Animal Crackers Recipe (Egg Free)

Animal crackers served with blackberries and raspberries.

5 from 41 votes

This animal crackers recipe is so simple to make with only 6 ingredients you likely already have on hand! They are egg-free and nut-free and lightly sweetened with maple syrup for a crunchy treat you won't be able to stop snacking on!

Prep Time20

Cook Time10

Chill Time1

Total Time1 30

Course: Snack

Cuisine: American

Servings: servings (makes about 70 crackers)

Author: Lily Payen

Ingredients

6 tbsp unsalted butter softened to room temperature
¼ cup pure maple syrup
½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp vanilla extract
¼ tsp salt
1 ½ cups all purpose flour

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Add the softened butter and maple syrup to a bowl and use an electric hand mixer or stand mixer to cream them together on high speed until smooth, about 1 to 2 minutes. Make sure that the butter is fully softened to room temperature and that you can easily put a dent in it if you press your finger into it.
Add the ground cinnamon, vanilla, and salt to the bowl and mix on medium speed until incorporated, about 1 minute.
Add in the flour and mix on low speed until it forms a dough. It may seem crumbly at first, but it will form into a soft dough. Scrape down the sides as needed.
Shape the dough into a disk and wrap it tightly in plastic wrap. Place the dough in the fridge to allow the dough to chill for at least 1 hour or overnight. This step is important and it will allow the flour time to hydrate and make it easier to roll out. *Note: If you're in a pinch, you can place the dough in the freezer for 15 minutes.
After at least an hour, place the chilled dough on the counter to allow it to slightly soften. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Sprinkle 1 to 2 tablespoons of flour on a surface or sheet of parchment paper and place the dough on top. Flour a rolling pin and roll the dough out until it is about 1/4 to 1/8 of an inch thick. Use animal cracker-shaped cookie cutters (or any mini cookie cutter) to cut out shapes from the dough.
Transfer the shape cutouts to a parchment paper-lined pan. Gather the scraps and reroll them out to cut out more shapes from the dough until all of the dough is used. Add additional flour on the surface as needed to prevent the dough from sticking. I was able to make two trays full of mini crackers using this dough.
Bake the crackers for 7 to 10 minutes until the edges are lightly golden brown. Keep a very close eye on the crackers as they can burn easily. Allow the crackers to cool completely before removing them from the pan.

Notes

- If the dough seems crumbly after adding in the flour and mixing on low speed, add in 1 to 2 tablespoons of cold water and continue mixing on low speed until it moistens and forms into a dough.
- If the dough still seems sticky when you are rolling it out, add a little more flour to the surface/rolling pin to prevent it from sticking, or roll it out between two sheets of parchment paper.
- I like to use these spring button animal cracker cutters because they make it so easy to cut out the cracker shapes! The spring button helps the dough shapes pop right out without distorting their shape.
- Make sure to let the crackers cool completely before serving. They will be soft at first right out of the oven but will firm up as they cool.
- Make sure that your butter is softened to room temperature beforehand. Cutting butter up into cubes will help it come to room temperature quickly. Using cold butter may result in the mixture curdling, so make sure to let it fully soften.

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