You will love these addicting Sourdough Cheese Crackers made with whole wheat flour, extra virgin olive oil and they’re deliciously vegan! Keep a jar in the pantry for a savory, crunchy snack!
Vegetarian | Vegan 
I stopped buying boxed cheesy crackers a long time ago. I mean, once you read the ingredients and realize how much saturated fats, sodium and preservatives there are, well, they are just not good for you.
That said…those things are pretty tasty. So, I had to find a way to make them that tasted yummy, but wouldn’t leave me feeling yuk.
In the meantime, I’ve been ridiculously into making sourdough bread. My son inspired this crazy new obsession and I can’t stop experimenting with it! Although the basis of making sourdough is so simple, flour + water, achieving a perfect loaf is complicated. There are endless variations, beliefs and approaches and I’ve been working my way through many of them hoping to figure it all out. Once I do, I’ll certainly share those recipes with you!
If you’re already a sourdough baker and know the agony of tossing out the discard every time you feed your starter, you are going to love, love, love this recipe! This will have you saving it up all week just to make these lovelies!
Instead of tossing your discard, keep it in the fridge. Every day, as you feed your starter, add the discard to your “discard jar” in the fridge. Once you’ve got about 250 grams or more, you can start baking these cheesy crackers!
If you don’t already have a starter and are interested in baking sourdough, there are so many resources available. I gifted Emilie Raffa’s book, “Artisan Sourdough Made Simple” to my son, and he has been baking some delicious bread from it. Emilie also has some great information on her site, The Clever Carrot, that can help you get a starter going today!
What makes these crackers so delicious, cheesy and worth the effort is that they are made with one hundred percent whole wheat flour, extra virgin olive oil and B vitamin rich nutritional yeast. If you are familiar with nutritional yeast, you already know its got a savory, nutty and cheesy flavor. Its got the perfect umami to give these crackers their cheesy taste while keeping them completely vegan.
Use the base of this recipe to create your own flavors. The possibilities are endless! I’d love to hear about your creations…feel free to share in the comments below!
Happy crunching, my friends! xo
Sourdough Cheese Crackers
Ingredients
- 115 grams whole wheat flour
- 5 grams sea salt plus extra for topping
- 250 grams unfed, discarded sourdough starter see Notes
- 45 grams extra virgin olive oil plus more for brushing the tops
- 20 grams nutritional yeast plus extra for topping
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the whole wheat flour and the sea salt. Add the sourdough starter, olive oil and nutritional yeast. Stir to bring the ingredients together to form a dough. I love using this Danish dough whisk.
- Divide the dough in half. Shape each half into a rectangle. Wrap each rectangle in either parchment paper or plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or even overnight.
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.
- Remove just one block of dough from the fridge. Place it on a lightly floured piece of parchment, cut to the size of your baking sheets. Flour your rolling pin and begin rolling the dough out, rotating the sheet of paper with every few rolls. Roll the dough out to about 1/16th of an inch. The edges will be a bit rough…that's fine. Those bits are perfect for testing and snacking.
- Carefully move the parchment, with the rolled out dough, onto a baking sheet. Brush the top of the dough very lightly with some additional extra virgin olive oil, then lightly sprinkle a bit of coarse sea salt and nutritional yeast on top. Using a pizza cutter, cut the dough into about 1 1/2 inch crackers. You can do this freehand, or use a ruler to get them nice and square. Either poke a hole into each cracker's center with a wooden skewer or use a fork to prick the tops.
- Repeat the rolling, cutting and poking with the remaining block of dough.
- Bake the crackers for 10 minutes, then rotate the baking sheets and switch them from top to bottom to be sure they bake evenly. Bake them for an additional 10 minutes or more. You'll find that depending on how thick the dough has been rolled, you'll have to adjust baking time to get the perfect crunch. Keep in mind, the crackers will crisp up as they cool. You want the crackers to get a bit golden brown, but be sure not to burn them.
- Allow the crackers to cool on a cooling rack and get completely crisp before snacking. Store them in a jar in the pantry for up to a week.
Notes
If you love these Sourdough Cheese Crackers, you’ll love…
Spicy Roasted Chickpeas
Sweet and Spicy Thai Cashews
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I’ve made these multiple times. My family loves nutritional yeast, so of course these are always a hit. I made a large batch (x4) and share with neighbors. So tasty! We don’t miss cheese crackers at all
Thank you so much, Pao! I am a nutritional yeast maniac…it’s got such a satisfying flavor, right? I just wish I was your neighbor! :)
hey!
last year in quarantine i made these crackers soooo many times cuz’ they are just so incredibly delicious. however, this year i don’t have a sourdough starter (tried multiple times but with irregular work schedules and living under 2 roofs it was impossible to maintain and they all died :( ). any ideas whether this would work without starter? should it be substituted for plain flour? yeast (perhaps if i let it rise and fall before use)? tried looking up how to substitute sourdough starter for other ingredients but can’t find any answers. Would love to hear your take on the topic or if you have experimented with a starter-free version of this recipe!
Thank you! :)
Emy! I’m so late to answering this…I’ve been working on other projects…BUT first, my condolences to your starters. I’ve been so busy this past year, mine passed as well. :( To tryyyyyy to answer your question, in theory, one packet, or 2 1/4 teaspoons, of active yeast is basically equivalent to 1 cup of starter. The thing is though, that the starter also contributes to the bulk of this recipe. So, if you do try this substitution, I’d either reduce the salt and olive oil a bit or add at least 25 to 30 grams of flour. All of this is just speculative…not tested. If you do give it a try…please report back! I’m intrigued! (and also now thinking I may jump into the kitchen and try it myself!)
Thank you for this recipe! I added chopped wild garlic to the dough and it was fantastic :)
Oh wow, Maha! What a GREAT idea! Thanks for sharing that…I’m going to try that next time!
This is so easy and fun to make. Taste great and we added shredded aged cheddar cheese and turn it into gourmet food. Thank you so much for sharing this great and healthy recipe.
Fantastic idea, Lai! We have done the same using vegan cheese and it’s very tasty! Thank you so much for taking the time to comment!
HOLY SMOKES – these are the MOST DELICIOUS CRACKERS!!! I make them in double matches because they are so darn good!! Its the perfect use for all that sourdough discard.
Sarah! You just made my day! And…reminded me that I’ve got so much discard in the fridge and must make these today! I double the recipe as well…I figure if I’m going to make these, I’m making A LOT! They disappear quickly!
Really tasty and easy! I used finely grated parmeseano reggiano instead of the yeast since that’s what I had and the flavor was great!
My only critique is that I will try letting the dough come to room temperature as that should make them cook a little more evenly. I cooked them on a preheated pizza stone and the middle ones weren’t as crunchy so maybe this will be the secret, unless there’s something I’m don’t know?
So glad you enjoyed them, Alan! Yes…getting them ALL simultaneously crispy is the trickiest part! Be sure to roll the dough as thinly and evenly as possible. Another tip is to rotate your pan halfway through baking. And lastly, we will sometimes removed the crackers around the perimeter that seem to bake more quickly as soon as they seem done, then return the pan to the oven to continue baking the rest. I haven’t tried baking these on a pizza stone…but that’s an interesting idea. I may have to give that a whirl!
I have made this recipe multiple times and it is always such a hit, my kids love it and I find when they get good and golden they taste just like I remember cheesy crackers tasting.
That’s awesome, Amanda! We make this often, too. I like them quite golden as well…they definitely fill that cheesy cracker craving! Thanks for taking the time to comment!
Wow, these are so yummy!! Phenomenal recipe!
Awww…this makes me so happy, Stephanie! Thanks a bunch for the stars! :)
Can you freeze the dough?
That is such a great idea, Sarah! I have never tried doing that, but I can’t imagine that it wouldn’t work well. If you give it a shot, I’d love to hear about your results! xo
Great taste. Loved then and will make again. Thanks, terrific use for starter.
That’s so nice to hear, Jane! I’ve been using mine up a lot lately…we’ve been doing lots of baking. xo
I don’t normally leave recipe reviews, but this one is such a winner, I had to!!! Not only does it use up the insane amounts of discard I collect, but they are also fairly easy to make, and my kids LOVE them. Like, go completely bananas for them! Two thumbs up for sure!!
You are the sweetest, Melissa! This makes me SO happy! We love these too…they don’t last long in our house! Thanks for the five stars and two thumbs! ;)
I am new to sourdough and have tried several cracker recipes. This one is my favorite. I’ll be making more of these with my leftover starter. Your recipe is clear and easy to follow as well. Thank you.
That’s so sweet to hear, Cari! Happy baking! xo
SO much goodness, Caroline! I’ve been making gf crackers, but not gf sourdough crackers. I’ve got a ton of discard in my freezer to play with! Thank you for your cheesy inspiration (yum on nutyeast!). Beautiful work!
You are amazing! You’ve made gluten free crackers? Need to try that! Thanks for stopping in, Traci! xo
I keep telling myself that I”m going to get into sourdough baking “one day”. Maybe after this last year of residency is over! These crackers will be the first thing I make with the extra starter. I know Remy would love them!
Joanne…I have no idea how you do it all! And do it all so well! If you do get some time to get a starter going…definitely give this a try. These would make a great snack for Remy! I recently saw her on your Instagram stories…oh my gosh…she’s grown SO fast! Miss you! xo