For years now, I have seen the photos of the various savory ice box crackers in Martha Stewart’s Hors d’oeuvres Handbook. But for some reason, I had never made them. When looking for a new appetizer to make for Thankgiving, I thought these would be the perfect thing. You can make the dough ahead of time, and either keep it in the refrigerator(up to 2 weeks) or in the freezer(up to 4 weeks) before you thaw, slice, and make them. Then they may be baked the day before. If you need to recrisp them(which I did), just pop them into a 250 degree oven for 10 minutes.
Both crackers were good. I used a strong blue chees in my Blue Cheese Pecan Crackers, so the flavor was very strong. Next time I’ll try a gorgonzola. I like the texture of these better, as they were more sandy-textured. The Parmesan-Rosemary Crackers had a very nice flavor and I liked their rosemary sprig garnish. The texture was different on these, not as “mealy”.

A photo of the unbaked sliced cookies.
BLUE CHEESE-PECAN ICEBOX CRACKERS
Makes 20 crackers
2 ounces(3/4 cup) pecan halves
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
4 tablespoons very cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
3 ounces blue cheese, crumbled
1. Heat oven to 375 degrees Far. Place the pecans on a rimmed baking sheet and bake until fragrant, 3 to 5 minutes. Let cool. Transfer the pecans to the bowl of a food processor and pulse until finely ground. Transfer the ground pecans to a small bowl and set aside.
2. Combine the flour and the ground pecans in the bowl of the food processor. Pulse briefly to combine. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Add the cheese and process until the dough comes together and is well combined.
3. Transfer the dough to a clean work surface. Shape the dough into a 2″ wide log. Wrap the log with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 24 hours.
4. Heat the oven to 325 degrees Far. Slice the well-chilled log into 1/4 inch thick slices. Transfer the slices to a baking sheet and bake immediately, rotating the sheet halfway through cooking, until the crackers are golden brown and firm in the center, 25 to 35 minutes. (The crackers should not get too dark around the edges.) Transfer to a rack to cool. The crackers may be made a day ahead and kept in an airtight container at room temperature.
PARMESAN-ROSEMARY ICEBOX-CRACKERS
Makes 20 crackers
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
Pinch of white pepper
2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh rosemary, plus extra sprigs for garnish
3 tablespoons very cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 cup(2 1/2 ounces) finely grated Parmesan cheese
5 tablespoons sour cream
1 large egg white, lightly beaten
1. Combine the flour, salt, pepper, and the chopped rosemary in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse to combine. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Add the cheese and pulse until combined. Add 1 tablespoon of the sour cream at a time, pulsing each time to combine. Process until the dough comes together and is well combined.
2. Transfer the dough to a clean work surface. Shape the dough into a 2″ wide log. Wrap the log with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 24 hours.
3. Heat the oven to 325 degrees Far. Slice the well-chilled log into 1/4 inch thick slices. Transfer the slices to a baking sheet. Dip a sprig of rosemary into the egg white and place it in the center of 1 cracker slice. Repeat with the remaining rosemary and crackers. Bake immediately, rotating the sheet halfway through cooking, until the crackers are golden brown and firm in the center, 25 to 35 minutes. (The crackers should not get too dark around the edges.) Transfer to a rack to cool. The crackers may be made a day ahead and kept in an airtight container at room temperature.