Easy No Sugar Graham Cracker Recipe – Kid-Approved!

Effortless Graham Crackers From Scratch

There’s nothing better than a classic kids’ snack that can be made healthfully and effortlessly at home without sacrificing satisfaction. And that’s exactly what this no sugar graham cracker recipe is!

For kids with a sweet tooth, it can be challenging to keep their taste buds happy without overindulging their bodies in processed sugar. But when you have simple recipes like this homemade graham cracker recipe that are naturally sweetened, life is a lot healthier and less stressful when your kids ask for a snack.

I had two main goals when creating this no sugar graham cracker recipe: 1) Make it taste like graham crackers, and 2) Keep it simple to make.

It took a few tries to get the recipe to taste like graham crackers. But once I got it right, these healthy homemade graham crackers were an instant hit with both of my kids.

And as for keeping it simple, I knew I wanted this to be a no-chill graham cracker recipe. Because as a busy parent myself, I detest chill times when it comes to any cookie recipe. So this is indeed a no-chill graham cracker recipe 🙂

In fact, you only need about a half hour to whip up these graham crackers, plus bake time. And there are no worries about trying to delicately peel pieces of fragile cookie dough off of your rolling surface.

With these easy graham crackers, you just roll them out on parchment paper, score them and transfer the entire parchment paper to the baking sheet. The hardest part about this recipe is keeping your kids from eating them all up the first day 😀

I get so much satisfaction from recreating a store-bought snack and making it into something guilt-free for parents to feed their kids. Kind of like my famous animal cracker recipe.

There’s just something about those childhood classics we used to eat when we were kids. Those timeless cookie crackers in a box that only a kid would love more than real food. Isn’t it so exciting when we can give our kids a taste of our own childhood in a healthier way? 🙂

What Homemade Graham Crackers Are Good For

What can this no sugar graham cracker recipe be used for? The short answer: Anything you would use regular store-bought graham crackers for!

The primary thought in my mind as I’ve been creating this recipe is how good they will be alongside my homemade marshmallows and homemade chocolate for the perfect refined-sugar-free s’mores on the Fourth of July 😀

Last year around this time, I was still in the process of building this website. I was sending out emails to those interested in exclusive, early access to recipes, and I was lamenting the fact that I did not have enough time to create a completely refined-sugar-free s’more in time for July Fourth.

But in my Fourth of July recipe email, I assured my loyal subscribers that it was my goal to have a complete s’mores recipe in time for the next Fourth of July celebration.

And here we are! With the successful creation of this graham cracker recipe, I now have all of the naturally sweetened elements for s’mores on this website. And I can’t wait to have satisfying, refined-sugar-free s’mores for our own Fourth of July this year!

But let’s not forget that graham crackers have many uses besides just the fourth of July. They are wonderful any time of the year as a basic snack slathered with peanut butter or a treat dipped in chocolate.

You can also use this no sugar graham cracker recipe to crumble up for making graham cracker crusts for pies and cheesecakes.

I also remember loving graham crackers dipped in frosting as a kid. Maybe not the healthiest, but if you use my honey-sweetened buttercream frosting, you can give your kids a treat without the junky ingredients.

But hey, whatever you give your kids to top these with or dip them in, they will be healthier and more satisfied with these fresh-baked graham crackers versus the store-bought version that’s been sitting on the shelf for weeks.

Ingredients

• Butter: Butter makes these graham crackers flavorful and helps them poof up a bit so they aren’t dense and chewy. I like to use Irish grass-fed butter or organic butter.

• Maple Syrup: Maple syrup is the primary natural sweetener in this no sugar graham cracker recipe. I love using maple syrup when I need a lot of sweetness without a lot of added flavor. Make sure to use genuine, Grade A maple syrup.

• Honey: A bit of raw honey adds just a touch of that classic honey flavor associated with graham crackers. Be sure to use real honey.

• All-Purpose Flour: This recipe requires mostly white flour for taste purposes. I know my kids will not touch a 100% whole wheat product, so I use all-purpose, organic, unbleached white flour for the majority of this recipe.

• Whole Wheat Flour: Whole wheat flour is necessary to achieve the proper graham cracker flavor. I use a small amount – just enough to create the flavor but not enough to make it unappealing to my kids.

• Baking Soda: Baking soda gives the graham crackers a bit more rise.

• Salt: Salt helps to bring out the flavor. I use pink Himalayan sea salt.

• Cinnamon: Cinnamon also adds flavor and helps round out the overall classic graham cracker taste.

Instructions

Step 1

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Step 2

Add butter, maple syrup and honey to the bowl of a stand mixer and mix with the beater attachment until fully combined and creamy.

Step 3

Add all remaining ingredients to the bowl and mix on low, gradually increasing speed to medium. Dough will begin rolling into several chunks when it is done.

Step 4

Roll out your Working on a piece of parchment paper the size of your baking sheet, roll out half of your dough to 1/8 inch thickness in a rectangular shape. I highly recommend a rolling pin with thickness guide rings for even rolling. See Equipment for link.

If your dough is sticking to the rolling pin, rub flour all over your rolling pin to lightly coat it. This will prevent sticking.to 1/2 inch thickness.

Step 5

Using your pizza cutter and a measuring guide (I use my parchment paper box), cut lines in your dough horizontally and vertically to make graham cracker rectangles.

Poke each rectangle with a fork in several places to prevent bubbling.

Step 6

Transfer your entire piece of parchment paper with the dough on it to your baking sheet.

Step 7

Bake for 14 minutes, switching your baking sheets around halfway through.

Begin checking for doneness at 12 minutes. Graham crackers will be golden and just starting to brown on the outer edges when done.

Step 8

Allow to cool completely on the baking sheet. You can break apart the rectangles of crackers once they are cool enough to handle to speed up the cooling process.

Step 9

Serve with homemade naturally sweetened marshmallows and chocolate for the perfect refined-sugar-free s’mores.

Step 10

Store leftovers in an airtight container on the counter for up to five days or in the fridge for up to two weeks.

Substitutions & Tips

• If you want a strong honey flavor in these graham crackers, use 170 grams of honey and 25 grams of maple syrup. Additionally, reduce your whole wheat flour to 30 grams and add in 1 1/2 tsp milk at the end.

• If you use whole wheat flour as your majority or the entire type of flour instead of white, you will have a dryer dough and will need to add milk in 1 tsp increments to soften and hydrate the dough until it is easy to work with.

• I highly recommend using a rolling pin with thickness guide rings to roll out your dough evenly and thin enough. I use this rolling pin that comes with different thickness rings and it has been a life-saver when it comes to rolling out these graham crackers, my animal crackers and cut-out cookies.

• If you are making this no sugar graham cracker recipe to make s’mores, make sure you also check out my refined-sugar-free recipes for homemade marshmallows and homemade chocolate.