Sourdough Crackers
Photos by Annie B. Copps and Sarah Blackburn
There is a lot of baking going on these days and if social media is any indication, it looks like a lot of you are having fun and creative adventures with sourdough bread. I am thrilled by all the beautiful posts and stories passing through my various feeds.
Personally, I can NOT stop baking.
I am lucky to have a starter from a dear friend who reignited my sourdough interest a few years ago. Before these strange days, I was baking sourdough about once a month—sometimes, because of extended travel, my starter would go months without being fed. Due to a move and not having access to all my baking toys, my starter actually went 8 months without being tended to. It just sat in the fridge, watching its 2% milk, cheese, ketchup and mayo neighbors come and go.
Right before the quarantining began, I moved to a new place and it seemed like a good time to attempt to resuscitate my starter. To my surprise, the tenacious microbes came back after 10 days of feeding and are now thriving. I have been feeding or baking almost every day—loads of my friends now have some of my starter and/or loaves. I have been so happy to bake for you.
The baking is filling my time and gives structure to my day. It feels very ancient and nurturing. Baking with sourdough starter requires patience—and that experience is teaching me so much about me.
If you’re baking, too, you likely have a lot of cast-off starter which is a shame to toss, especially with flour in such short supply. You can make all sorts of great waffles and pancakes and there is no shortage of recipes out there. I love to make both, but I’m not a big eater of either and, well, I’m solo here at Intellibelly.net corporate headquarters. I do, however, love a good cracker, because I love a good dip (or cheese, or…). Sourdough discard makes for terrific crackers.
Recipes made from sourdough starter cast-offs are referred to as “daughters.” These crackers are flexible and forgiving. You can noodle around with the flours (rye, buckwheat, chickpea, etc.), but I suggest at least half should be all-purpose or bread flour. The herb combinations are infinite. Have some fun.
Sourdough “Daughter” Crackers with Olive Oil and Herbs
If you weigh your ingredients you’ll have more consistent results.
about 1 cup (200 grams) mature and active sourdough starter
½ cup (75g) all-purpose flour
½ cup (75g) whole wheat flour
3 tablespoons (32g) extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon dried herbs de Provence (za’atar, bbq dry rub, togarashi—whatever makes sense for you)
about 1 tablespoon kosher or sea salt
In a medium bowl, combine the sourdough starter with the flours, olive oil, herbs, and ½ teaspoon of salt. Mix to combine, kneading until the dough comes together in a smooth ball.
Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or up to 24 hours.
Heat oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats (silpats).
Cut the dough in half; set one half aside (back in the fridge if you’re moving slowly). Cut dough again into 4 smaller pieces.
Place the dough between two sheets of parchment paper and roll out each piece into a 1/8-thick rectangle—if you have a pasta machine, this is a great use for it (no need to roll between the parchment).
Lay out the dough on a parchment- or silpat-lined baking sheet. Lightly brush or spray dough with water; sprinkle with salt.
Cut into shapes with biscuit or cookie cutter (then you can re-roll excess dough to make more), use a knife or pizza cutter to make squares or rectangles or just bake in a giant sheet and break apart once cooked and cooled.
Dock with the tines of a fork or “dimple” using the bottom, rounded end of the fork (this prevents the crackers from puffing up). Bake until lightly golden brown and crispy; this will take about 10 minutes, rotating the pans top to bottom and back to front part way through baking.
Let cool, then transfer crackers to a cooling rack. Repeat with remaining dough. If they are browned but not crisp, remove from the oven, cook all the batches, turn the oven off, then place the baking sheets back in the oven until the oven is cooled.
Crackers will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to one week.
