these crackers were born out of resourcefulness and convenience. after making my everything sourdough bread, i took the extra starter discard and made my basic cheesy cracker (like usual). then thinking nothing of it, i rolled the dough in the everything seasoning i had leftover.

little did i know that these crackers would become, by far, the most addicting thing i have ever baked. i have seen my friends demolish jars of these in one sitting. i have seen myself demolish jars of these in one sitting.

if you’re interested in witnessing the same progression of events, please proceed.

you’ve been warned.

notes

this recipe is shockingly simple for the flavor it delivers. there’s plenty of salt in the everything seasoning mix, which omits the need to add it directly to the crackers (i tried it once, and it was like the equivalent of eating double strength sea water).

to get an even distribution of everything seasoning, generously sprinkle the everything seasoning on the surface you plan to roll the dough on, and then directly roll the dough into the seasoning.

you can buy everything seasoning from the store or use the ratios i use for a DIY mix. the formula i’ve included will leave you with extra everything seasoning you can use for your next batch of crackers.

the proportions i’ve specified will make exactly one cookie sheet pan worth of crackers. this recipe can be easily doubled, tripled, etc. to satisfy any further cracker cravings.

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.