oh doug. he’s the neediest entity in my life. he’s all bubbly when it’s warm, all sad and frumpy if it’s too cold. he demands feeding once, if not twice a day. he likes to be taken out, and can’t be left alone too long.
doug is my sourdough starter, but if he sounds like a pet, you wouldn’t be too far off (fun fact: the name comes from ‘dough’, but with the ‘h’ dropped. other contenders included ‘dunior’ and ‘jane dough’).
i, like many sourdough bakers before me, accumulate a ton of sourdough discard from daily feedings — aka naturally fermented dough that can’t be used to bake sourdough bread anymore. throwing away massive quantities of flour seemed wasteful and unnatural to me, so i went in search of recipes i could make with it.
it just so happens that crackers are one of the easiest things to make with discard.
unfortunately for me, crackers have never been my favorite thing. to me, they are the thing you eat when you really actually want to eat chips instead, but also want to feel healthy.
so what’s a cracker-skeptical girl to do?
my version on a classic wheat cracker is reminiscent of a much better cracker, the cheez-it. it’s got a generous amount of parmesan for cheesiness, the tang from the starter, umami from the seeds, and a collection of other spices to add a kick at the end.
notes
for an updated discard cracker recipe, please refer to my rosemary crackers.
the rise time on this is not precise. i usually let it rest for at least 4 hours, but have forgotten about it for up to 8 hours without impact.
you can either choose to cut them before you bake bake into neat shapes, or break off pieces post-bake after they’ve cooled for a more rustic feel (or you’re like me and are just a bit lazier).
careful not to over-bake! the cheezits will either burn or turn out a lot harder than intended, which will make them difficult to bite into.
some fun variations
- for even cheesier cheezits, i’d recommend increasing the amount of shredded cheese to 1/2 cup. would recommend halving the amount of salt to balance out the saltiness of the cheese.
- for nuttier cheezits, sometimes i add 2 tbsp of seeds, a blend of flax and sesame seeds
store them in tupperware or glass jar or keep them in the freezer for almost ever. though to be honest, they’re so good, mine never last that long.
sourdough discard cheezits
formula
- 1/2 cup sourdough starter discard
- 1/2 cup whole wheat flour (i like to use a blend of whole wheat and einkorn)
- 1/4 cup shredded parmesan or sharp cheddar cheese (plus additional to top)
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil or coconut oil
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp fine sea salt (to taste)
- 1/2 tsp paprika
- 1/8 tsp cayenne (to taste. i use 1/4 tsp)
- 2 tbsp small seeds (sometimes i omit, sometimes i use a mix of flax and sesame)
method
- mix all ingredients together in a medium sized bowl, until cheese is evenly distributed.
- form a round ball of dough. cover, and let rest for about 4 hours.
- preheat oven to 350°F.
- roll dough out thinly, to about 1/16th inch, and transfer onto baking sheet. this should cover and span about 1 cookie sheet. if desired, sprinkle additional cheese as a light, even layer on top.
- to create square crackers, cut dough with pizza cutter or knife into squares. if you're like me and like more rustic looking crackers, you can skip this step.
- bake crackers for 20-25 minutes, or until edges are golden brown. remove from oven and let cool for at least 15 more minutes.
- if uncut, break up crackers into smaller pieces. store in airtight container at room temperature for up to a week, or the freezer for long term storage.
- bring to a party and watch them disappear (if you don't eat them all yourself first).
This was my first discard recipe, so delicious!
10/10 my daughters loved it