These potato flake sourdough discard whole wheat crackers will satisfy your craving for something salty with a crunch. Don’t take my word for it though! Give this easy recipe a try and see what I’m talking about!
I’ve got more good news! Not only are these crackers deliciously crispy and flavorful but they are also packed with wholesome ingredients, thanks to the addition of whole wheat flour and flax seeds. They are even easier to digest because of the fermentation from the potato flake starter. That seems like a win-win to me!
Why make potato flake sourdough discard crackers?
I love that these crackers can be made with a starter that has been recently fed, or with a starter that has been sitting in the fridge for a week! Active starter or discard, it doesn’t matter!
While these crackers can be made right away or long fermented, I prefer the long fermentation for the health benefits. That’s the beauty of using a potato flake starter. It makes the grains easier for the body to digest.
A potato flake sourdough starter is made up of water, sugar, and potato flakes. If making it from scratch you’ll jump start it with a pack of yeast, but eventually the wild yeast will take over and you will have a starter that will naturally rise your bread and ferment the ingredients. It sometimes can get confused with an amish friendship bread starter, but these are different starters. I have another post where you can learn how to make your own starter. In other posts I also go into great detail about how to feed and maintain your starter, as well as everything you might want to know about a potato flake starter.
Tools you will need:
Stand mixer with dough hook attachment
Plastic wrap or airtight cover
Parchment paper
Pizza wheel cutter
Baking stone or pizza stone (baking sheet will do if you don’t have these, but may need to adjust baking time)
Salt grinder (for coarse salt)
Fork (for docking holes)
Ingredients for the Whole Wheat Crackers:
Potato Flake Sourdough Discard Starter:
Discard is simply starter that wasn’t fed recently. This would be a few days after feeding the starter when the bubbles are no longer floating on the top. While this is a discard recipe, it can certainly be made with an active starter. The sourdough discard helps with fermentation, which the active starter would do as well. The reason this is called a discard recipe is because it can be made with less active starter and still achieve great results! Check out some of my favorite potato flake sourdough discard recipes!
Melted Salted Butter:
While some people may opt to use olive oil or coconut oil for crackers, I believe that butter is a better option. Butter adds richness and flavor to the crackers while also making them tender and crisp.
Salt:
Who doesn’t love a salty treat? The salt enhances the flavor of the crackers. It also acts as a preservative and helps regulate the fermentation process.
Whole Wheat Flour:
Whole wheat flour provides a nutty flavor and hearty texture to the crackers. It also adds fiber, vitamins, and minerals, making the crackers a nutritious snack option. It can be made with all purpose flour, or a mixture of half all purpose and half whole wheat, but using all whole wheat really makes a scrumptious cracker!
Whole Flax Seeds:
Flax seeds add nutritional value to the crackers. Rich in omega-3 fatty acids and fiber, flax seeds contribute to heart health and digestive regularity. It’s an easy way to add extra nutrition to your snack! Feel free to try alternative seeds such as sesame seeds or poppy seeds.
Additional Coarse Salt (for topping):
Coarse salt sprinkled on top of the crackers adds a burst of flavor and enhances their visual appeal. Another popular seasoning is “Everything but the bagel seasoning.”
How to make potato flake sourdough discard whole wheat crackers:
Mixing the Dough
Begin by melting your butter and allowing it to cool while you gather the rest of your ingredients.
In a stand mixer, combine the potato flake sourdough discard starter, flour, salt, flax seeds, and cooled butter. Be sure the butter isn’t too hot, as it can harm your starter.
Attach the dough hook and knead the mixture on low speed for 5-10 minutes until a ball forms. Start on low speed, then switch to medium for a minute or two to help the ball come together before returning to low speed. If the dough is not coming together, and the dough is too sticky, add a bit more flour. Be careful to not add too much flour, just a tablespoon at a time.
If you don’t have a stand mixer, you can mix by hand in a large bowl, remember that this will take a lot of kneading, so don’t give up until your dough comes together and is a nice smooth ball of dough.
Fermentation
Once the dough is kneaded, cover the bowl with plastic wrap or another airtight cover and let it ferment at room temperature for 8-12 hours. You can extend this time for up to 24 hours for more flavor development.
Preparing to bake your homemade sourdough crackers
After fermentation, preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. If you have a baking stone or pizza stone, place it in the oven to preheat.
Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces using a bench scraper. Keep three pieces covered to prevent them drying out while working with the first section.
Press the dough flat onto a piece of parchment paper.
Place another piece of parchment paper on top and roll the dough as flat as possible.
I find it easiest to use a rolling pin that has adjustable thickness rings. If you have one like this, use the thinnest setting, getting the dough as thin as it will allow. Once it is rolled out, remove the thickness rings and roll out even thinner.
To help prevent the edges from getting thinner than the rest of the dough. Start rolling just past the edge of the dough and roll towards the other side, stopping just before getting to the edge. Then rotate the dough 90 degrees and do the same process again. Repeat this process until your dough is extremely thin. Doing it this way keeps you from pressing the edges too thin, as it naturally presses out the edges when you roll it all the way out to the edge.
Remove the top parchment paper and sprinkle the top of the dough with coarse or flaky sea salt and any desired seasonings. Gently press the seasoning into the dough, either with your bare hands, or by placing the parchment paper back on top and gently pressing.
Baking the Crackers
If using the top parchment, carefully remove it. Use a fork to dock holes all over the sheet of cracker dough to prevent puffing during baking.
Use a pizza cutter to cut the dough into approximately 1-inch squares. There is no perfect way to do this, just make sure your crackers are similar in size for more even baking.
Slide the parchment paper with the dough onto the preheated stone or baking sheet. This was easy to do with a pizza peel! Give it a try if you have one!
Bake the crackers at 350°F for 8-10 minutes. This time can vary based on how thick the crackers are and how crispy you want them. Watch closely towards the end to prevent burning.
Remove any crackers that brown faster than others and continue baking the rest.
Repeat this process with the remaining dough pieces. Remove the crackers from the baking sheet and allow the crackers to cool on a chopping block or plate before storing.
Storing Your Crackers
This recipe yields about 6-7 cups of crackers. Store them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week for best results.
How to serve your homemade sourdough crackers:
These whole wheat crackers are delicious all on their own, but there are endless ways to enjoy these homemade crackers. Here are some good options:
Pack them for a picnic or an easy snack on-the-go.
Bring them to a party with your favorite dip. We love spinach dip, buffalo chicken dip and homemade guacamole!
Serve them on a charcuterie board with your favorite cheese and meats.
Eat these homemade crackers along side your favorite soup. They are delicious with vegetable beef soup!
Helpful tips when making Potato Flake Sourdough Discard Whole Wheat Crackers:
- Maintain Dough Temperature: Ensure that the melted butter is not too hot when adding it to the sourdough starter to prevent killing the starter. Lukewarm or room temperature butter works best for this recipe.
- Roll Out the Dough Thinly: Roll the dough out as thin as possible to achieve crispy crackers. Using a rolling pin with adjustable thickness rings can help ensure even thickness throughout.
- Prevent Edges from Thinning: Roll the dough from the center outward to prevent the edges from becoming too thin. Rotate the dough 90 degrees periodically to maintain uniform thickness.
- Dock Holes in the Dough: Use a fork to poke holes in the rolled-out dough before baking. Docking prevents the dough from puffing up unevenly during baking, resulting in uniformly crisp crackers.
- Save excess starter: Whenever you have excess starter, place it in a jar in the fridge and continue adding to it as you get more excess starter. Save it and use it to make crackers or another potato flake starter discard recipe!
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Potato Flake Sourdough Discard Whole Wheat Crackers
Equipment
- Stand mixer with dough hook attachment
- Plastic wrap or airtight cover
- Rolling Pin
- Parchment Paper
- Pizza wheel cutter
- Bench scraper
- Baking stone or pizza stone baking sheet will do if you don't have a stone, but may need to adjust baking time
- Salt grinder for coarse salt)
- Fork (for docking holes)
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup discard potato flake starter can also use active
- 1/4 cup Melted Salted Butter
- 1/4 teaspoon Salt
- 1 1/2 cups Whole Wheat Flour
- 2 Tablespoons Whole Flax Seeds
- Coarse or flaky salt for top
Instructions
- Begin by melting your butter and allowing it to cool while you gather the rest of your ingredients.
- In a stand mixer, combine the potato flake sourdough discard starter, flour, salt, flax seeds, and cooled butter. Be sure the butter isn’t too hot, as it can harm your starter.
- Attach the dough hook and knead the mixture on low speed for 5-10 minutes until a ball forms. Start on low speed, then switch to medium for a minute or two to help the ball come together before returning to low speed. If the dough is not coming together, and the dough is too sticky, add a bit more flour. Be careful to not add too much flour, just a tablespoon at a time.
- Once the dough is kneaded, cover the bowl with plastic wrap or another airtight cover and let it ferment at room temperature for 8-12 hours. You can extend this time for up to 24 hours for more flavor development.
- After fermentation, preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. If you have a baking stone or pizza stone, place it in the oven to preheat.
- Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces using a bench scraper. Keep three pieces covered to prevent them drying out while working with the first section.
- Press the dough flat onto a piece of parchment paper.
- Place another piece of parchment paper on top and roll the dough as flat as possible.
- I find it easiest to use a rolling pin that has adjustable thickness rings. If you have one like this, use the thinnest setting, getting the dough as thin as it will allow. Once it is rolled out, remove the thickness rings and roll out even thinner.
- See the post on additional info on how to get it evenly thin.
- Remove the top parchment paper and sprinkle the top of the dough with coarse or flaky sea salt and any desired seasonings. Gently press the seasoning into the dough, either with your bare hands, or by placing the parchment paper back on top and gently pressing.
- If using the top parchment, carefully remove it. Use a fork to dock holes all over the sheet of cracker dough to prevent puffing during baking.
- Use a pizza cutter to cut the dough into approximately 1-inch squares.
- Slide the parchment paper with the dough onto the preheated stone or baking sheet.
- Bake the crackers at 350°F for 8-10 minutes. This time can vary based on how thick the crackers are and how crispy you want them. Watch closely towards the end to prevent burning.
- Remove any crackers that brown faster than others and continue baking the rest.
- Repeat this process with the remaining dough pieces. Remove the crackers from the baking sheet and allow the crackers to cool on a chopping block or plate before storing.
- This recipe yields about 6-7 cups of crackers. Store them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week for best results.
Is 5-6 hours fermentation enough?
It may not be fully fermented but it will still be fine!