We were having company over for an Italian dinner of spaghetti and meatballs, and I wanted to add something “homemade” to my antipasto platter that wouldn’t require a lot of time or be too expensive. I remembered seeing this “Ritz Cracker” recipe on several Facebook posts so I decided to make them, see how they tasted, and how much they cost.
WARNING…You WILL NOT be able to eat just one!
The recipe I saw said to toss all the ingredients together and bake for 15 minutes. After making these once, I decided I’d make them just a little different the next time…for a more consistent coating.
SPICY RITZ CRACKERS –
Ingredients:
- 1 stick melted butter
- 1 packet Hidden Valley (or store brand) Ranch dressing mix
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 tablespoon red pepper flakes
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 box Ritz (or store brand) crackers *you can also use saltine crackers or Oyster crackers
Directions:
You can simply toss everything together and bake at 300 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes or for a more even coating, and less broken crackers…
Place crackers evenly on cookie/baking sheets. Mix ranch mix, grated parmesan, red pepper flakes and garlic powder in small bowl. Brush or drizzle melted butter over crackers and then sprinkle ranch mixture over crackers (I took my fingers and pressed in the mix a bit). Bake at 300 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes.
These crackers did make a tasty addition to my antipasto platter…
I used these wrapped crackers as our place setting cards and then the guests could take them home…
These crackers are seriously good and very hard to not keep eating once you start! These would make easy gifts during the holidays wrapped in Saran Wrap, packaged in small boxes or tins, or small paper bags with a ribbon.
There’s 120 crackers in a Ritz box which I found on sale for $2.00. The Hidden Valley Ranch dressing mix can be expensive but I saved money by buying the 4 pack. For 120 crackers, I spent $4.50.
Tammy you can purchase a fairly large container of the Hidden Valley dry dressing mix at SAMs for pennies. Not really pennies but at a great savings. I use it a lot in several recipes.
Thanks Linda! I’ll have to load up on it then the next time I’m there…cause I’m going to need a lot! Have personally eaten around 80 of these crackers since Sunday.
Easier way to coat crackers is to pour melted butter and dry ranch with other seasonings into a gallon size Ziploc . Shake to coat being careful not to break crackers. Then place on cookie sheet and bake. Time and work saver.