We Style-Examined 7 Graham Crackers—Right here Are Our Favorites

Graham crackers have been a mainstay of the American pantry since 1829, when Sylvester Graham, a Presbyterian minister, got here up with the eponymous entire wheat cracker. The unique crackers had been with out fats, sugar, and salt, and the cardboard-like concoction was meant to discourage immoral ideas—and really, very totally different from the sweetened graham crackers we all know and love at the moment, fortunately for us. They’re important in s’mores and, when crumbled and tossed with butter, make wonderful crusts for cheesecakes and dessert bars. Additionally they make an awesome snack (one which our ultramarathoning editor, Rochelle, swears by for carbo-loading). However not all graham crackers are made the identical. 

To search out the easiest graham crackers, we tasted seven totally different manufacturers you’re more likely to discover on-line or at your native grocery store. We sampled every with out understanding which graham cracker was which, and after our editors tasted their method by means of seven totally different crackers, we tabulated the outcomes and topped an total winner we’d be completely satisfied to convey to our personal campfires, plus one different worthy contender.

The Standards

A great graham cracker ought to have a touch of earthiness from entire wheat flour; it ought to style comparatively healthful, with out reminding you of sawdust or cardboard. It must be properly crisp and durable, however not so robust that it’s troublesome to interrupt simply along with your enamel. There must be a refined sweetness; notes of honey, molasses, or vanilla are welcome, however shouldn’t be overpowering. Graham crackers must be simply thick sufficient to sandwich a s’extra, however not so thick that they’re unattainable to chunk into.

The Contenders

• 365 Natural Honey Graham Crackers
• Annie’s Natural Graham Crackers
• Bowl and Basket Sugar Honey Graham Crackers
• Favourite Day Honey Flavored Graham Crackers
• Honey Maid Graham Crackers
• Nabisco Grahams Unique
• Wegman’s Honey Graham Crackers

General Winner

Nabisco Grahams Unique

Our editorial director, Daniel, thought these tasted “basic,” and described them as “ethereal and crisp.” Equally, our affiliate editorial director, Megan, thought these had a “stable graham cracker texture” and had been “properly crispy.”  Our senior social media editor, Kelli, detected a “trace of warming spices,” which seemingly got here from the molasses. Although Megan discovered them barely bland, she appreciated that they weren’t too candy. “It’s tremendous! It wants marshmallows and chocolate,” she wrote. However then once more, don’t all graham crackers?

Runner Up

Favourite Day Honey Flavored Graham Crackers

Our editors loved the honeyed notes of those crackers; Daniel as soon as once more thought these tasted “basic.” Although Kelli loved the flavour of those crackers, she discovered them a bit too crumbly: “I took a chunk and the entire cracker disintegrated onto my shirt.” Different tasters, nonetheless, favored their crispiness.

In Conclusion

Aside from one model, which tasted stale and had a burnt aftertaste, a lot of the graham crackers we tried had been fairly good. Our winner, Nabisco Traditional Grahams, was the one model we tried that didn’t include honey; the crackers are as a substitute sweetened with each sugar and molasses. All different manufacturers contained sugar and honey and/or molasses.

As a result of graham crackers are often a vessel or an accompaniment for different sweets—both as a crust or a car for s’mores—the standard of the cracker you utilize will not be as vital as the standard of the elements you pair with them, resembling your pie filling or chocolate and marshmallows for s’mores. In the event you’re planning on cooking or baking with graham crackers, you’re more likely to be happy with whichever model you select. In the event you plan on consuming the crackers on their very own, although, you may want a extra flavorful cracker to snack on, like our winners, Nabisco Traditional Grahams and Favourite Day Honey Flavored Graham Crackers.

Our Testing Methodology

All style checks are performed with manufacturers fully hidden and with out dialogue. Tasters style samples in random order. For instance, taster A could style pattern one first, whereas taster B will style pattern six first. That is to stop palate fatigue from unfairly giving anybody pattern a bonus. Tasters are requested to fill out tasting sheets rating the samples for numerous standards. All information is tabulated and outcomes are calculated with no editorial enter in an effort to give us probably the most neutral illustration potential.