Monday, February 21, 2011

Making Hatcher crackers






When Beth Lee of Charlotte called me a few weeks ago about the Hatcher Crackers made by her friend Hatcher Kincheloe, I had to ask her what a Hatcher cracker is. "Well, it's . . . it's . . . "

Hang on, I said. I put the name into Google and quickly turned up several versions of the recipe, including a blogger in another state who had taken pictures when she was making them for Christmas. I realized quickly that it's a cheese-based variation of that Christmas toffee that some people call Mystery Cookies - you make a mixture of brown sugar and butter, pour it over saltines or graham crackers and bake it.

But the cheese version demanded to be tried, so I stopped on the way home that Friday and picked up the ingredients. After I got Kincheloe's version of the recipe, I found a few differences, mainly in the red pepper. The online recipes have you sprinkle it on the crackers, while Kincheloe sprinkles it on the cheese. I think that helps with distribution -- I had trouble getting good distribution of pepper, so my first batch was a little too picante.





Still, when Linda Kincheloe dropped off a bag of her husband's crackers, I was surprised to realize I had hit it pretty close to right the first time, with about the same level of browning and crunch as his version.






It's a great recipe and simple to make if you have an electric oven. Gas ovens may make it difficult to get the tray far enough from the heat source to keep the cheese from burning too quickly.



Thanks, Beth Lee, Hatcher Kincheloe and especially Linda Kincheloe, for letting me tell the story behind the crackers. Hatcher Kincheloe Sr.'s legacy lives on.






6 comments:

  1. Kathleen,
    How about using a toaster oven?

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  2. It probably wouldn't be far enough from the heating element to allow enough time for the oil to bake out of the cheese before the cheese burns.

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  3. I love these! Crunchy, salty, spicy and oh-so-easy! And for some reason, folks always think that they took lots more time and talent than they actually do. One of those "ultimate" recipes!

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  4. Enjoyed the article. I'm from Rocky Mount and got this recipe from a friend several years ago and in fact sent a batch to Seattle for Christmas this year. Love seeing little ole RM spreading it's good eats.

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  5. I worked on the third Charlotte Latin cookbook years ago and we published a recipe for Hatcher Crackers. I never where knew they came from so I loved this article. Can't wait to make them now that I know "the rest of the story" -- thanks Kathleen!

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  6. These are the worst crackers I have ever tasted!!!

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