Crackers are easily transformed into satisfying snacks with various toppings.
Turning crackers into snacks, appetizers and hors d'oeuvres is easy and quick by topping them with a variety of meats, cheeses, fruits, vegetables and prepared foods. Hot or cold, snack crackers are an economical, healthy and easily prepared alternative to frozen or time-consuming, from-scratch bites and nibbles.
Fruit and Cheese Toppings
Most crackers pair well with the natural sweetness of fresh fruit and different types of cheese. Top a cracker with an apple slice, a piece of cheddar or American cheese and sprinkle with cinnamon for a quick snack. Serve it cold or microwave for a few seconds to melt the cheese. Another snack idea is to place a thin banana slice on a cracker, drizzle it with honey and sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar. Smearing crackers with softened cream cheese and topping them with a few fresh or frozen blue berries or peach slices is a good and tasty snack.
Meats and Vegetables
Make a meat and vegetable snack by stacking a thin slice each of deli roast beef, white cheddar and crumbled French-fried onion rings on a cracker and microwaving it until the cheese melts. You can create individual antipasto treats by topping crackers with thinly sliced salami, cheese and sliced black or pimento-stuffed green olives. A good snack topping can be made by using an electric mixer to combine cream cheese, chopped marinated artichoke hearts, jarred roasted bell peppers and grated Parmesan. You can chill the mixture and top crackers with it. If you like chicken snacks, thinly slice a cooked chicken breast filet and peeled cucumber. Complete the snack by topping crackers with a slice of each and drizzling the ingredients with bottled Asian toasted sesame dressing mixed with minced green onions and crushed roasted peanuts.
Gourmet Snacks
With a little creativity, you can transform crackers into gourmet snacks. Warm your favorite pasta sauce and smear on crackers. Top with room temperature goat cheese, a small dollop of fresh or prepared pesto and a sprinkle of freshly grated Parmesan.
Make a Caprese-style salad on a cracker. Start with thinly sliced fresh mozzarella and top with a cherry or grape tomato. Combine chopped fresh basil, olive oil, balsamic vinegar and a dash of salt and pepper and dribble on top.
For a take-off on a well-liked bagel combination, top crackers with thinly sliced smoked salmon, cucumber slices and whipped cream cheese. Garnish with fresh dill sprigs and a sprinkling of drained capers.
Hints and Tips
Match cracker flavors with toppings. Use blander crackers for spicy toppings and choose highly flavored crackers to add taste to simply seasoned toppings. Prepare snack cracker ingredients ahead of time but do not assemble the crackers too early, as the crackers will become soggy if they sit too long with toppings on them.
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