Saturday Shout-Out: Water Wheel Crackers

As the bringer of hot dinner in my house, I obviously enjoy cooking and baking. But sometimes, I just don't want to do it.

Like when my two boys are completely over scheduled. We actually had a week with each of these activities: drama club, math club, school newspaper, baseball and basketball practices, basketball games for each kid, a math competition and a birthday party. Next week we add a second baseball practice for each boy (Ack!)

Phew. Needless to say, I get a little bit exhausted some nights. Enter the cheese-and-cracker-dinner. We do this pretty often, and sometimes add carrots, cucumbers and humus to the menu. But what really ramps up these quick and easy dinners are the lovely Water Wheel wafers and cheese twists.

The Australian makers of wafers and cheese twists asked me to test out their line of crackers and I have to say: We. Are. Addicted.

The airy and crisp wafers are mild in flavor and very thin, so that you can actually taste whatever you pair them with. The cheese twists (parmesan or cheddar) are a sour dough base with bits of cheese baked in, which is a nice spin on traditional orange cheddar twists. They are delicious with prosciutto wrapped around them or broken up and sprinkled on top of soup.

I also really like the corn wafers with a bowl of Roasted Butternut Squash Soup (above.)

Confession: I hid the crackers away so that my kids would not devour them, but once the crazy in our lives jumped into overdrive, they became a lifesaver, especially during rushed dinners like this one:

I paired Tuscan Style Water Wheel wafers and parmesan twists with a New Year's Eve antipasto platter. All the crackers were gone by midnight!

I took a tray of Original Wafers, cheese and mini salami to a neighborhood gathering and the plate was empty long before the party ended.

And I'm pretty sure we'll be seeing these crisps during our Super Bowl party, too.

Sam, my youngest, likes to fill a plate with any flavor wafer (Sesame & Poppy Seed anyone?) and eat them for a snack. He can finish a box by himself in two days. Luckily we have a Fresh Market in town, so I'm able to restock pretty easily. You can also order the wafers and twists online at Amazon.com or igourmet.com.

If you decide to give Water Wheel wafers or cheese twists a try, let us know how you like them – and how you use them!