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Light, buttery and salty, these gluten free ritz crackers taste just like Nabisco's Ritz—but they're gluten free!
What makes this “Ritz” crackers recipe special
When it comes to being gluten free, we're nostalgic for what we used to have, and no longer can. I first shared this recipe on the blog in 2011 when there weren't many famous brands making gluten free versions of their products. And we deserve to be able to make choices.
Sometimes, we just want the nostalgic taste of a Ritz Cracker, since they're buttery and crispy and taste like nothing else. We can't have one from a package, so we'll just have to make our own homemade Ritz style gluten free crackers.
These crackers have the rich taste and crunchy, melt-in-your-mouth texture of Ritz, but they're gluten free. If cheese could choose a cracker, it would choose Ritz every time.
Sometimes, it helps even just to know that you can make your own Ritz style gluten free crackers. Even if you never do it!
Recipe ingredients
- Gluten free flour: As usual, I highly recommend Better Batter gluten free flour original blend, Nicole's Best gf flour, or my mock Cup4Cup blend. I'm not as comfortable recommending Cup4Cup itself since they changed the formula. Please see the all purpose gluten free flour blends page for full info. And be sure to add xanthan gum if your blend doesn't already contain it. And measure your flour by weight for accurate results!
- Baking powder: This rising agent is what gives your crackers most of their rise in the oven. Make sure yours is fresh.
- Salt: Brightens the flavor in and on top of these simple crackers.
- Sugar: Just a touch of granulated sugar gives them that familiar packaged cracker taste. Most packaged savory snacks also have a bit of sugar in them.
- Smoked paprika: Adds color, and a smoky depth of flavor to these crackers.
- Butter: Cold grated butter helps the crackers rise in the oven. Melted butter brushed on top after baking gives extra richness.
- Oil: Helps the crackers stay fresh and adds richness. Any neutral-tasting oil (grapeseed, peanut, vegetable, canola) will work.
- Iced water: Brings the rest of the cracker ingredients together, and activates the baking powder the first time. Remember that you begin with 1/4 cup of cold water, and then add ice cubes. They don't count as part of the volume measurement.
How to make gluten free ritz crackers
See how easy it is to make the dough and roll it out, then bake it quickly to perfection. Be sure to keep the dough chilled, and bake it in a hot hot oven. The crackers will crisp as they cool.
Make the cracker dough
- Place the dry ingredients (flour blend, xanthan gum, baking powder, paprika, sugar, and salt) in a large bowl and whisk together.
- Grate the 4 tablespoons of cold butter on a standard size box grater right into the flour, and toss to combine.
- Add a tablespoon of neutral oil, and 1/4 cup of cold water, and mix to combine.
- Add more water by the drop, pressing down with the back of the mixing spoon, until the dough comes together in clumps.
Wrap and chill it
- Press the raw cracker dough into a small disk.
- Wrap it tightly in plastic wrap.
- Refrigerate the wrapped dough for about 20 minutes or until firm but not hard.
Shape the raw crackers & bake
- Unwrap the chilled cracker dough and place on a flat surface. I'm using a cloth-covered pastry board here like this one.
- Sprinkle the dough lightly with more gluten free flour.
- Roll the dough out with a rolling pin until it's about 1/8-inch thick, sprinkling it lightly with flour as necessary to prevent sticking.
- Cut out 1 3/4-inch rounds with a round cookie cutter with scalloped edges for that authentic look (or just a plain round).
- Place the rounds on a lined baking sheet, and use a toothpick to poke about 5 holes toward the center of each round. It helps them rise without inflating.
- Bake at 375°F for about 10 minutes or until lightly golden brown.
Finish the baked crackers
- As soon as the crackers come out of the oven, brush the tops generously with melted butter.
- Sprinkle the tops with extra kosher salt.
- Let cool completely on the baking sheet.
- Store in a tightly sealed glass container at room temperature for about 5 days to a week.
substitutions
Ingredient Substitutions
There aren't a lot of tricky ingredients in these crackers, since they're made naturally without eggs and have few total ingredients.
Dairy free
The only dairy in this recipe is butter, and you can replace it with your favorite vegan butter. Make sure it's a block of butter, though, that is quite firm when it's cold from the refrigerator. These crackers are like little pastries, and the butter must be kept cold or it will melt the crackers won't be very crispy.
I would recommend using Melt or Miyoko's Creamy vegan butter, not Earth Balance buttery sticks, which are quite soft and have too much moisture. Don't use any oil-based butter that comes in a tub in this or any other pastry.
Smoked paprika
This spice gives the crackers some depth of flavor and a slight orange tint, like the real packaged cracker. You can leave it out, or try replacing it with a some cumin for smokiness, or a bit of chipotle chili powder for the color. They'll have a spicy kick, though, so be sure you like that before adding it!
My Pro Tip
Recipe Tips
Use cold ingredients
The grated butter must stay solid until the crackers go in the oven, so keep it and the water cold. Don't handle the cracker dough too much, either, because the warmth of your hands will melt the butter.
Add water slowly
Once you've added water, you can't take it out. You'll just be adding more flour, then a bit more water to catch up, on and on. Press down on the mixture with the back of your mixing spoon to incorporate all the water, or pinch some together, and stop when the dough holds together in clumps.
Let too-cold dough sit
If you refrigerate your raw dough for longer than about 2 hours, it may crumble as you try to roll it out. Just let it sit at room temperature until it's still cold, but has some more give in it as you press down with the rolling pin.
Add finishing touches to warm crackers
Be sure to brush the crackers with melted butter and sprinkle with extra salt while they're still warm from the oven. They'll soak the butter right up so they have that buttery taste and texture of the wax paper-wrapped originals.
FAQs
Yes! Wrap the raw, unshaped disk of dough in plastic wrap, then place in a ziptop freezer bag. Freeze for up to 3 months before defrosting, shaping, and baking.
If you're using block-style vegan butter, like Melt or Miyoko's Creamery brands, that is as solid as dairy butter when chilled, you should get very similar results.
No, Nabisco does not make a gluten free version of their famous crackers. But the brand Lance makes a version of “gluten free baked original crackers” that look a lot like Ritz and buttery and pretty delicious. They're not quite like the original, but they do taste great! Lance does make lots of conventional gluten-containing crackers, though, so make sure you're buying the right one.
make ahead or leftovers
Storage
These crackers will keep their crispy, crunchy texture in a sealed glass jar at room temperature for at least 5 days. Just make sure to brush them with butter when they're still warm, and let them cool completely before storing them, or they'll release steam that makes them soggy in the jar. If you store them in plastic, they'll lose their texture.
Storing the raw dough
You can make the raw cracker dough ahead of time. Just wrap it very tightly in plastic wrap, place it in a ziptop bag, press out all air and seal it well.
The unshaped dough will keep in the refrigerator for up to a week. Before baking, let the refrigerated dough sit, still wrapped in plastic, at room temperature until it gives a bit when you press it with a rolling pin.
You can also freeze the unshaped dough in the same form for up to 3 months. Defrost, still wrapped, in the refrigerator overnight, then on the counter as described above.
Gluten Free Ritz Crackers
Equipment
- Standard box grater
- 1 Rolling Pin
- 1 1.75 inch scalloped round cookie cutter or a simple round cutter in about that size
Ingredients
- 1 cup (140 g) all purpose gluten free flour blend, (please click thru for full info on appropriate flour blends), plus more for sprinkling
- ⅝ teaspoon xanthan gum, omit if your blend already contains it
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- ½ teaspoon smoked Spanish paprika
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for sprinkling
- 4 tablespoons (56 g) unsalted butter, chilled
- 1 tablespoon (14 g) vegetable oil
- ¼ cup (2 fluid ounces) cold water, with ice, (ice does not count in the volume measurement), plus more as needed
- 2 tablespoons (28 g) unsalted butter, melted
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 375°F. Line rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper and set them aside.
- In a large bowl, place the flour, xanthan gum, baking powder, sugar, paprika and salt, and whisk to combine well.
- Using a standard size grater, grate the cold butter into the large bowl of dry ingredients, stopping occasionally to flour the butter to keep it separated. Toss to coat the butter in the dry ingredients.
- Add the vegetable oil, and about 1/4 cup of the ice water, and stir to combine.
- Add more water by the drop as necessary to bring the dough together. Moisten the dry ingredients with the water by pressing down into the dough with the back of the mixing spoon. Stop adding water as soon as the dough comes together into clumps.
- Press the dough into a disk, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator to chill for about 20 minutes or until firm.
- Remove the chilled dough from the refrigerator and place on a lightly floured surface.
- Sprinkle lightly with more flour on both sides of the dough and roll out until a bit more than 1/8-inch thick, moving and turning the dough, and sprinkling with extra flour as necessary to keep it from sticking.
- Using a scalloped-edge 1 3/4-inch round cookie cutter, cut out shapes.
- Place the shapes about 1-inch apart from one another on the prepared baking sheets. With a toothpick, poke four to six holes toward the center of each cracker to help them rise.
- Gather and reroll the scraps to cut out crackers until you’ve used up the dough.
- Place the baking sheets, one at a time, in the center of the preheated oven and bake until the crackers are just beginning to brown, about 10 minutes.
- Remove from the oven, brush the crackers with the melted butter and sprinkle with extra salt.
- Allow to cool on the baking sheet. They will crisp as they cool.
- The crackers can be stored in a sealed glass container at room temperature and should maintain their texture for at least 5 days.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Umm, we used to plan meals around crackers. It all had to do with the toppings, meat, cheese, cream cheese, etc. :)
And I used to spoon the sugar into my coffee in amazing amounts! Or the hot cocoa mix!
will they be super horrible if I leave the paprika out? I just realized I don’t have any. :(
Hi, Joy,
No. Of course not. They won’t be super horrible. They will be a different color, and will have a more “flat” flavor, but they will still taste really good! Maybe cut the recipe in half, and make it again once you have paprika?
xoxo Nicole
SO SO SO SOOOOOO look forward to reading your blog…you’re nutz! (most affectionately!!!)
Love you!!!
NEVER be ashamed of schweeeet coffee – I confess (with a red, red face….) I use 3 tsp in a giant cup.
I once was in a convenient mart and watched a woman put 20 packets in her cup…..20 packets???????
My nephew even noticed, and he says “Ewwwwwwwwww…did you see that? Why didn’t she just buy a bag & a spoon???”
Ritz…Scott will be head over heals, you know. He said that he misses them and bagels the most. Guess I better go cheese shopping! :)
Hi, Pamela,
I know. I’m totally crazy. But I’m relatively harmless. :)
Okay, 20 packets is gross. That person sounds like a loon for sure. Your nephew is right. Get a spoon!
I don’t know Scott, but if he misses Ritz, he should have these. And I have a recipe for GF bagels (a few recipes, in fact) in my cookbook. Easy peasy.
Enjoy!
xoxo Nicole
Nicole, my new BESTEST
friend…..
OMG….Scott was SO impressed with the crackers…although, it was way too hot in the kitchen when i made them.
he was WAYYYYYY impressed with the flavor. One question I had was do you think they’d get a bit ‘crisp-er’ if I refrigerated the dough prior to baking? they were a little thick (due to the heat, they were almost melty)…if I chilled them down, do you think that would work?
Hi, Pamela,
Yes, especially if it’s hot in your kitchen, definitely refrigerate the rounds prior to baking them. The recipe already directs you to chill the dough prior to rolling it out, but if it’s hot in your kitchen, refrigerate the rounds on the baking sheets before baking. Glad you enjoyed!
xoxo Nicole
Thank you, my dear!!! i WILL be making these again soon because i got him some horseradish cheese spread. something for him & Miss Molly (the dog) to eat…
(yes, the dog is GF too….)
Happy Molly days – aka the weekend!!!
THANK YOU! I am 3 weeks into gf eating and sometimes I want to cry over tortillias and not being able to have them. Ritz crackers are next on the list!!!
So, far I have only been eating the things that are naturally gf (fruits and veggies- mostly) but this is the weekend I try to start baking!
Can’t wait to try this recipie!!!
Hi, Jennifer,
Welcome to GF eating (and the blog). C’mon in. The water’s just fine. :)
There is a great GF tortilla recipe in my book, and if you click on the Flour Tortilla link in this post, you can actually find the recipe reprinted with permission by Living Without Magazine in an article that I wrote for their current issue. They’re so easy. I make them multiple times in any given week. Naturally gluten-free foods are great, but they’re not enough. You need choices! Let us know how this weekend’s baking goes!
xoxo Nicole
THANKS SO MUCH! So making this for the weekend! Helloooo dip… meet a GF cracker again!
First off…don’t EVER be embarrassed about how you take your coffee…I can put you to SHAME of that one. I put swiss miss cocoa in my coffee. Every. Day. *hangs head in shame*
Second…I saw a link to Nilla Wafers…we make (well, we USED to make) a cold banana pudding that uses Nilla Wafers…do u think that those would stand up to it? They’re supposed to get all soggy and nom…I’ve just never tried a gf version and I’m nervous… :/
Hi, Jessica,
Okay, you have me beat with Swiss Miss in your coffee. But I will not judge. I will look away politely, as I have asked of you.
You should read the comments on my Nilla Wafers post. People talked a whole lot about the very same banana pudding. They hold up. Proper.
xoxo Nicole
Everything tastes better on a Ritz and I’m about to put the whole damn kitchen sink on a Ritz and smile. I’m going to put so many Ritz crackers in my mouth that I can’t barely breathe. You know what I’m talking about, it gets all dry in there and you’re about to choke – kind of like that party game where you whistle after eating a saltine. Oh Nicole, if I hadn’t found you, my life would be missing something….calories and comfort foods! But I love you for it. And I love you for showing me the light to Better Batter – I’m waitin’ on my first 25lb bag!!!! Boo yah! And when it arrives? Crackers! Crackers for everyone!
Hi, Jayne!
I’m so glad things are going to work out for you with Better Batter. How awesome are they and their financial assistance? The best. Oh, and I totally know what you mean about cotton mouth from stuffing it with Ritz. Stuff away!
xoxo Nicole
Jayne….
my honey agrees… I imagine I’ll have to keep a gallon of water available so that he doesn’t choke on the crumbs (as he stuffs his pie hole full, too!)
Can shortening work for the butter for those of us that are dairy free?
Hi, Tracy,
I have to be honest, I have not tested them with a butter alternative, but I don’t see why they wouldn’t work really well with nonhydrogenated vegetable shortening (not margarine – I hate that stuff, and it is awful for pastry since it will make the pastry spread, something you never want pastry to do). Spectrum makes a good one.
Hope that helps!
xoxo Nicole
SO making these!!
Is it weird to plan a whole meal around a cracker??
Hi, Amanda,
If it’s weird, I wouldn’t know. I’m a lunatic, remember? ;)
xoxo Nicole
what’s a good cheese without a cracker? I agree crackers, a good tortilla are things I miss most.