The addition of mature sourdough starter to these flatbread crackers adds an element of soul. There is an attractive artisanal quality to these large irregularly shaped Sourdough Cracker Leaves, browned to a golden hue on the edges and flecked with choice bits of herb, cheese, seeds or salt on its surface.

Sourdough Cracker Leaves on a wood tray garnished with a sprig of rosemary.

Anxiety Baking

Like so many others, 2020 has challenged me to spend some extra time on the basics of scratch baking. By and by, that pursuit brought a sourdough starter into my life. Over time it even yielded a few loaves of mediocre levain bread. My exploration also led me to a new recipe for Sourdough Cracker Leaves.

While I have enjoyed learning more about sourdough baking my relationship with my new ward is a bit uncertain. I find it easy enough to keep up with the basic care and feeding of my sourdough starter. That happens in the morning as I complete my breakfast routine. Wrapping my daily schedule around the inclinations of wild yeast at work in a Dutch oven-sized loaf of sourdough bread is another thing. So far the remaining steps of the sourdough bread routine: autolyse, bulk ferment, proof and bake, have produced less consistent results.

Pandemic time remains strangely fluid to me. When I try to grasp and regulate the hours I find them slipping through my fingers. Too often that leads to disappointment in my finished loaves of levain. They are overproofed or underproofed or show other signs of neglect. We haven’t had any problem with eating them it’s just that they aren’t really anything to write home about.

Sourdough Discard

Baking with my sourdough discard is another thing. That part of my sourdough journey has proven to be more rewarding than creating those (so far) less than impressive loaves of sourdough bread.

I think I have always loved the idea of turning trash into treasure. I admire quilting, especially when quilters turn bits of discarded fabric into a tapestry that is both decorative and useful. Baking with sourdough discard is a similar exercise in resource management. There are many creative uses for it. The trick is in figuring out which ones work for you.

I entertained myself for a whole morning looking up recipes to make the most of my sourdough discard. I found a recipe for sourdough brownies that sounded delicious but involved nearly as many steps and intervals as making the levain loaves themselves. I found lots of recipes for biscuits and finally baked a batch that I would call…. interesting. Next I tried a recipe for sourdough scones that, paired with fresh strawberries, made an adequate shortcake.

My son, who makes lovely loaves of levain, shared his favorite uses of sourdough discard. I watched him make beautiful focaccia, and helped him with some sandwich buns, pancakes and a few pizzas. All were fun to try but mostly not something I see myself repeating all that often.

A Lasting Impression

What I have come back to again and again are sourdough crackers. I fell in love with a recipe I found at loveandoliveoil.com. The recipe for Sourdough Crackers with Olive Oil & Herbs is much like another favorite recipe I discovered several years ago for Parchment Flatbread Crackers. I recognized the kinship and improvised only slightly.

Slim and pretty, Parchment Flatbread Crackers make a beautiful presentation. They are also exceedingly crisp and strong, breaking into shards when cracked, and can easily stand up to a variety of dips or spreads.

While I still admire the simplicity of the unleavened parchment crackers, using sourdough in the recipe allows something special to happen. The addition of the mature sourdough starter adds an element of soul to the cracker. The look is almost identical. There is an attractive artisanal quality to the large irregular cracker leaves, browned to a golden hue on the edges, flecked with choice bits of herb, cheese, seeds or salt on its surface.

The difference is in the crack. Broken to share, Sourdough Cracker Leaves embrace a softer snap, in places an almost tender crumble. The cracker pieces that result are dotted with an occasional layer here, a soft pocket of air there, while still maintaining a crisp presentation.

The taste, of course, is also different. The flavor of Sourdough Cracker Leaves is less simple, more developed. There is a gentle lingering tang but no assertion of sour. It leans away from the blank slate of the parchment crackers and invites the possibility of thoughtful pairing.