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I try to make to make homemade snacks for my kids whenever I can using simple, real-food ingredients! These homemade pumpkin cheese crackers are a fun fall twist on the cheese crackers my kids already love.
Everything you need for this recipe HERE
Sharp cheddar gives the snacks a classic cheesy cracker flavor, while pumpkin purée adds a little seasonal flavor and helps bring the dough together. I cut ours into tiny pumpkins using my favorite lunch-packing mini cookie cutters, but you can use any small cookie cutter—or simply cut the dough into squares for a more traditional cheese cracker.
The best part is that these are made with ingredients you probably already have at home. No long ingredient list or mystery additives—just cheese, flour, butter, pumpkin and a few simple seasonings.
And if you want that crunchy, Cheez-It-like texture, roll the dough thin! The thinner you roll it, the crispier your crackers will be.
Homemade Pumpkin Cheese Crackers
Ingredients
8 oz sharp cheddar cheese, freshly shredded
2 cups flour (I use gluten-free)
4 tablespoons cold butter, cubed
6 tablespoons cold pumpkin purée
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
2 teaspoons olive oil
Flaky salt, for topping
Instructions
Make the dough.
Shred the cheddar cheese and add it to a food processor along with the flour, cold butter, pumpkin purée, salt, turmeric and olive oil.Blend.
Pulse until the ingredients are finely combined and the mixture begins to resemble a crumbly dough.Bring the dough together.
Transfer the mixture to a bowl and knead it gently with your hands until it comes together into a smooth dough.Chill.
Place the dough in the refrigerator for about 10 minutes. This makes it easier to roll and cut.Roll and cut.
Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Roll the dough out thinly on a lightly floured surface or between 2 pieces of parchment paper. Use a mini pumpkin cookie cutter to cut out the crackers, or cut the dough into small squares.Add the finishing touches.
Transfer the crackers to the prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle lightly with flaky salt and use a skewer or toothpick to poke a small hole in the center of each cracker.Bake.
Bake at 350°F for 15–18 minutes, or until the crackers are crisp and the edges are beginning to turn golden. Baking time may vary depending on how thinly you roll your dough.Cool.
Let the crackers cool completely. They’ll continue to crisp up as they cool.
The Secret to Crunchy Homemade Cheese Crackers
Roll them thin! If your crackers are too thick, they’ll have a softer, more biscuit-like texture. For that crunchy packaged-cheese-cracker texture, roll the dough as thin and evenly as you can.
Keep an eye on the smallest crackers toward the end of baking since they can brown quickly.
A Homemade Take on Packaged Snacks
I’m not at a point where I am able to make single thing my kids eat from scratch (maybe one day!), but I love finding easy ways to recreate some of their favorite packaged snacks with simple ingredients at home.
These pumpkin cheese crackers are exactly that: familiar enough that my kids are excited to eat them, but made with ingredients I can pull straight from my fridge and pantry.
Plus, turning them into little pumpkins makes an everyday cheese cracker feel like a special fall snack. Pack them in a lunchbox, add them to an after-school snack board, or serve them alongside fruit for an easy fall snack kids will actually be excited about.
Homemade Cheez-Its, but make them fall. Everything you need for this recipe HERE.
