These cheddar cheese crackers are basically a savoury shortbread: cheese, butter, flour, and paprika worked into a dough, rolled into a log, crusted in everything bagel seasoning, then sliced into coins and baked. It is a slice-and-bake, so the dough does all the work in the freezer while you do nothing. They come out crisp, sharp, and impossible to stop eating, the homemade answer to a box of Cheez-Its, except these taste like real cheese because they are.
Prep
15
min
Chill
20
min
Bake
10
min
Level
Beginner
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This one belongs in the Basics Series because the technique is dead simple but the payoff is huge: a single dough, no rolling pin, no cutters, no fuss. You make a log, freeze it briefly so it slices clean, and bake. The closest comparison is a classic icebox cookie, just turned savoury. If you have ever made cheese straws, you already understand the dough; this is the lazy, sliceable version.
Six ingredients. The everything bagel seasoning is the only one that is technically optional, but it is what makes these special
Ingredients
What you need
Makes one big batch · tap to check off
200 g grated cheddar cheese
150 g butter (room temperature)
180 g all-purpose flour
1 tsp paprika
½ tsp salt
Everything bagel seasoning (for coating)
How to Make It
1
Mix the dry ingredients. In a bowl, combine the flour, salt, and paprika and mix well so the paprika is evenly distributed before any fat goes in.
2
Work in the butter. Add the room-temperature butter and really rub it into the flour with your fingers. After a minute or so you will have a crumbly mixture with small chunks throughout. Room-temperature butter is important here, cold butter will not come together into a smooth dough.
3
Add the cheddar and knead. Add the grated cheese and knead everything together for about 5 minutes until you get a relatively smooth, unified orange dough. It will feel dry at first, then come together as the cheese and butter warm under your hands.
4
Roll into a log. Shape the dough into a cylinder about 4 to 5 cm in diameter (or split into two logs for easier handling). Handle it gently, it can crack and break apart if you rush.
5
Coat in everything bagel seasoning. Spread a generous bed of seasoning on the counter and roll the log across it, pressing lightly. It should stick easily and create a full, even crust around the outside.
6
Wrap and freeze 15 to 20 minutes. Wrap the coated log in plastic wrap and freeze briefly. This firms it up just enough to cut clean coins without squashing them.
7
Slice into coins. Cut into even slices about ½ cm thick and lay them on a baking tray (no oil needed) with minimal spacing, they barely spread.
8
Bake at 200°C for 10 minutes. Bake until the edges turn golden and you see small dark bubbles forming on the surface. Let them cool completely before eating, they crisp up as they cool.
After kneading, the dough comes together into a smooth, unified orange ball
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Why the freezer step matters
A room-temperature log smears and squashes when you cut it. Fifteen minutes in the freezer firms the butter just enough to slice clean coins that hold their round shape in the oven. Do not skip it, it is the difference between neat crackers and sad blobs.
The logs after their everything bagel crust, ready to wrap and chill
Four Ways to Riff On It
The base dough is the constant: cheese, butter, flour. Swap the cheese, the spice, or the coating and you get a completely different cracker from the same five minutes of work.
Everything Bagel (this post)
Sharp cheddar with paprika, crusted in everything bagel seasoning. The all-rounder, savoury, seedy, a little smoky. Start here.
Parmesan & Black Pepper
Swap half the cheddar for grated parmesan and add a heavy crack of black pepper. Drier, sharper, very grown-up with a glass of wine.
Spicy Chili Cheddar
Add ½ tsp chili flakes or a pinch of cayenne to the dough and roll in sesame seeds instead. Slow-building heat behind the cheese.
Rosemary Sea Salt
Knead in finely chopped rosemary and roll the log in flaky sea salt. More herby and shortbread-leaning, great on a cheese board.
Straight out of the oven, golden edges and little dark bubbles on top mean they are done
How to Serve Them
Pairs with
On a cheese board alongside grapes, olives, and cured meats, they hold up better than store-bought crackers.
Topped with a smear of soft cheese or a dab of fig jam for an instant two-bite appetizer.
Packed into lunchboxes or taken on the road, they keep their crunch for days in an airtight container.
Served next to drinks at a party, set out a bowl and watch them disappear faster than anything else on the table.
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Storage & make-ahead
Baked crackers keep up to a week in an airtight container at room temperature. Even better: the wrapped raw log freezes for up to a month, so you can slice and bake a fresh batch whenever you want them. Bake straight from frozen, just add a minute or two.
That is the whole post. Drop a comment below and tell me which cheese you went with, I have been meaning to try a smoked gouda version next. And do not apologise for going back for the tenth, eleventh, twelfth one. That is just what these do.
