Photo Credit: The Washington Post
If you’re not familiar with fricos, let us introduce you to your new favorite snack. Crunchy, savory and totally munchable, we’ve been seeing these lacey cheese crisps everywhere. Tanji recently spotted them at her local Central Market, but they’re surprisingly easy to make at home. BTW, H-E-B and some other supermarkets have versions of the same thing.
Fricos involve piling freshly grated cheese like parmesan on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet or in a non-stick skillet. Bake at 400°F or cook over moderately-high heat if using a skillet until the cheese has melted and is beginning to brown around the edges, about 12 minutes in the oven and roughly 1 minute per side in a skillet. While still hot, you can mold them into little bowls for filling with crumbled feta and marinated cherry tomatoes, or form into mini taco shells for an elegant party bite. As the cheese cools, it firms up and becomes delicate and crisp like a cracker.
Serve your fricos alongside bowls of creamy tomato soup, like in this recipe from The Washington Post, or pile them with thinly sliced soppressata or prosciutto like Food & Wine does here. Our favorite way to serve them? Just as they are. The deeply savory, crispy crackers are the perfect snack during cocktail hour.
Photo Credit: Food & Wine Magazine
When making these addictive crisps at home, don’t feel limited by the cheese. While they’re traditionally made with parmesan, any aged cheese will work here. Or even a mix! Experiment with aged cheddar, pecorino, grana padano or even aged gouda. You want a cheese with a low moisture level so it will get brown and crunchy when heated.
Also, don’t feel like you need to keep it to just cheese! Before baking or cooking in a skillet, top the piles of cheese with freshly ground black pepper, a sprinkling or cayenne and chile powder for a Tex-Mex kick, everything bagel mix, or even fresh herbs like sage and rosemary. The possibilities are endless! Next on our list? This Cacio e Pepe version from The New York Times.
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