How to Make Sourdough Crackers (Vegan Cheez Its)
How to Make Sourdough Crackers! These sourdough crackers recipe taste just like vegan cheez its! Save this recipe for your sourdough discard.
Cheez It’s without the cheese! You guys! We cracked the code on making healthy, umami-rich sourdough crackers that tastes like vegan cheez its.
We’ve been going ga-ga over these crackers in my house lately. Since I’ve embarked on my sourdough journey a few months ago, I’ve got a giant mason jar of discard sitting in my fridge that’s just begging to be experimented with. First up were these sourdough waffles and now, we’re using the discard to make these sourdough crackers.
Let’s go!
Vegan Cheeze Its!
When I made my first batch of sourdough crackers, they turned out OK. Good, not great. I liked the subtle herb flavor, but couldn’t get the faint vegan cheez its flavor out of my mind. I had a feeling that if I added in nutritional yeast, garlic powder and a little more salt than I could create my own veganized version of cheese crackers, which is what these are.
Fellow sourdough fans, you know the tangy flavor that sourdough gives bread– which is exactly what we are going for here. It pairs perfectly with the other savory flavors, but I’ll let you in on a secret; this recipe also works with whatever dried herbs or flavorings you want to add in.
You could do a cheesy rosemary version or a dill one. I’ve done both and they turn out awesome. Just add in 1-2 teaspoons of your favorite dried herb along with the rest of the spices.
How to Make Sourdough Crackers (or Vegan Cheez Its)
You’ll obviously need sourdough discard to make these crackers, which is the used portion of your sourdough starter that’s already been fed. Up until a few months ago, I was under the impression that making your own sourdough was difficult; now I realize that it’s not hard, but it does take a little bit of time and a lot of patience.
If you love cooking like I do, then I think you’ll find a lot of reward in making your own sourdough bread. There are so many tutorials out there, I’m partial to this one and this one.
From there, you’ll combine your unfed starter with more flour, spices, nutritional yeast and olive oil. If you want a more buttery-tasting cracker, then you can sub in an equal amount of melted butter. If you use something like Earth Balance, note that it’s already salted and therefore you can cut down on the amount of added salt you use.
Making sourdough crackers may seem intimidating, but I promise you it’s not. Once your dough has set in the fridge for about 30 minutes, take it out and roll it directly onto a piece of parchment paper.
Doing this on the parchment paper allows for easy transfer to your baking sheet. You’ll want to roll the crackers out to a relative thinness, too thick and they won’t become crispy enough. I usually bake these a minute or two past the point that I think they are done, but I’d rather have my crackers overcooked then under.
To prevent them from puffing up, make sure to gently press fork tines into each of the crackers before baking, this will also help with crispness.
Since we enjoy these so much, I typically make a double batch to get us through a couple of days so know that this recipe doubles easily. The only change you will make is having to roll and bake the crackers in batches.
If you try these vegan cheez its, let me know! Make sure to come back, leave a comment and rate the recipe. Your feedback helps others and hearing about you making my recipes makes my day! You can also use the hashtag #delishknowledge on social.
Video
How to Make Sourdough Crackers
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup white wheat flour
- 1 cup sourdough starter, unfed/discard
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 3/4 teaspoon salt, plus more for sprinkling
- 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
- First, mix together the flour, sourdough starter, olive oil, salt, nutritional yeast, and garlic powder to make a smooth, not sticky, dough.
- Then, divide the dough in half, then shape each section into a small rectangular slab. Next, cover with plastic wrap, then place in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to help firm up the dough.
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 325°F.
- Then, remove the dough from the fridge, then very lightly flour a piece of parchment paper, a rolling pin, and the top of the dough.
- Next, roll the dough to about 1/16″ thick on top of the parchment paper; it will have uneven edges as you roll it out and that’s OK. Just try to make the thickness as even as possible. Transfer the parchment paper with the dough onto a baking sheet, then lightly brush with more olive oil and sprinkle a little more salt on top of the crackers if desired.
- Then, cut the dough into 1/1 1/4″ squares then prick each square with the tines of a fork.
- Then bake the crackers for 17-20 minutes, until the squares are starting to brown around the edges. Midway through, reverse the baking sheets: both top to bottom, and front to back; this will help the crackers brown evenly.
- Finally, remove the crackers from the oven, and transfer them to a cooling rack. Store airtight at room temperature for up to a week; freeze for longer storage.
Notes
Nutrition