My oldest granddaughter chose a camping theme for her 9th birthday celebration, so this week, during Dick's and my stay at our daughter Heather's house in New York, we were immersed in the most amazing transformation as a home became a woodland forest setting. It began with rolling out homemade graham cracker dough which Heather, assisted by her 2 1/2 year-old son, cut into firefly shapes while the birthday girl and her younger sister were in school.
The fireflies were created by pressing a bee cookie cutter into the dough. After baking, they were stored in a covered glass jar to simulate catching real fireflies on a hot summer's eve. Baked pine tree graham cracker dough cutouts were destined to sandwich roasted marshmallows and chocolate to be eaten as s'mores. The recipe is seriously tasty!
Homemade Graham Crackers
½ cup all-purpose flour*
1 ¼ cups whole wheat flour*
½ cup light rye flour*
½ cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp cinnamon
½ cup (1 stick) cold butter, cut into pea-size bits
2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp molasses
¼ cup cold water
1 tsp vanilla
*Heather substituted whole wheat pastry flour for the all-purpose, whole wheat, and rye flours.
In a food processor or bowl of an electric mixer, combine the flours, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Add the cold butter and mix or process until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Add the honey, molasses, water, and vanilla. Mix until the dough comes together in a ball. Between two sheets of waxed paper or plastic wrap (or parchment paper), roll the dough ½” thick. Chill for 1 hour until firm. Set a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350°. Lightly flour the dough and roll 1/8” thick. With a sharp knife, cut into 2” squares or cut into shapes using a cookie cutter. Arrange the crackers on lightly oiled or parchment lined cookie sheets. With a fork, prick several holes in each cracker. (Heather didn’t poke holes in her cutouts.) Bake for 15 minutes until lightly browned at the edges. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the pan. Yield: 48 graham cracker squares.