Seven Sourdough Recipes That Aren’t Bread
From pretzels to pancakes, there are other ways to use your sourdough starter.
Baking brings comfort—which explains why since the beginning of the COVID-19 quarantine, flour and yeast have been flying off supermarket shelves.
From what I’ve seen on social media, sourdough bread seems to be the baking experiment of choice. The process of finding or making a starter, feeding it, and actually baking the bread requires a lot of time and patience—something we have plenty of right now (well, maybe not patience).
The difference between sourdough and regular bread is that sourdough does not require store-bought yeast—good news if you’ve had trouble finding any at your local grocery store. The sourdough starter is the leavening agent and is made of live, fermented cultures. To acquire a starter, you can either make your own or purchase one. No matter what you choose, your starter will need to be fed continuously in order to keep it alive, which requires adding flour and water to it about once a week. King Arthur Flour has a guide to help you understand the process from start to finish.
Once you have a healthy starter, you’re ready to bake! But you don’t have to limit yourself to bread: These seven recipes prove the sky’s the limit when it comes to sourdough.
Photo via Rebooted Mom
If you have kids, rolling out these golden-brown beauties is a great way to keep them occupied. Sprinkle them with your choice of topping—salt, garlic powder, onion powder, and Trader Joe’s Everything but the Bagel seasoning are all good options.
Photo via The Southern Lady Cooks
No need to wait for the dough to rise: These fresh muffins are ready in just 30 minutes. The recipe calls for spices like cinnamon and nutmeg, but would also be excellent with raisins or nuts added to the batter.
Photo via Tastes of Lizzy T
These fluffy pancakes can be whipped up on a Sunday morning in as little as 10 minutes. Flip them when they begin to bubble on top and then cook for one to two more minutes. Serve with fresh fruit and maple syrup.
Photo via Real Food Real Deals
Plan ahead when you want to make this cake—the starter, flour, and water need to sit together the night before you bake. For an extra-decadent dessert, add in some dark chocolate chips or a tablespoon of espresso powder to bring out the chocolate flavor.
Photo via Buttered Side Up
Looking for a healthy snack? Whip up this naturally sweet banana bread, which contains very little added sugar. To amp up the flavor, try stirring chocolate chips, pecans, or walnuts into the batter and topping the finished product with a light spread of grass-fed butter.
Photo via Pies and Tacos
Taco night will be even tastier with a stack of homemade tortillas. Use a rolling pin to shape the dough, or a pasta machine if you have one.
Photo via An Oregon Cottage
7. Sourdough Whole Wheat Crackers
Featuring whole wheat and a little honey, this recipe mimics the taste of Wheat Thins. Once the crackers are cut out of the dough, drizzle with olive oil, lightly sprinkle with sea salt, and then bake until they’re medium-brown in color.
