You may as well know, I LOVE a cheeseboard.
And a good cheese board must contain a good cracker.
A homemade sourdough cracker, crunchy, full of flavour and best of all with no added nasties like msg, unhealthy oils and sugars, is a great addition to an epic platter.
To make sourdough crackers all your need is:
- 1 cup of sourdough discard
- Butter 1/3 of a cup melted
- 1 tsp salt
- Herbs and spices of choice if any
Sourdough crackers are easy to make, and if you’re trying to limit your gluten they are made with the sourdough discard, which has been fermented, and in this recipe, you don’t add extra flour, so if you are trying to limit/avoid gluten you could still enjoy these as the gluten has been broken down and can be digested by many who have gluten intolerances with no problem. (don’t just take my advice try them for yourself and test how you feel)
I love making these because I like to feed my family with as many good things as I can, and limiting sugar, unhealthy oils and the chemical nasties that come on store-bought crackers is another way that I can give the best that I can to my kids.
That being said I am a busy mother and I made this recipe as easy and time savvy as possible.
use one measuring cup, mix it up and throw it in the oven.
Get experimental with your flavours or keep them plain.
Use them for platters and dips, or you can add them to lunch boxes, or just keep them on hand for a healthy snack or lunch with a tuna and cottage cheese high protein hit after a workout.
Choose your flavourings
You can play with flavourings, almost every time I make a batch I create a new mix to try.
So far I have learned a few things.
you need two teaspoons of your chosen flavouring per batch of sourdough crackers to sprinkle on top or mix through.
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 teaspoon of your flavourings each
3 flavour combinations that are favourites
smokey paprika
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp smokes paprika
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
Fennel
- 1 tsp salt
- 15 fennel seeds (or 1 tsp ground fennel seed)
Italian herb
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp Italian herbs
- 5 pepper kernels
- you can add the spice mix to the top of the spread slab or into the batter before spreading.
- I use a mortar and pestle to grind up fresh black pepper, fennel, coriander seed and sesame.
- I always add salt, I find without it the crackers just aren’t as good.
- Other spices such as smoked paprika, garlic, cumin, turmeric and chilli are easy to mix with a little salt on their own or with a little garlic powder.
Get creative
Once I started making sourdough crackers I haven’t stopped, I make them semi-daily, as they are a great way to use up your sourdough discard in the summer as I don’t bake as many of my sourdough cakes.
the kids love them and eat them plain as a snack and they are a great quick lunch for me with tina and cottage cheese, add lots of pepper and salt and it’s a protein meal in a flash.
top them with sundried tomatoes, homemade guacamole, creamed cheeses and salami. Or keep it sweet with fruit and a yogurt dip, eliminate the salt in your recipe and add cinnamon instead.
To cut sour dough crackers
You need to place them in the oven for 10-5 minutes then remove and using a knife or a pastry cutter you cut the thin slab into the shapes and sizes you want.
Choose your crunch
these crackers need to the baked in a moderate-low oven, in order to dry out the batter without crisping the bottom too much.
150 fan forced is perfect (160 conventional) for an hour and 15 minutes.
if you like them less crunchy you can decrease the oven time, though the 1 hour and 15 is just perfect, if you decrease from that you may have a chewy cracker.
However, if you find that time too long you may have a hotter oven than mine, so either decrease the temperature by 10-15 degrees or take a few minutes off.
If you like a super crispy cracker, leave them in for an hour and 30 minutes, or increase your temperature by 10 degrees.
you can also play with the thickness of your crackers.
The batter should resemble a yogurt consistency.
you can spread it as thin as you like.
I like to coat the baking paper and not see any see-through patches.
If you do add a few see-through patches, this will result in a very crispy cracker that melts in your mouth.
Storing sourdough crackers
sourdough crackers stay fresh and crunchy for weeks stored in an airtight container.
Choose a container that is properly sealed, I use a large recycled glass jar.
and one that won’t pass on any smells which is why I don’t use plastic. Crackers have a tendency to absorb the air.
The printable recipe
Easy 3 ingredient sourdough crackers
An easy and healthy alternative to store-bought crackers, covered in oils and sugars. make these crackers in minutes and enjoy
Ingredients
- 1 cup of sourdough discard
- 1/3 cup of melted butter
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- 1 teaspoon of a spice or mix of spices or herbs of your choice
Instructions
- preheat oven to 150 fan-forced or 160 conventional
- line a 30 by 40 cm tray or two 20 by 20 cm trays with baking paper
- place your 1 cup of sourdough discard (200 grams) in a larger measuring cup (2-4 cups in volume)
- melt your butter. around 3 heaped tablespoons will result in 1/3 cup of melted butter
- once melted add the butter to the sourdough discard
- mix thoroughly
- mix up your spice mix, USE YOUR CREATIVE FREEDOM! or use the spice recipes listed in the post above.
- 1 tsp salt is the minimum amount I would use, but if you find it too salty decrease this.
- then add a mix that equals a teaspoon or just one teaspoon of one spice or herb.
- pour the discard and butter batter from the cup and onto the lined tray.
- using a spatula or egg flip spread the batter so it coats the baking paper in an even thickness. watch the edges, be sure they arent thicker than the rest of the slab.
- once spread sprinkle over your spice mix.
- place the tray into the middle of your preheated oven
- bake for 10 minutes
- remove the tray from the oven
- using a butter knife or a pizza roller or pastry cutter slice the slab into the shape and size you want your crackers.
- place back in the oven to finish baking
- It can take usually 1 hour and 15 minutes but use your finger( carefully!) to check in the crackers in the centre of the slab are hard, if they are still slightly spongy and pliable place the tray back into the oven for another 15 minutes.
- once cooked, remove and cool
- serve
- or store in an airtight container for up to a month
Notes
place the baking tray in the middle of your oven to prevent the bottom of your crackers from crisping up to early and burning.
if the crackers are still soft after the 1 hour and 15 minutes increase the time by 15 minutes, unlike cookies, these will not harden up once out, you must reach your cracker consistency in the oven
if you like a lot of flavour on your crackers, you can double or half the spice mix and divide it into the two, for placing in the batter before spreading and then on top.
be careful with your salt! it was a little on the salty side when I added extra, so add extra flavourings but perhaps not the salt.
Other recipes you might like!
until next time!
happy baking!
thesimplemamma
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