Sourdough Crackers (with sourdough discard)

Sourdough Crackers are a great addition for a cheese plate, have that perfect crack and are the best way to use discarded sourdough starter.

Why make this recipe

• These sourdough crackers will be the star at Thanksgiving parties and Christmas dinner! They are amazing with dips or by themselves and are a great improvement to your holiday cheese table.

• It's way cheaper than store-bought gourmet crackers!

• If you’re looking for a homemade gift, these crackers make an excellent present for your foodie friends.

• You can easily customize this recipe by adding your favorite flavors to it!

What is sourdough discard and what to do with it

Sourdough discard is the amount of sourdough starter you get rid of before you feed it.

When you feed your starter, you need to give it enough food, which is its weigh in flour and water. If you don’t discard half of it, soon it won’t fit in a jar (if you, like me, don’t bake bread every day).

I don’t keep a small sourdough starter, and that gives me A LOT OF discard to work with. I’m not interested in keeping a smaller one because truthfully, I love adding sourdough to everything, and I’m always creating a new recipe with it!

If you’re looking for more sourdough discard recipes, vegan sourdough pancakes and sourdough discard tortillas are my most popular sourdough discard recipes!

How to store sourdough discard

Sometimes you don’t have enough, sometimes you just don’t have the time to use it right now. But don’t throw out your sourdough discard! It’s super simple to store it for a later use.

When separating half of your sourdough starter RIGHT BEFORE feeding, place the discard in a clean glass jar with a lid. I keep mine inside the fridge until I have enough or am ready to use it.

Ingredient and substitutions

Flour. You can make this recipe using whole wheat only, or all-purpose flour only.

Milk. You can use dairy or any plant-based milk.

Sourdough starter. I use sourdough discard, but both discard and active sourdough work for this recipe.

Rolled oats. I prefer to use rolled oats for the appearance, but quick oats are just as good.

Baking soda. Don’t forget the baking soda: the ingredient is responsible for the dough to rise on the first bake.

Pumpkin puree. Can be substituted for unsweetened apple sauce, or Greek yogurt.

All spices can be substituted for your favorite combination, or even omitted completely (you'll lose flavor if leaving them out, though). Same for pecans (chopped almonds, walnuts and hazelnuts can be used), dried cranberries (you can try dried apricots or even coconut flakes), and sunflower seeds (try using pumpkin seeds).

How to make them

Those crackers only look hard! I bet you’ll get an amazing gourmet cracker following all the steps and tips here - I even made a video for you to really get it right on your first try.

1. Make the dough.

• In a large bowl, mix milk, sourdough starter and pumpkin puree. Add brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, salt and thyme and mix to combine. Add the sunflower seeds, chopped pecans and dried cranberries and mix until incorporated into the batter.
• In a medium bowl, mix both the all-purpose and whole wheat flours, rolled oats and baking soda.
• Add the flour mixture on the batter and stir until everything is well combined.

2. First bake. Preheat your oven to 350°F. Distribute all the batter evenly into the lined loaf pan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until you insert a toothpick into the middle and it comes out clean.

3. Cooling and freezing. Let the loaf cool completely before wrapping it with plastic wrap. Freeze for 40 minutes to 1 hour. If you freeze it for longer than 2 hours, let it thaw for 40 minutes to 1 hour before cutting. If the middle is totally frozen, it’s harder to slice the cracker.

4. Slice it. Unwrap your loaf. With a bread knife or any serrated knife, slice the loaf as thinly as you can. Aim for 2mm slices.

5. Second bake. Preheat you oven to 250°F. Place the slices on a baking sheet. Line with parchment paper just to prevent any browning at the bottom. Bake your sourdough crackers for 50 minutes, flipping each cracker after 25 minutes.

Let them cool completely before serving. They will get harder as they cool, so don’t worry if they’re still a bit soft when out of the oven!

Tips for success

• Don't try to finish it in one day if you are in a rush! This sourdough cracker recipe is easy, BUT it can be a little time-consuming to make. You can start in one day and finish the morning after and that’s totally ok - I did it and that did not mess up the recipe, so don’t worry about that.

• Use sourdough starter or discard. These crackers are made with sourdough discard, but you can make it with a fed starter. It won’t really make a difference, as you mix everything together and bake it straight away.

• Use a sharp bread knife for cutting these crackers. A sharp knife will make your life much easier! You can see in the video how I struggle to cut the slices - that was not a sharp bread knife. I prefer using a bread knife for this. I tried with a super sharp chef’s knife and almost cut my hand badly - please don’t try it, especially if you’re a bit clumsy like me.

• The slices must be thin! Aim for about 2mm thick - you can see the thickness in the video and photos below. If you cut them too thick, they won’t get as crispy as store-bought ones.

• Don’t try cutting a completely frozen loaf. If you freeze your loaf for over 2 hours (if you do it for an entire day like I did), let it thaw for at least 1 hour before cutting or it will be super hard. Don’t skip the freezing process, or it will be harder to get thin slices.

• Yes, you need to bake them for 50 minutes the second time you do it. After 25 minutes, it’s really good to flip every single one so they bake and crisp evenly and don’t burn on the bottom. I bake one batch without doing it and noticed a significant difference.

How to get crispy crackers

Having problems to get crispy sourdough crackers? let’s recheck if you’re doing all the steps for them to have that so wanted crack:

• Cut thin slices - to thick, and they won’t get crispy!
• Flip them over after 25 minutes when baking for the second time.
• Do not add more liquid than the recipe calls for.
• Use a 100% hydration sourdough starter.

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How to serve

These crackers are a great way to improve a cheese table. They are packed with Thanksgiving and Christmas flavors, so adding them to these holidays is a must.

Serve them with cheese, butter, or your favorite jam for a delicious breakfast or even as a middle day snack!

Storing and freezing

As soon as they cool, store them into an airtight container away from sunlight and any heat source. They will keep crispy for about 1 to 2 weeks. But they won’t last that long, especially if you have guests.

You can freeze the loaf for up to 1 month. I don’t recommend freezing it for longer because the ingredients will start to lose flavor, and you’ll get a less flavorful cracker.

More recipes using discarded sourdough starter

Easy Sourdough Pie Crust
Pumpkin Pancakes