This is a project I’ve been thinking about doing for ages. So it was time to kick start my DIY heart and get it done. I’m hoping it will be the first of many 3-D cracker installations.
I used a gluten-free saltine cracker recipe that I found online eons ago (sorry, I don’t remember where) and I LOVE how they turned out. Of course they don’t taste quite the same as regular soup crackers, but I’d say they’re pretty darn close for being an ‘alternative’ snack bit.
I think you could probably do a straight swap for wheat flour and have great results too.
Sheepie How-To
Things you’ll need:
1. rolling pin
2. 2 cups of gluten-free flour mix (I used Pamela’s gluten-free baking & pancake mix)
3. 3/4 tsp. of baking powder
4. Sheepie templates (*see way below for instructions on how to get these)
5. salt, black pepper, & rosemary (optional)
6. pastry blender for ‘cutting’ in the shortening/butter
7. 1/3 cup of shortening or butter
8. sharp knife for cutting out sheep parts
9. measuring spoons
10. fork to poke the ’saltine style’ holes in Sheepie’s side
11. 1/8″ thick basswood strips to help achieve thin & even dough
* not pictured: 1/6 cup of milk & 1/2 cup water
12. Patience. These guys take a while to cut out.
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375F.
2 Mix flour, a pinch of the salt, & baking powder in a bowl.
3. Cut in shortening or butter with pastry blender until mixture has consistency of coarse meal.
4. Add liquid and stir to form a dough.
5. Roll into a very thin sheet, using the 1/8″ basswood strips on either side of your dough to help get uniformity. * It’s also not a bad idea, if you have
one, to use a Silpat silicone cooking mat to roll out on. It makes it much easier to get the delicate pieces off!
6. Place Sheepie templates on dough and use your sharp knife to trace the templates, cutting out the pieces.
7. Repeat this tedious but ultimately rewarding task until you have enough parts for how many sheep you want to make. !! Remember that each
sheep needs two legs! And it’s a good idea to make a few extra parts in case any warp or brake.
8. Place all the pieces, using a thin spatula, carefully onto an un-greased cookie sheet.
9. Prick the sheep body with your fork 4-5 times and sprinkle with remaining salt, pepper, & rosemary, if using.
10. Bake 6-7 minutes.
11. Remove from cookie sheet and let sit on a cooling rack until they are cool enough to handle.
12. Tab & slot the pieces together (illustration for this on template pdf sheet – read below) If a leg or ear piece is not sliding on easily, don’t force it
or they will break. Take your knife and gently shave the slots on both body & matching part a bit at a time until they fit.
That’s it! I made up a green ‘field’ soup using broccoli, onion, cauliflower, peas, & parsley, but any green soup will do!
* If you think you’d like to give the Sheepies a try, just DOWNLOAD THE PDF RIGHT HERE!
