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If the name of a food could elicit a memory, seeing the name “graham cracker” in this article might bring memories of tiny hands squabbling over burnt marshmallows around a bonfire, a sliver of chocolate in the other fist. Graham crackers have uses beyond sticky campfire desserts, though, and often make appearances as pie crust or the sweet breading on fried chicken. For those following a gluten-free diet, the memories of campfire s’mores and broken graham cracker crusts may look a little different.
Traditional graham crackers are not gluten-free, as they typically contain some type of wheat-based flour, whether that’s graham flour, white flour mixed with wheat germ, or plain old wheat flour. Graham crackers also contain honey, vanilla extract, and cinnamon to give them that classic taste, but those ingredients aren’t necessarily the problem here. Whichever way you slice it, big-name graham cracker brands like Honey Maid and Kellogg’s contain that very small, very life-threatening ingredient that makes the golden rectangles a no-go for our gluten-free friends.
Graham crackers have always contained gluten
Even though wheat flour has become a universally used substitute for graham flour in graham crackers, it still demonstrates that nearly 200 years later, the graham cracker is still off limits for those sticking to gluten-free. But all hope is not lost, since there are plenty of modern brands that make gluten-free varieties of those honeyed graham crackers. Pamela’s Gluten-Free Honey Graham Crackers, Kinnikinnick’s S’moreables Graham Crackers, Annie’s, and Schär are just a few of the big-name brands that offer gluten-free graham crackers and graham cracker cookies. You could also try making your own gluten-free graham crackers at home and use that newly mixed graham crumble mix as the base for a chocolate and salted caramel gluten-free cheesecake pot.
Graham crackers have a wild origin story that links them back to Presbyterian minister Sylvester Graham, who created the flaky sheets as a health food. The original recipe from 1829 was made with graham flour, a type of flour known for its coarser texture made from dehulled wheat kernels. The flour was created by none other than Sylvester Graham himself, hence the name, and became a popular “healthy” ingredient for baked goods, puddings, bread, and more. These days, it’s a little harder to get your hands on if you’re trying to make graham crackers or graham bread at home, but you’ll still see it in those well-known graham cracker brands.
