Homemade Sourdough Cheese Crackers are a delicious way to use your sourdough discard. These savory crackers are made with sourdough discard, butter, cheese, and a sprinkle of salt, and are a crispy snack, perfect for munching.
They taste like the store-bought ‘cheese-it’ versions that everyone loves but are a healthier alternative.
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Sourdough Cheese Crackers Recipe
My original Sourdough Discard Crackers were such a hit, and many of you asked if you could add cheese. These crunchy sourdough discard cheese crackers have become a favorite in our household. We love them, and the kids adore them too.
They’re perfect for casual lunch snacks at school or camp, yet versatile enough to serve as a sophisticated appetizer with dip. I might need to start doubling the recipe because they disappear so quickly around here!
Making homemade crackers might sound complicated, but I promise, they take just 2 minutes to stir together (plus spreading and baking time), and the flavor payoff is so worth it. They taste like storebought Cheese-It crackers, but I feel much better serving my homemade version to my family knowing they’re made with real cheese and without any additives or preservatives.
Also, baking them with a fermented sourdough starter makes them easier to digest (according to Healthline).
Ingredients for Sourdough Cheese Crackers
The key to making great sourdough cheese crackers is using strong, flavorful cheese to really taste the flavor. Here’s what you’ll need:
- Sourdough discard – this can be active and stirred down or just plain inactive discard that you would normally throw away (unless it’s really old or has changed color).
- Cheddar cheese – You can use medium or sharp cheddar cheese. Finely shredded cheese blends into the batter easier for a uniformly cheesy cracker.
- Butter – adds great buttery crunch to the crackers and helps bind ingredients together.
- Salt – a little goes a long way, especially since cheese adds to the saltiness of the recipe.
Variations
The type and amount of cheese you choose significantly influence both the flavor— try a sharp cheddar to enhance the taste and the texture of the crackers. Consider experimenting with different cheeses like:
- White cheddar
- Parmesean (use 1/2 cup or the crackers will be too salty)
- Monterey Jack
How to Make Sourdough Cheese Crackers
- Preheat – Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Melt and Combine – Melt the butter in a large measuring cup or mixing bowl and cool until just lukewarm. Add the sourdough starter discard, and salt and stir until well combined. Add cheese and stir until well incorporated.
- Spread – Spread your batter over your parchment-lined baking sheet (an offset spatula makes it easy to spread into an even, very thin layer that is almost transparent (my rectangle measured 14×11 inches).
- Season – Lightly sprinkle the top with flaky salt (don’t use too much or the crackers will be too salty).
- Bake and Score – Bake for 10 minutes, then remove from the oven and score with a pizza cutter into 1-inch squares. Optional: use the back of a skewer to poke a hole in the center of each cracker.
Fun Fact:
The holes poked in store-bought crackers actually serve an important purpose. “Docking” doughs that are higher in fat, such as pie crusts, cheese crackers, and thin cookies, provide a vent to release steam. This prevents the baked goods from puffing up and cracking during baking.
- Final Bake – Return to the oven and bake for another 20 minutes, or until the crackers are golden and hardened throughout. Note: thicker crackers will take longer to bake so bake until they are firm to the tap.
- Cool and Serve – Allow the crackers to fully cool on the baking sheet, then store them in an airtight container or zip bag.
What to Serve with Sourdough Cheese Crackers
These crackers are incredibly delicious on their own, but they can also be paired with a variety of accompaniments. You can even score them to different sizes depending on how you serve them. Here are some excellent options to serve with these sourdough discard crackers:
- Dips: Serve with creamy dips such as queso, spinach and artichoke dip, hummus, ranch, or guacamole
- Soup: Sprinkle on top of a bowl of chicken tortilla soup, tomato soup, or chili for a comforting combination
- Sandwich: Serve alongside your favorite sandwich— whether it’s chicken bacon avocado sandwich, grilled cheese, or a BLT— for a delightful combination of flavors and textures.
- Charcuterie: Combine with an assortment of cured meats and cheeses, nuts, fruits, and fresh vegetables for a savory charcuterie platter.
- Spreads: Enjoy with spreads such as pimento cheese or a cheese ball.
- Salad: Instead of croutons, crumble these up and toss over a cobb salad, Caesar salad, or garden salad for extra crunch.
How to Store Sourdough Cheese Crackers
Once the crackers are cooled to room temperature, store them in an airtight container, glass jar with a lid, or zip bag. These are best enjoyed within a few days of making them.
Also note: if you try storing crackers that aren’t fully crisp and baked through, they will not crisp up with storage.
If you’re on your sourdough journey, you likely have plenty of sourdough discard baking loaves of Sourdough Bread. Instead of literally discarding it, why not transform it into fantastic treats Sourdough Pancakes or waffles? With just a few common kitchen ingredients, you can quickly whip up these simple and delicious discard recipes. If you are a fan of sourdough, these Sourdough Cheese Crackers are a must-try!
More Easy Snack Recipes
If are a fan of snacks and easy finger food recipes, then you won’t want to miss these crowd favorites:
- Homemade Pita Chips
- Air Fryer French Fries
- Baked Potato Wedges
- Mozzarella Sticks
- Candied Pecans
- Cheese Ball Recipe
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Sourdough Cheese Crackers
Ingredients
- 200 grams sourdough discard, 1 cup stirred and unfed starter
- 2 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
- ¼ tsp fine sea salt
- 1 cup finely shredded medium cheddar cheese, loosely packed or 60 grams*
- Seasonings to taste – flaky sea salt, everything bagel seasoning, sesame seeds, etc.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350℉ and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Melt the butter in a large measuring cup or mixing bowl and let it cool until just lukewarm. Measure in the sourdough discard and salt, and stir together with a spatula until well combined. Add cheese and stir until well incorporated.
- Pour the mixture onto your parchment-lined baking sheet and use an offset spatula to spread it into a thin, even layer that is almost transparent (for reference, my dough rectangle measured 11×14 inches) .
- Lightly sprinkle the top with flaky salt – don't overseason.
- Bake for 10 minutes then remove from the oven and use a pizza cutter to score your crackers into bite-size squares. For the classic cheese cracker appearance, you can use the back of a wooden skewer to poke a hole in the center of each crack. It takes a couple of extra minutes but they look so cute.
- Return to the oven and bake another 20 minutes or until the crackers are golden and hardened. If crackers are not firmed up, it may be due to not spreading them thinly enough, just continue to bake until they are firm when you tap the tops.
- Remove from the oven and let cool on the baking sheet to let them fully dry out. Once they have cooled completely, store in an airtight container or zip bag.
Notes
- Sharp Cheddar Cheese
- White cheddar
- Parmesean (use 1/2 cup or the crackers will be too salty)
- Monterey Jack
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
Good Things
Speaking of Pies; one of my favorite scenes from my debut cookbook photo shoot was the precious moments of rolling pie dough with my daughter for Chicken Pot Pie. My photographer, Charity Burggraaf captured it beautifully.
P.S. Stay tuned for our next recipe which will be a super yummy No-Bake Blueberry Cheesecake!
I just made these exactly as written. Not sure what happened, bit they were waaaay overcooked and dark brown. Will make them again but at lower temperature.
Hello there! It might have been baked longer than expected or because of too high oven temperature. Try to adjust the oven temperature next time and start checking the crackers after the 12-minute mark to prevent overbaking.
Delicious! Followed the recipe exactly. 10 out of 10 recommend!
That’s just awesome! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review, Sue!
I have not started making sourdough starter yet but it’s my plan to begin this week. I use silicone sheets to line my baking sheets and cake pans, would they work for this recipe? Thank you I cannot wait to get going!
Hi Patty! That can work too but you may need to bake them longer to get them crispy. Silicone mats retain moisture so they won’t dry out as well.
I never leave comments, but this is a huge hit at our house, and I love that it’s only a few simple ingredients. My husband and kids can’t stop eating these, so my only problem with this recipe is that I can’t keep up with demand.
Thank you so much for the review, Melissa! We make these so often, they just disappear! So glad you’re enjoying them.
Absolutely incredible!! I included 1/2 tsp garlic powder and cooked 4 extra minutes after they went back in the moved to a cooling rack. a couple seemed a little soft still so I put the cooling rack back in the oven as it cooled down. The taste and crunch is FABULOUS! Thank you for the recipe!
I love the idea of adding garlic powder. Thank you for sharing!
These are great!! I’m wondering how you calculated the nutrition? I’m wondering how it’s 1g of carbs for 10 crackers or am I reading that wrong?
Hi Jamey, I’m glad you loved these. This recipe makes up to 50 crackers. I have this Nutritional Disclosure linked to the recipe, within it you’ll find the two calculators we used, linked towards the bottom. I hope this helps.
I used dill havarti as it’s what i had on hand. Deeeeeelish!!!
Hi. I just fed my starter. Can I use it for the crackers, anyway?
If not, can I put the starter in the fridge and get it out tomorrow to use it to make crackers?
Hi Joyce! It’s not ideal to use it freshly fed, it needs more time to ferment and develop flavor. You can refrigerate it and take it out the next day to use for crackers.
So tasty & very easy. I wasn’t expecting no flour in the recipe, but of course there’s flour in the starter. A few of my crackers were a little puffier than the rest. I left those on the pan and put them back in the oven after I turned it off. They got nice and crisp. I had regular shredded cheddar next time. I will get the finally shredded. 5 stars!
Thank you so much for the wonderful review!
Excellent! Super easy & so delicious! Thank you for the recipe! It’s a keeper!
OMG! The best! I used everything but the bagel seasoning.
OMG almost ate the whole sheet in one day. These are so good. Even my husband took a baggie to work.
Made these for the first time and my family loved these!! My son said make a Million more! So easy and will spread even thinner next batch.
All my crackers stuck to the parchment paper so bad they couldn’t even be peeled off!!! What a waste.
Hi Angela, these normally should not stick at all. Did you add butter to the recipe and then make sure ot bake until they are fully dry? Also, make sure you use parchment paper and not wax paper.
this recipe as written is a sticky gooey mess, no hope to roll it out. I believe you forgot to add flour.
Hi Deefee, the recipe is correct and it’s meant to be spread out with a spatula and not rolled out with a rolling pin. Outside of the flour that is in the starter, there is no flour needed in this recipe.
Mine stuck also and I followed the recipe to a T.
HI Babs, if it stuck, it’s usually due to underbaking and make sure not to use wax paper. Wax paper will stick which is why I recommend parchment paper.
Flavor is great from what I can tell but these stuck so horribly to my parchment paper that I couldn’t even really enjoy the 2 batches I made. I’m thinking maybe foil would be a better option?
Hi Alyssa, did you let them fully dry out? Once they are baked through, they should lift easily with zero sticking. Also did you make sure to use parchment and not wax paper? I don’t recommend wax paper here.
My husband LOVES cheez its and said these were better!
I have my crackers in air tight glass container. Next day they are now chewy. What can I do
It could be because moisture in the crackers may have been trapped in the airtight container. You can re-crisp them in the oven Preheat your oven to a low temperature (around 300°F/150°C) and bake them for 5-10 minutes. Just make sure to check them every now and then to avoid burning. You can also use an oven toaster or fryer to crisp them again.
These are tasty and so easy! Mine didn’t stick at all to the parchment paper. Some of them were a bit chewy at first, but I stuck them back in the oven after turning it off and just let them stay there for a few hours as the oven cooled off. Crisped right up. Even when chewy, they were really good!
I’m so happy you enjoyed that. Thank you for sharing that with us, Viktoriya!
I made two batches of these for a party. They are delicious! For second batch I only needed to cook them for 10 minutes. I suggest keeping a very close eye on them for the second bake because there is a fine line between them being done and well done. Next time I will make four batches because two batches was not quite enough for a party.
Easy and delicious! I added a little onion powder, garlic powder
Thank you so much for sharing that with me, Gena! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Not a fan of this recipe, did exactlt what was said in recipe. Maybe I spread too thin? Crackers are super hard, not burnt, but I dont like them. Next time Ill use a recipe with sourdough discard and flour instead.
HI Mel, if the crackers seem hard instead of crisp, they were probably either underbaked or spread too thick. It’s ok to spread them a little thicker but important to bake them all the way through until they are firm to the tap.
These were absolutely delicious! I didn’t spread them thin enough at all, but the flavor is amazing and I will definitely make these again. I can’t emphasize enough that you have to spread them thin if you want them to be cracker like consistency. I kept mine in the oven for almost 40 mins and they still didn’t get crispy, but totally my fault.
Thank you for sharing your experience with us! So glad you loved these.
They’re barely cool and we’re already chowing down. I hoped to take these on a travel day, 2 days from now, but they’re not gonna last haha. Used grated parm (slightly less than 1 cup), a couple shakes of garlic powder, and then added maybe 2 tbsp of tomato sauce because I thought they smelled like pizza. We’ll definitely make them again, they’re so easy!
That’s so great! It sounds like you have a new favorite!