Sourdough Whole Wheat Crackers

Ingredients

sourdough starter
butter or coconut oil

honey

whole wheat pastry flour (also works with whole wheat white flour and all-purpose in a pinch - I’ve found regular whole wheat flour is a bit course, but of course you can try it to see what you like)
sea salt
baking soda

olive oil

1 cup sourdough starter
1/4 cup butter or coconut oil, softened
1 teaspoon honey
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour + extra for rolling
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
olive oil + salt for topping

Directions

Add sourdough. Pour 1 cup of sourdough starter into a large bowl. I always use my Kitchenaid stand mixer, but of course the dough can be made by hand.

Sourdough Starter Tips

After using the amount I need, I feed my sourdough starter and leave it in a warm place for 12-24 hours before putting it back in the fridge.
If you’d like the starter to be active to make a loaf of sourdough artisan bread, feed it again during that time, make sure it’s doubled in volume, and bake with it before storing in the fridge again. Learn more about keeping sourdough easily here.
Mix in butter. Add the softened butter (or oil) and honey and mix well.
If you like the flavor of coconut oil, feel free to use it in place of butter. Our family felt the flavor was too strong and we really like them with butter, but that’s one of the joys of cooking your own things - adapt to what you like!
Add dry Ingredients. In a small bowl mix the whole wheat pastry flour (made from soft white wheat, so finer with less protein than hard red wheat flour) with sea salt and baking soda.

Add it to the starter-butter and mix well.

Knead. Add the remaining flour to the mixture, 1/4 cup at a time, mixing well after each addition. This “kneads” the flour into a smooth dough.
Rest. Let the dough rest for 10 minutes and start the oven heating to 350 degrees.
Divide. Place the dough on a well-floured surface and divide into thirds. Roll out one portion at a time, while keeping the remaining dough covered with a towel.
UPDATE: Following some advice from readers, I now roll this out right on parchment paper, then use the pizza wheel to score the crackers and lift the whole thing right onto a baking sheet - so easy!! (Don’t try to use silicone liners, though, thinking you’ll cut lightly - it doesn’t work, lol. Stick with parchment.)
The crackers separate some while cooking and it’s easy to remove the outer browning crackers as needed and continue to cook the remaining crackers.
Roll. Shape the dough into a circle with your hands and then start rolling it out on the floured board, turning and flouring as needed to keep from sticking.
As you can see above, the dough can be rolled thin evenly and without tearing- it really is easy to work with.
Mix the starter, butter, and honey in a large bowl.
In a small bowl, mix 1/4 cup of the flour with the salt and baking soda. Add to the large bowl and mix until smooth.
Add the remaining 3/4 cup flour, 1/4 cup at a time, until a smooth, stiff dough forms. You may need to add more flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, if the sourdough starter was “wet.”
Let the dough rest for 10 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Turn the dough out to a well-floured surface and divide into three portions. Roll out one portion, keeping the remaining dough covered, until quite thin (1/8” or thinner). Use plenty of flour and turn as necessary to keep from sticking.
Use a pizza wheel or knife to cut into squares and place on a silicone or parchment lined baking sheet. Fill the pan- the crackers don’t expand, so place them quite close together without touching. -OR
Updated rolling & cutting technique: I now roll the dough out right on a piece of parchment paper, then use the pizza wheel to score the crackers and simply lift the whole thing right onto a baking sheet - so easy!!
(The crackers separate some while cooking and it’s easy to remove the outer browning crackers as needed and continue to cook the remaining crackers.)
Spray (or brush) the crackers with olive oil- it doesn’t need to be even, just make sure all the crackers get a bit of oil- and sprinkle very lightly with a fine salt. Don’t use too much- it really makes them too salty.
Bake for 8 to 9 minutes, rotating the pan as needed, until medium brown. Remove crackers to a cooling rack as they brown and return pan to oven as needed to brown all the crackers.
Repeat with remaining dough while the first batch is baking.

Notes

Storage: After letting the crackers cool completely, store them in a glass jar with a lid to keep them crisp.

Nutrition