These sourdough cheese crackers are made with real cheddar cheese, sourdough starter (or discard), flour, oil, salt, and one essential spice. They’re the perfect crunchy snack with plenty of cheese flavor.
Why This Recipe Works
Commercial Cheez-It crackers really pack a flavorful punch. To imitate that flavor but also use better ingredients, you will use real sharp cheddar cheese and sourdough starter (or discard) in this recipe. These two ingredients will bring a tangy and cheesy flavor to the crackers. You will also use a small amount of paprika in the cracker dough, which is essentially for getting a flavor similar to Cheez-Its.
Ingredients You’ll Need for Sourdough Crackers
- All-Purpose Flour: I used King Arthur brand of all-purpose flour for this recipe. Any all-purpose flour will work.
- Sourdough Starter (or Discard): I used my 100% hydration sourdough starter for this recipe, which had been fed with white flour. It’s important that your starter be equal parts flour and water by weight, or else the cracker dough won’t turn out the same as the recipe. You can use either active sourdough starter that has doubled in size, or sourdough starter discard that has been stored in the fridge.
- Oil: Extra virgin olive oil will give a mild flavor to the crackers and it will also help the crackers toast up in the oven. You could also use canola oil or vegetable oil in place of olive oil, since that is what Cheez-Its uses in their commercial product.
- Salt: I used Morton’s Kosher salt for this recipe, but any plain sea salt or table salt will work fine.
- Paprika: You’ll need just a small amount of plain, unsmoked paprika to flavor your cracker dough. This small touch of flavorful spice will give your crackers the classic Cheez-It flavor. This is the one spice that’s listed on the Cheeze-Its ingredients list on the back of the box.
- Shredded Cheddar Cheese: For the best cheese flavor, use a cheese grater to shred a block of medium or sharp cheddar cheese. For this recipe, you will be blending the shredded cheese into the dough which will provide cheesy flavor and a slight orange color to the dough. The best varieties of cheese to use are medium or sharp cheddar cheeses because they have a more intense flavor. If you use a “mild” cheddar you might find the cheese flavor to be lacking.
Note: See recipe card below for full ingredient amounts and quantities.
Ingredient Amounts
- All-Purpose Flour – 1/2 cup (60 grams)
- Sourdough Starter (or Discard) – 2/3 cup (200 grams)
- Cheddar Cheese, Shredded – 4 oz. (113 grams)
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil – 3 Tbsp (42 grams)
- Paprika – 1/4 tsp (0.5 grams)
- Salt – 3/4 tsp (4 grams)
How to Make Sourdough Cheese Crackers (Homemade Cheez-Its)
Step-by-Step Instructions
Mixing the Dough
Pre-heat the oven to 350°F (180°C). In a blender or food processor, add the extra virgin olive oil, sourdough starter (or discard), salt, paprika, all-purpose flour, and shredded cheddar cheese. Blend at a medium-low speed until a smooth orange dough is formed (about one minute). Turn the dough out onto the kitchen counter and form the dough into a ball. Cover the dough with a kitchen towel and let it rest on the counter for 10 minutes.
Rolling Out the Dough
While the dough is resting, get out a metal sheet pan or pizza pan and line it with parchment paper. After the dough has rested, press the dough into the parchment paper and flatten it into a disc. Dust the top of the dough with a little bit of all-purpose flour and then roll the dough with a rolling pin into a large rectangle (between 1/16″ and 1/8″ thick).
Finishing Touches
Cut the dough into a rectangle with a pizza cutter and remove any of the excess dough pieces. (You can cut these dough scraps into crackers and bake them in a different pan.)
Slice the large rectangle of dough into roughly 1″x1″ squares. Then, press a dimple/hole into each square of dough with a chopstick. This will keep the sourdough cheese crackers from bubbling up in the oven while they bake.
Baking
Bake the crackers for 30-35 minutes at 350°F (180°F), or until golden brown. (Baking the crackers for less time will help preserve the orange color.)
Transfer the baked crackers to the countertop, remove them from the hot pan, and allow the crackers to cool at room temperature for about one hour before serving. Cooling down will make the crackers crispier and crunchier.
Sourdough cheese crackers should remain crunchy and flaky if kept at room temperature for up to 2-3 days.
Sourdough Cheese Crackers (Homemade Cheez-Its)
These sourdough cheese crackers are made with real cheddar cheese, sourdough starter (or discard), flour, oil, salt, and one essential spice. They’re the perfect crunchy snack with plenty of cheese flavor.
Ingredients
- All-Purpose Flour - 1/2 cup (60 grams)
- Sourdough Starter (or Discard) - 2/3 cup (200 grams)
- Cheddar Cheese, Shredded - 4 oz. (113 grams)
- Oil - 3 Tbsp (42 grams)
- Salt - 3/4 tsp (4 grams)
- Paprika - 1/4 tsp (0.5 grams)
Instructions
Mixing the Dough
Pre-heat the oven to 350°F (180°C). In a blender or food processor, add the extra virgin olive oil, sourdough starter (or discard), salt, paprika, all-purpose flour, and shredded cheddar cheese. Blend at a medium-low speed until a smooth orange dough is formed (about one minute). Turn the dough out onto the kitchen counter and form the dough into a ball. Cover the dough with a kitchen towel and let it rest on the counter for 10 minutes.
Rolling Out the Dough
While the dough is resting, get out a metal sheet pan or pizza pan and line it with parchment paper. After the dough has rested, press the dough into the parchment paper and flatten it into a disc. Dust the top of the dough with a little bit of all-purpose flour and then roll the dough with a rolling pin into a large rectangle (between 1/16″ and 1/8″ thick).
Finishing Touches
Cut the dough into a rectangle with a pizza cutter and remove any of the excess dough pieces. (You can cut these dough scraps into crackers and bake them in a different pan.)
Slice the large rectangle of dough into roughly 1″x1″ squares. Then, press a dimple/hole into each square of dough with a chopstick. This will keep the sourdough cheese crackers from bubbling up in the oven while they bake.
Baking
Bake the crackers for 30-35 minutes at 350°F (180°F), or until golden brown. (Baking the crackers for less time will help preserve the orange color.)
Transfer the baked crackers to the countertop, remove them from the hot pan, and allow the crackers to cool at room temperature for about one hour before serving. Cooling down will make the crackers crispier and crunchier.
Sourdough cheese crackers should remain crunchy and flaky if kept at room temperature for up to 2-3 days.