Crispy Oaty Chickpeay Crackers - My New Fave

I’m excited! I’m not a baker, but…. In Australia we cannot buy any gluten free, or uncontaminated with gluten containing ingredients, savoury oat crackers. And I miss having a decent wholegrain cracker that will be good for my health and taste amazing. I’ve finally found them, and they’re so simple to make.

Thanks to the recent change in the Coeliac Australia Oat Position Statement, I’ve been given the go-ahead by my medical team to trial uncontaminated oats in my diet. As its early days with this new Australian take on oats in coeliac disease, there isn’t much availability in our market for oats that are produced in a gluten free facility. As far as I know (happy to be corrected) the only manufacturer that actually tests their facility for contaminants is GF Oats – that’s Gloriously Free, not Gluten Free due to Australian labelling laws. They don't make savoury crackers (yet), but I can use their oats to make these.

Coeliac Australia explains: “The addition of pure oats to a gluten-free diet can help boost fibre intake, enhance food choices and provide a range of beneficial nutrients including quality protein, soluble and insoluble fibres, vitamins and minerals. Oats have been associated with a range of positive health effects on metabolism and cardiovascular disease risk markers such as cholesterol, body weight, and blood sugar control in diabetes.”

This recipe that I found online at My Kids Lick the Bowl ticks all my boxes for nutrition and flavour, and will be so helpful for my gluten free fertility and pregnancy clients.

It is high in protein and fibre, uses extra virgin olive oil, wholegrains and legumes, and is easily adjustable for the flavours you want to add. So many other crackers that one buys use oils high in saturated fat and/or refined flours, so really don’t help our choices to 'Be Well Gluten Free'.

This first batch I’ve made without garlic as I’m wanted just a plain cracker that I can use with different toppings for my lunches. And it was so quick and easy to make. These will be a regular for me for sure!! I hope that you love them just as much.

I’ve slightly modified the recipe here from the My Kids Lick the Bowl site for your easy reference and added my notes in italics for you:

Ingredients

• 400 g can chickpeas

• 1 cup GF Oats rolled oats

• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

• Iodised salt to taste – I used 1 teaspoonful

• ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

Instructions

• Rinse and drain the chickpeas

• Place in a food processor, blend until they are smooth, form a ball and have a texture a little like playdough - mine didn’t form a ball, but still worked, and did in the last step

• Add the rolled oats, continue to blend until the oats are finely chopped into the chickpeas

• Add lemon juice and iodised salt for seasoning

• Begin blitzing in the food processor, gradually add the olive oil, continue blitzing/blending until everything comes together as a ball

• Line a baking tray with baking paper, place the dough on top, press the dough with your hands to start flattening it – I did this on the table top on baking paper, to slide onto the tray later

• Place a second piece of baking paper on top of the dough, using a rolling pin, roll until it is evenly spread over the baking tray and approximately 5mm thick

• Score the dough into cracker shaped pieces - I used a pizza slicer to do it, but you can use a knife

• Bake at 180 degrees Celsius for 40-50mins until golden – my oven is fan-forced and 40 minutes was plenty of cooking time

• Leave to cool.

Too Easy!! This batch made me 7 perfect crackers, and lots of extra from around the edges. Yummo!!

So, if you’re thinking that you’d like to give them a try too, please ensure that you’ve checked with your dietitian or doctor that it’s medically sensible for you to do so. You’re also welcome to start a conversation with me.

Accredited Practising Dietitian and Certified Fertility Dietitian, Sally Marchini of Marchini Nutrition, has type 1 diabetes and coeliac disease herself and is passionate about supporting others with these and other chronic conditions. You can follow her on her Instagram account @Marchini.Nutrition, Facebook page Marchini Nutrition, and in her closed support group Be Well Gluten Free