season with freshly ground pepper, add salt and herbs. Beat thoroughly with a fork or whisk.
- Pour oil into the frying pan. To fry croutons you will need quite a lot of it, since bread “loves” to absorb excess liquid. But if you heat the fat well, a crust will quickly form on the surface of the pieces, which will prevent the bread crumb from absorbing too much oil. Place each slice in eggs beaten with milk, hold in the mixture for 10-15 seconds, and place in a heated frying pan.
- Fry the croutons, placing them close to each other, over medium heat. As soon as they are covered with a golden crust on the bottom, turn them over using two forks. On the other side, bake for about the same time. After frying, remove excess fat with dry paper towels. Serve for breakfast, as an appetizer or as an entrée, instead of plain bread.
