what are Graham crackers?
#189170 - 06/26/05 04:33 AM
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susieannah
Reged: 02/13/05
Posts: 177
Loc: sussex, england
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I live in the UK and we dont have Graham crackers what exactly are they, I was hoping I might be able to find something similar here! I saw the recipe for chocolate pie and I WANT SOME!!!!!
Also what are FF saltines?
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I think Grahams crackers are basically Digestive Biscuits. And FF saltines = fat-free saltines. I just get any crackers I feel like that are trigger free and low in fat. Tescos's Sesame and Poppy seed thins are my current faves!  So yummy. I eat them with nothing on top!
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I always wondered what digestive biscuits were! Sounds like they are similar to Graham crackers indeed. Here's a link to a company in the US that makes them: http://www.kelloggs.com/keebler/products/grahams.html
They are great for pie crusts and just for snacks.
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This is from this thread started in February of this year:
Quote:
Then I started wondering what is "graham flour" anyhow? And I found this Website that claims graham flour is a type of whole wheat flour.
I think we need to get Heather in on this because she lists "graham crackers" as one of the things to eat when you can't eat anything, so I must be misunderstanding something about how graham flour is made.
I apologize for sort of hijacking your post, but I haven't eaten a graham cracker since I posted this and I'd really like some reassurance on this point.
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[Research tells us fourteen out of any ten individuals likes chocolate. - Sandra Boynton]
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What is graham flour?
Most Americans fondly recall eating graham crackers with milk as a childhood snack. Graham crackers are made from graham flour, but what is graham flour?
Graham flour is a form of whole wheat flour. It is named for Sylvester Graham, a forerunner of the health food movement. Graham developed this form of flour in the 1830s in hopes of diverting people away from the less healthy refined white flour. His Graham hotels promoted vegetarian meals and unseasoned foods, being of the belief that condiments would encourage the imbibing of alcohol.
To make graham flour, the endosperm of winter wheat is finely ground. The bran and germ layers are returned and mixed in, resulting in a coarse, brown flour with a nutty and slightly sweet flavor. Today, some commercial granaries remove much of the wheat germ to prolong the shelf life of the flour. The germ contains oil that accelerates rancidity. Graham flour is unrefined and unbleached.
Although the terms graham flour and whole wheat flour are often used interchangeably, there is a difference. Graham flour is a slightly coarser grind than whole wheat flour.
Graham cracker history
Well-known by 1882, graham crackers are a flat, crisp cookie made with graham flour and typically sweetened with honey. They were created in the 1830's by Sylvester Graham who promoted the crackers as a health food. Along with graham crackers and pie crusts, granola and Grape NutsŪ cereal are also made with graham flour.
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Microscopic Colitis, IBS-A, GERD, Hiatal Hernia
Bethany, Ontario, Canada
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This is very interesting. It seems though that HFCS is in all Graham cracker brands now anyway so I guess it doesn't matter. (cynically said) 
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IBS-A for 20 years with terrible bloating and gas. On the diet since April 2004. Remember this from Heather's information pages:
"You absolutely must eat insoluble fiber foods, and as much as safely possible, but within the IBS dietary guidelines. Treat insoluble fiber foods with suitable caution, and you'll be able to enjoy a wide variety of them, in very healthy quantities, without problem." Please eat IF foods!
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I don't know if it helps any, either. The info you found says pretty much what the info I found says: graham flour is a form of whole wheat flour. I must be missing something, since it's on Heather's WTEWYCEA diet. I just wish I knew what. Thanks, Beth.
BTW, I had no idea that Grape Nuts were made with graham flour. If we can eat graham crackers safely, does that mean we can eat Grape Nuts, too? I'm so confused. 
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[Research tells us fourteen out of any ten individuals likes chocolate. - Sandra Boynton]
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Quote:
This is very interesting. It seems though that HFCS is in all Graham cracker brands now anyway so I guess it doesn't matter. (cynically said)
Good point. I guess at this point it's mostly intellectual curiousity, but it nags at me for some reason. Maybe Heather will chime in and I can stop worrying about it.
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[Research tells us fourteen out of any ten individuals likes chocolate. - Sandra Boynton]
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Here's a link to a recipe that lets you make your own Graham Crackers. It uses Whole Wheat flour, so if you're sensitive to Whole Wheat you should approach with caution. LittleMinnie mentioned on the Diet Board that you can use Ginger Snaps for pie crusts, too, so if you get those where you are, you could try them.
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[Research tells us fourteen out of any ten individuals likes chocolate. - Sandra Boynton]
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I found this after I posted my other reply: Keebler Grahams. I don't see HFCS in there - although it does refer to "graham flour" as "whole wheat flour". Sigh.
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[Research tells us fourteen out of any ten individuals likes chocolate. - Sandra Boynton]
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I did look at all the brands at my store the other day. I started with the low fat ones and perhaps I ended up not picking up every box.
Ok I looked on my grocery order site and found out:
the keebler premade crust is without HFCS but is too fatty. The keebler regular grahams but not honey are ok. Honey maid brand has HFCS. My store brand also has HFCS. I think all/most of the other Keebler grahams have it. I know reduced fat did because I did not buy it (I bought ginger snaps instead). Nabisco has it. I don't know if all flavors of Nabisco do though.
Conclusion: Keebler regular grahams are ok.
As to the whole wheat thing: it lists wheat flour as the first ingredient, then down the list it mentions graham flour so that would make it safe. But it has 130 cals and 3.5 grams of fat per serving. That means 24% fat.
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IBS-A for 20 years with terrible bloating and gas. On the diet since April 2004. Remember this from Heather's information pages:
"You absolutely must eat insoluble fiber foods, and as much as safely possible, but within the IBS dietary guidelines. Treat insoluble fiber foods with suitable caution, and you'll be able to enjoy a wide variety of them, in very healthy quantities, without problem." Please eat IF foods!
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Thanks for the info. The whole wheat further down the list should make it IBS-safe, but I tend to be very sensitive to whole wheat. On the other hand, I took another look at the label and a serving has less than 1 gram of any kind of fiber, so how bad could it be? (Famous last words.) On the other hand, I handle fat really well, so the 24% isn't a problem for me. Maybe I'll give the Keebler plain ones a try. I do miss graham crackers.
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[Research tells us fourteen out of any ten individuals likes chocolate. - Sandra Boynton]
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...in that if you grind them, it minimises the IF so the SF is more important (and like the crackers you just have to watch the fat)?
I know that although wholegrain (that nutty kind with bits in) bread KILLS me, I can often get away with brown (but not bitty) bread as the grains are all ground up.
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