Parmesan Cheese Crisps

Here's how I used my new Silpat baking mats for the first time:

All I used was parmesan cheese, a silpat mat (on a baking sheet), and an oven (preheated to 375 degrees).

I started by grating some parmesan cheese - 6 tablespoons per batch. Pre-grated cheese will still work (not the stuff in the green can made by Kraft but the stuff from the cheese section of your grocery store) but it's more economical to buy a block and grate it yourself.

And here's the lovely Silpat. It's made from silicone and it's awesome because look - I'm using it to bake some cheese. Can you even imagine doing that straight on a naked cookie sheet?

I placed about 1 tablespoon of cheese on the mat and spread it around to make a flat circle and repeated until there were six discs of cheese. Then I put it in the oven and let it bake for about 8 minutes until it started to brown a bit. I made sure to babysit the cheese crisps, checking on them often to make sure they weren't burning.

I immediately peeled them off of the mat and placed the crisps on a serving platter. They start to harden rather quickly so if you want to curl them around the handle of a wooden spoon, you should do that right away. However, I served them as little chips.

And enjoy! The crisps should be light and crunchy and taste like Cheez-Its, but better.