Easy Swedish Crispbread (Knäckebröd)

Thin, crisp and so easy to make from scratch, this traditional recipe for rye Swedish Crispbread (Knäckebröd) is sure to become a regular part of your baking rotation. These crispbreads are simple, delicious and full of good things like dark rye flour and old-fashioned rolled oats...a serious step up from store bought rye crackers!

Fortunately it's an easy and fun baking project take on an in an afternoon. Keep reading for step-by-step instructions for making Swedish Crispbread (Knäckebröd) at home!

Why This Recipe Works

• The dough contains only simple, wholesome ingredients and rolls out incredibly easily.
• The crispbreads are (as the name suggests) really light and crisp in texture.
• They taste subtly of rye flour and oats and make the perfect backdrop for a variety of different toppings.

The Ingredients

• All purpose flour, rye flour and old-fashioned rolled oats form the hearty base of this recipe.
• Sugar provides just a touch of sweetness and helps the knäckebröd become golden brown in the oven.
• Instant yeast serves as the leavener and helps the crispbread achieve a light and crisp texture. Be sure to look for instant yeast rather than active dry as they each behave very differently in a recipe (see the FAQ section below for more information on the difference between instant and active dry yeast, plus information about substitutions).
• There is salt in the dough itself, and there is also flaky sea salt sprinkled on top for baking. Both help highlight the flavors of the rye and oats.
• Milk and melted butter bring moisture and richness to the recipe.

The Equipment

• Parchment paper
• 2 rimmed baking sheets
• Regular rolling pin
• Notched rolling pin (kruskavel) OR a dinner fork
• Pizza wheel
• 1 inch diameter round cookie cutter
• Pastry or basting brush
• Wire cooling rack

How to Make This Recipe

• Begin by whisking the rye flour, all purpose flour, oats, yeast, salt and sugar together in a medium bowl.
• Add the milk and cooled melted butter. Mix with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon until the dough is shaggy in appearance and getting difficult to stir.
• Using your hands, knead the dough for a few minutes inside the bowl, picking up any loose flour on the bottom of the bowl, until the dough comes together into a ball.

• Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it rise at room temperature for an hour.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Lay a piece of parchment paper on a work surface. Divide the dough into 6 equal pieces and pat one of the pieces into a round disc and lay it in the center of the parchment. Keep the other 5 pieces in the bowl and cover again with plastic wrap.
• Roll the disk of dough out using a regular rolling pin until it is as thin as you can get it and about 7 or 8 inches in diameter. Trim the edges with a pizza wheel to create a neat circle shape.

• Switch to a notched rolling pin (kruskavel) or a fork. Either roll over the dough a few times with the kruskavel or poke all over with the fork. Using a round cookie cutter that is about an inch in diamter, cut a hole out of the center of the crispbread. Lay the round piece of dough that came out of the hole next to the piece of crispbread on the parchment.

• Brush the crispbread with melted butter and sprinkle with flaky sea salt. Transfer to the oven and bake until golden brown and crispy, about 12-15 minutes. Remove from the oven and transfer to a wire cooling rack to cool completely. Repeat with remaining pieces of dough.

Expert Tips

• Roll the dough directly on a piece of parchment paper. This eliminates the need to add any additional flour or transfer the dough round from the counter to a baking pan. It also makes it easier to roll the crispbread really, really thin. If you are not already doing so, it's worth checking out your local bakery supply store for a large box of baking parchment paper. It is so much more affordable that buying a small box of it at the grocery store.
• Roll your crispbread thin. PAPER thin. When you think it's thin enough, keep rolling. You will get a much more crisp final product when you take the time to roll it out as thin as you possibly can. You can also expect your crispbread to expand slightly when baked so it will not be quite as thin as when it went into the oven.
• Use a pizza wheel to even out the edges if necessary. Don't worry if your crispbread is more amoeba-shaped than round. Simply use a pizza wheel to even out the edges. Or leave it amoeba-shaped! That's rustic and charming, too. The more you make your own knäckebröd at home, the better you will become at rolling out the dough.
• Cut a hole in the center of your crispbread using a round cookie cutter. Not just because it's charming and traditional, but also because the center is the last part of the knäckebröd to crisp up. Creating that hole in the center creates extra edges and helps prevent the dreaded soggy crispbread. Go ahead and bake up the little rounds along side the larger piece of crispbread, just like you might make donut holes out of dough cut from the center of a donut.
• Brush the crispbread with butter and sprinkle on some flaky sea salt before baking. This helps with browning and adds incredible flavor.
• Bake until golden brown and crisp. DO NOT remove your knäckebröd from the oven too soon. This leads to soggy crispbread. You want to make sure it is crispy all the way through.
• Allow the crispbread to cool completely on a wire rack prior to storing. Moisture is the enemy of good crispbread. Make sure that it is thoroughly cooled before placing in an airtight container.

FAQs

What to Serve on Crispbread

Crispbread makes an excellent base for just about anything and everything, and quite honestly, nothing quite beats a generous smear of good butter. But there are many toppings beyond butter to consider as well. For breakfast, think butter and sliced hard-boiled egg, or maybe cream cheese and a homemade fruit compote or store-bought jam. For lunch, how about a piece of crispbread piled high with creamy chickpea salad or egg salad? It makes a very nice partner for gravlax (with a little mustard sauce drizzled over the top. And as an easy and delicious accompaniment to your Nordic supper, serve it buttered along side a cozy soup or stew. It's perfect for dipping.

While there are many obvious ways to use crispbread, there a few not so obvious but popular ways to eat this crunchy bread in Scandinavia:

• Crushed up and sprinkled on yogurt with fruit for breakfast;
• Covered with cheese and broiled to make crispy little toasts;
• Crispbread pizza! Top your knäckebröd with a few favorite ingredients and a sprinkling of cheese and pop it into a 350 degree oven to heat through. Ingenious!

Related Recipes

Looking for more tasty Scandinavian crispbreads or flatbreads? Give these a try!

Ready to try this Rye and Oat Crispbread for yourself? Please do and let me know how it goes in the comments below. Honestly, there is something very meditative and satisfying about making crispbread at home. I hope you enjoy the process of baking it (and eating it) as much as I do.

Easy Swedish Crispbread (Knäckebröd)

A simple recipe for Swedish Crispbread (Knäckebröd) featuring dark rye flour and oats.  A delicious and nutritious accompaniment to snacks and meals at any time of day!

5 from 4 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Bread

Cuisine: Nordic, Scandinavian, Swedish

Keyword: crispbread recipe, homemade crackers, homemade crispbread, Knäckebröd

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes minutes

rest: 1 hour hour

Total Time: 30 minutes minutes

Servings: 6 crispbreads

Calories: 228kcal

Author: Kristi

Ingredients

• ▢ 1 cup dark rye flour
• ▢ 1 cup all purpose flour
• ▢ ½ cup rolled oats
• ▢ ½ teaspoon fine salt
• ▢ 1 teaspoon sugar
• ▢ 2 teaspoons instant dry yeast
• ▢ ¾ cup milk
• ▢ 2 tablespoons unsalted butter melted and cooled, plus more melted butter for brushing
• ▢ Large sea salt crystals for sprinkling such as Maldon

Instructions

• Whisk flours, oats, salt, sugar and yeast together in a large bowl.  Stir in milk and butter. Knead briefly in the bowl with your hands until the dough comes together (dough will be quite stiff and a bit sticky).  Cover and let rise at room temperature for 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Divide dough into 6 equal pieces and cover with plastic wrap. Working with one piece of dough at a time, roll into a thin round on a sheet of parchment paper using a traditional rolling pin.  
• Roll with a kruskavel a few times or poke all over with a skewer or fork. Cut a 1 inch hole out of the center using a biscuit cutter. Set the round cut out piece of dough next to the larger crispbread.  Brush both with butter and sprinkle with sea salt crystals.
• Transfer parchment paper to a baking sheet. Bake until golden brown and crispy, about 12-15 minutes.  Transfer to a wire rack to cool. Repeat with remaining pieces of dough.

Video

Notes

Roll your crispbread thin. PAPER thin. When you think it's thin enough, keep rolling. You will get a much more crisp final product when you take the time to roll it out as thin as you possibly can. You can also expect your crispbread to expand slightly when baked so it will not be quite as thin as when it went into the oven.

Bake until golden brown and crisp. DO NOT remove your knäckebröd from the oven too soon. This leads to soggy crispbread. You want to make sure it is crispy all the way through.

Allow the crispbread to cool completely on a wire rack prior to storing. Moisture is the enemy of good crispbread. Make sure that it is thoroughly cooled before placing in an airtight container.

Store the crispbread in an airtight container at room temperature for up to two weeks.

 

Nutrition

Calories: 228kcal | Carbohydrates: 37g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 14mg | Sodium: 209mg | Potassium: 195mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 166IU | Vitamin C: 0.01mg | Calcium: 51mg | Iron: 2mg

If you loved this recipe, give it a star review! Also, snap a picture of your Swedish Crispbread (Knäckebröd) and share it with me on Instagram using the hashtag #truenorthkitchen and tagging me @true_north_kitchen.