Seeded Sourdough Lavash Crackers
Made With Sourdough Discard And Other Goodness

Don't get me wrong, I LOVE bread, and that's not going to change! However,Lavash Crackers there are times when there is nothing as satisfying as a cracker. The crunch! The burst of flavor! These crackers are a bit of trouble, but I think you'll love the results!

We've been making these amazing crackers for at least 15 years, and they have so much history - both personal and culinary - I don't know where to start discussing them. I do know that every time we serve them, they are a big hit! People tell us we should sell them. Rolling them by hand is such a bother, we never felt we could do that. Now that we have a pasta machine, we're reconsidering. Lavash crackers are related to Lavash bread which a Persian friend tells me, "is is the best bread in the world." When we gave her some of these crackers she told us that while they were OK, they weren't Lavash Bread. She was right, these are Lavash Crackers which are wonderful crackers. We like to break them into irregular shapes, put them in a basket or vase, and serve them with hummus, tahini or any dip. However, they are just fine all by themselves!

There are a number of great things about these crackers. They are a way to use up sourdough discard. We have made it with sourdough starter that has been sitting at room temperature for a week, alone, unfed and unloved (we do NOT advocate starter abuse, but, as the saying goes, stuff happens). We have made it with fresh and active starter. It always turns out great!

Lavash crackers with a variety of toppingsAnother great thing about these crackers is their culinary flexibility. You can top them with herbs and/or spices to kick them up to another level, or leave them plain so they'll merely be delicious. You can mix in some spent brewers grain to add more crunch, more flavor, and have a way to use left over, or spent, grains from brewing beer. If you don't brew, spent grain is grain that was used to brew beer. The sugars have been extracted, but the fiber, fat and protein remain. Brewers usually have to pay to get rid of the grain, so you can usually get spent grain from a local brewer for free.

Yet another great thing about these crackers is how wonderful they taste and how popular they are. Once people try them on a buffet, they tend to munch on the crackers until they are gone.

The dough for Lavash crackers is VERY stiff. However, it softens in the overnight rise, so don't give in to common sense and add more water - it isn't needed. Really. Also, if you use a KitchenAid mixer, don't scale this recipe up too far - it is a HEAVY load for a KitchenAid!

Volumetric Measure (Cups)IngredientGramsBaker's Percentage (4)
1/8 CupWater25 Grams9.9%
2 TBSPHoney (1)36 Grams14.5%
1 2/3 TBSPOlive Oil24 Grams9.7%
3/4 CupActive Sourdough Starter170 Grams69%
2 Cups + 1 TBSPBread Flour250 Grams100%
1/4 CupBrewers Spent Grain (Optional, but delightful)25 Grams10%
3/4 TspSalt5 Grams1.9%

  1. If you prefer to not use honey, you may substitute a light sweetener such as Agave syrup.  I wouldn't use molasses, ribbon cane syrup or other heavier sweeteners as they would overwhelm the delicate taste of these crackers.

Knead the ingredients for 5 minutes, cover and let rest 5 minutes. Knead another 5 minutes. This dough is VERY stiff, so it may require longer kneading to become a smooth dough. I know it is counter intuitive, but the timings are the same whether you are using an electric mixer or are kneading by hand.  With a dough this stiff, I do not recommend the stretch and fold process.

Cover the dough and allow it to ferment overnight. In the morning it will be a much more manageable dough. While you can roll out the dough using a rolling pin, we suggest using a pasta roller. In the movies we'll add in the next week or twelve, we are using a KitchenAid pasta roller. We have also used a manual Atlas pasta machine.

Get ready for the next step by lining four half size sheet pans with bakers parchment or silpat. You may use larger pans if your oven will hold them. Preheat your oven to 350F/175C.

youtube-video-thumbnail

The video above walks you through rolling out the cracker dough, which is very similar to rolling out pasta dough.  If you have made pasta, you probably don't need to read the next few paragraphs or watch the video.  In any case, divide the dough you let ferment overnight into several pieces more or less half a pound each, squash the dough a bit so it will go through the pasta machine and then lightly flour the dough. Set the pasta machine to the widest opening (0 or 1, on the machines I've seen). If you are using a KitchenAid pasta machine, start the mixer at speed 2. Then run the dough through your pasta machine. The dough will probably be a bit rough and ragged, and that's OK - it will get better! It may even shred apart! If it does, pat the shreds together and pass them through the machine again. The dough WILL get better! Fold the dough over in half lengthwise, flour the outside, and then run it through again. Repeat this step 3 or 4 times. The dough will get smoother and better developed each time. Do this for each dough ball.

Some people complain that pasta machines are too hard to clean. I used to be one of them. The issue is my, and their, dough was too wet. You want a dry dough. Flouring the dough helps keep the dough nicely workable. Let the pasta machine dry for an hour after you use it then use a brush to clean the machine. Do not use water to clean the pasta machine!

Once the dough is nicely smooth, close the pasta machine rollers 1 step.Lavash Crackers nutrional analysis From 0 or 1 to 1 or 2. Run all of your dough balls (now sheets) through the pasta machine once. Close the machine another step and repeat. How thin do you want your crackers? I like my Lavash crackers very thin, so I roll the dough out to step 4 or 5, depending on the machine. I find I can put two strips of dough lengthwise into a sheet pan. Cut the dough to fit.

Once the dough is in the sheet I use a butter or table knife to cut each strip into two smaller strips.  You don't have to cut all the way through as once baked the strips will break apart cleanly.

Using a spray bottle, mist the strips of dough. Sprinkle the dough with your choice of herbs, seeds and spices. We've enjoyed sprinkling the dough with anise seeds, caraway seeds, sesame seeds, poppy seeds, or coarse sea salt. Be careful with the salt as it will dissolve instantly making it hard to see how much is on the dough. Once baked, you'll again have salt crystals, and it is easy to have too many of them. Don't ask me how I know this.

We've not really enjoyed black sesame seeds on their own, finding them too bland, but they present  an interesting visual contrast if mixed with white sesame seeds.

A friend of ours loves mixing nigella seeds and rosemary. If you do this, be sparing with the rosemary as it can take over the flavor of anything if used too heavily! We also like not topping them at all, but leaving them plain. As with focaccia, the crackers are a blank canvas and you can paint whatever you want on the canvas. If it works, you have a new recipe, if not, well, it wasn't that expensive an experiment!

Once the cracker dough is rolled, put on sheet pans, sprayed and seeded, and the oven is at temperature, put a few pans in the oven. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, rotating the pans half way through the bake. You want a nice brown color without the crackers scorching. We bake these on the sheet pans so they won't get too dark. If you under-bake the crackers they will have an unpleasant doughy texture inside. Don't let this happen to you! You really should note the color of the crackers and shoot for a good color. Sometimes they are a bit light or dark if you just watch the timer. The timer is a reminder, not a harsh ruler!

Take the parchment out of the sheet pans, and then slide the crackers off the parchment onto cooling racks. The crackers will cool very quickly.

We like to break the long crackers into more manageable pieces and put them in baskets or jars on the table. And now all that's left is to enjoy the fruits of your labor!

14 thoughts on “Sourdough Lavash Crackers”

    1. Like we say in the post, “While you can roll out the dough using a rolling pin, we suggest using a pasta roller.”

      It is a stiff dough, even after the overnight ferment, so it isn’t easy to roll out by hand. But it can be done.

      Good luck,
      Mike

    2. I made these for the first time yesterday/today. No kidding about the pasta roller. I rolled by hand first and couldn’t really get them thin enough. So for the second half of the dough I used the pasta roller. On mine it was settings 6, 5, 4, and 3.
      Super thin and crispy. So much better than others that I had tried. The kneading definitely makes a difference. These were less pastry like and more flatbread/hard cracker like. Definitely a winner. Thank you.

      1. Thanks for the kind words! We think these crackers are absolutely addictive!

        We used to use our Atlas Marcato 150 pasta roller to make these. As you learned, it’s hard to roll a stiff dough thinly enough to work well. Lately, we’ve been using a KitchenAid pasta roller attachment. When you are rolling long strips of dough with the Atlas pasta roller it can become a three handed process. One hand to guide the dough into the roller, one hand to guide the dough out of the roller, and one to crank. You may need a fourth hand if the Atlas isn’t tightly fastened to the counter top. With the KitchenAid pasta roller attachment – or any motorized pasta roller – it becomes a 2 handed project. You no longer have to wait for someone to help you.

        Enjoy!
        Mike

  1. I made the dough for a treble sized batch this morning. Kneaded by hand – I knew from my previous experience and your observations that my KitchenAid mixer would struggle. I struggled too!.Elapsed time was about 30 minutes. I ended up kneading in smaller quantities ad the combining for a final knead.

    Flavorings will be incorporated after I have divided the dough and while I am prepping it for the pasta machine. I am thinking of the following:
    Coarse sea salt
    Toasted sesame seeds
    Rosemary
    Za’atar
    Dried chives
    Dried tarragon
    Ground black pepper
    Parmigiano Reggiano
    My general experience is that when I have the flavorings on the surface they either burn (green herbs), don’t get done enough (sesame seeds) , or fall off (all of the above). Even if I spritz, oil, etc. Do you gave any helpful hints?

    By the way, I don’t know if you remember , but you and I had lunch at an Indian place in Irving about 8 years ago.

    Chris

    1. Hi Chris,
      That is a lot of kneading! A pro-tip – rolling the dough in the pasta machine will help develop it, so you don’t need to develop it as far as you would develop a bread dough.

      I haven’t had a lot of trouble with spraying the crackers with water and sprinkling seeds and such on them. Some fall off, but I save them and use them again. On the herbs burning, yeah, kneading them into the dough is the way to go. If you want to share some pictures, please feel free to do so!

      Sadly, I don’t remember the outing to the Indian restaurant in Irving. Was that with a Meet Up group like Ethnic Dining in Dallas? We had a number of great outings with them!

      Best wishes,
      Mike

      1. Mike, it was a one on one. I am a Brit. Does that ring a bell? I was trying to figure out why my bread dough was the teture of heavy cream! You (and Clint from Village Baking Company) both helped me.

        Where can I post pictures? I made a lot of lavash today and some of it is really nice looking.

        C

        1. Hi Chris,
          Well, that surprised me! I thought you could add pictures. It seems not. I’m looking for a plug0in that will let you do that and will get back with you when it’s possible.
          Sorry about misleading you.
          -Mike

  2. Dennis McCanna

    Hey Mike, Sourdough Lavish crackers are definitely worthy of serving to company, they are reeeeeal good! The recipe was right on the mark. The Pasta machine tip really made it easy to make them. I tried Reinhart’s recipe some time ago and had a difficult time getting them thin enough BESIDES my arm was ready to fall off. Was disappointed in those.

    I have a Weston Pasta Maker for anyone that has one I used settings 0/3/6, worked out perfect.

    Made it a cracker day: You will have to cut and paste the links for the pictures to the folder.
    https://drive.google.com/file/d/1QYTWN-NBxWo4E8JblAMvxsbNzwTegnlO/view?usp=sharing
    https://drive.google.com/file/d/1CJy7grGSgvwNxJOkw-geC6deLrPurmZs/view?usp=sharing
    https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-iHd43fz_HgBYdjaxtNoXoLP5R8YeKaX/view?usp=sharing

    Thanks
    Dennis

    P.S. P.R. needs to place you on his staff for tips

    1. Hi Dennis,
      Those are some nice looking crackers! Major congratulations on them! Sadly, at this time I can’t put images in the comments. It’s on my list of things to do.
      Best wishes,
      Mike

    1. Hi Debra,
      Cracker recipes are different from bread recipes – the dough is much drier, and they aren’t risen all that much. As a result, you can use just about any flour you want to use and you’ll probably like the results. If you don’t, well, it was a cheap experiment!
      -Mike

  3. I made them with spelt and whole wheat flour. I seasoned them 3 ways: sesame; flax seed, chia & hemp seeds; garlic and onion spice blend. Crispy and taste is slightly nutty. My husband liked the garlic ones the best, but I liked the sesame.

    1. Hi Debra,
      That’s GREAT! I love it when someone uses a recipe here as inspiration and moves on to try different things. Different flours will give you different flavors, as will diofferent toppings. Even with wheat, different heirloom wheats will change your cracker flavor.

      I hope you’ll send me some pictures of your creations!
      Best wishes,
      -Mike

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