If you have a sourdough starter, you probably have discard. One of the biggest questions I get is what to do with the discard. You have a couple of options:
- There is zero shame in throwing away your discard! If I’m not in a saving mood, I will dump all but the dregs of starter out of my bowl or jar into the trash. I then feed what’s left in the jar about 25 grams each of flour and water just to refresh it.
- Add it to your “discard jar” in the fridge. I almost always have a 2-quart container in my fridge that I add my discard to. Anytime I feel like baking, I pull out the discard jar and figure out how to use it for the recipe I want.
- Bake with it! To make most any baking recipe a sourdough discard recipe, substitute equal amounts of flour and liquid (water, milk, etc) with sourdough starter. Example: sub 1 c. (225 grams) discard for 1/2 c. of the flour and 1/2 c. of the milk in a muffin recipe.
Here are links to my favorite sourdough discard recipes. Only the first recipe is mine, I found all of the others on Pinterest.
- Make Scones! Here is my favorite Cranberry White Chocolate Scones that I sell:
2. Prefer a savory scone? These are delicious!
https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/blog/2021/04/19/adding-sourdough-starter-to-scones
3. Make pancakes or waffles!
https://littlespoonfarm.com/sourdough-pancakes-waffles-recipe/
4. Make cookies! These are my favorite…I even sell these cookies sometimes!
https://amberskitchencooks.com/browned-butter-sourdough-chocolate-chip-cookies/
5. Make brownies! This recipe is the base recipe I use when I’m selling brownies. Want Reese’s brownies? Stir in chopped Reese’s. Want peppermint brownies? Stir in Andes peppermint chips and 1/4 tsp mint extract. Want to really shake it up? Put chunks of the above cookie dough on the brownies before you bake them.
https://littlespoonfarm.com/sourdough-brownies-recipe/
6. Bake bread! The sourdough discard in this yeasted loaf adds the most delicious flavor! This is the recipe I used for years instead of “real” sourdough bread. I still use it often when I want a french loaf or want bread I can make in just a couple hours.
https://amessykitchen.blogspot.com/2019/10/unfed-sourdough-starter-french-bread.html
7. Make dog treats!!
https://www.pantrymama.com/sourdough-dog-treats
8. Make pizza dough! This recipe makes 2 big pizzas. The second dough will freeze well for another time:). Make sure you allow plenty of time for rising on this one. It takes 5-6 hours to rise in a very warm place.
https://enwnutrition.com/sourdough-discard-pizza-dough/
9. Make banana bread! Something about the discard in this recipe makes the most delicious banana bread.
https://littlespoonfarm.com/sourdough-banana-bread-recipe/#recipe
10. Make pasta! When I’m feeling like a long day of cooking, I love dragging out the pasta maker attachments for my kitchen-aid and making fettuccini or ravioli with this recipe.
https://www.farmhouseonboone.com/homemade-sourdough-pasta/
11. Make crackers! I love adding some parmesan or cheddar cheese to make home made cheez-its.
https://littlespoonfarm.com/sourdough-discard-crackers/
12. Make pie crust!
https://www.farmhouseonboone.com/sourdough-pie-crust/
13. Make cinnamon rolls! You can use discard or active starter for this recipe. They’re not always pretty, but they’re delicious!
https://littlespoonfarm.com/sourdough-cinnamon-rolls/
What The Huck! 