Garlic Breadsticks Recipe
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Raise your hand if you want garlic breadsticks from scratch using my fan favorite pizza dough recipe. Soft and fluffy center, crisp crust and extra garlicky butter smeared on top before and after baking in the oven for the ultimate flavor profile. Serve with your favorite soup or sauce for dipping!
Garlic Breadsticks
One of the biggest recipe requests this year has been for my homemade garlic breadsticks from scratch. I’ve perfected my recipe using the Neapolitan pizza dough we’ve all been loving for years and it absolutely checks all the boxes: from texture, flavor and of course comfort. The perfect garlicky side to serve with all your fall and winter soups, stews and sauces. Go ahead and save this one in your favorite recipe file as I believe you’ll also be making it for years to come too.
About the Dough
Do yourself a favor and bring out your stand mixer for this one or a large food processor. You’ll want a good knead here for 10 minute or so to help develop the gluten strands, which can of course be done entirely by hand as well if you are up for a workout. I’ll take all the help I can get!
Shaping the Breadsticks
Once you divide the dough into 24 equal pieces you’ll start shaping them. You can do this easily by simply rolling each piece of dough between the palms of your hands into 7 inch ropes or so. At this point you can also twist some of them to make them more interesting as shown in the video tutorial below. Divide them between two trays to give plenty of space for rising without sticking to each other. Alternatively you could make these garlic knots instead instead if you fancy the more artistic process.
The Garlic Butter
I love using a salted cultured and dairy-free butter perfectly softened to room temperature. Stir in the garlic which I either grate or finely mince then balance the pungency with some minced Italian parsley. I smear all the breadsticks with a nice layer before and after baking for the ultimate garlicky flavor profile. Make sure the garlic bits are mixed in well and coated in the fat to prevent burning.
Serving
Best enjoyed warm straight out of the oven with an extra smear of garlic butter, but I’d never turn down a good leftover. Wrap them in parchment paper and store in a plastic bag on the kitchen counter overnight. You can freshen them up in the toaster oven for a couple of minutes before serving. Even the stale ones can be good torn into a bowl of soup Ribollita style.
Make Ahead + Freezing
Once shaped into sticks your dough can be frozen solid on a cookie sheet then wrapped in parchment paper and placed inside a freezer bag. When ready to bake bring it out to room temperature, place on a baking sheet and allow to rise for a couple of hours or until doubled in size before baking per recipe instructions.
What to Serve With
- Basil Walnut Pesto
- Italian White Bean Soup
- Best Minestrone Soup
- Tuscan Tomato Soup
- Cannellini Bean Soup
- Dip in Marinara or Arrabiata Sauce
- Roasted Tomato Soup
- Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
- Incredible Lentil Bolognese.
Note Worthy – These are not Grissini, the extra thin and crispy Italian breadsticks usually served in high end restaurants (stay tuned for that recipe in a future post). These are bigger soft and fluffy with a lightly crisp crust perfect for dunking in your favorite soups, stews and sauces.
How to Make Garlic Breadsticks at Home
Garlic Breadsticks
Ingredients
The Dough
- 5 cups all purpose flour + more as needed
- 1.5 tsp instant yeast
- 1.5 tsp fine sea salt
- 2.25 cups warm water
Garlic Butter
- 1/2 cup salted dairy-free butter softened
- 4-5 garlic cloves (grated or minced)
- 1/2 Tbsp Italian parsley minced (+ more for garnish)
- 1 pinch dry oregano optional
Instructions
- In the bowl of your kitchen aid stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment combine the flour, yeast and salt. Start pouring in the water and continue mixing until a dough is formed. (Alternatively you can use your large food processor to make the dough).5 cups all purpose flour, 1.5 tsp instant yeast, 1.5 tsp fine sea salt, 2.25 cups warm water
- Switch to the dough hook and knead on low speed (2 or 3) for 10 minutes. If the dough seems too sticky sprinkle in a tablespoon of flour as needed. The dough should stick some to the bottom of the bowl but not to the sides.
- Transfer the dough to a working surface sprinkled with flour.
- Using a sharp serrated bread knife cut the dough in half then cut each half into 12 equal pieces. (You will have a total of 24 bread sticks)
- Roll each piece of dough between your hands into 7 inch ropes. Place them on a large parchment lined baking sheet without touching each other. (You might want to use 2 trays here or just bake 1/2 the dough and refrigerate or freeze the other for later or to make pizza).
- Cover the breadsticks with a lint free tea towel and place in a draft free area to let them rise for a couple of hours or until doubled in size. (TIP: If your house is cold you can preheat the oven to 200”F and turn it off. Then store the bread sticks to rise in there).
- GARLIC BUTTER - Combine the garlic butter ingredients until creamy. Just before baking use a bread knife and smear a thin layer over each breadstick. Sprinkle with sea salt flakes.1/2 cup salted dairy-free butter, 4-5 garlic cloves
- Preheat oven to 400”F. Bake the breadsticks for about 10 to 12 minutes until lightly golden and making sure none of the garlic topping burns.
- Transfer the tray to a cooling rack and while still hot smear the remaining soft butter all over the top. Serve warm with a sprinkling of fresh minced parsley.1/2 Tbsp Italian parsley, 1 pinch dry oregano
Video
Notes
- Storage. Best enjoyed warm but I never turned down a leftover. Wrap them in parchment paper and store in a plastic bag on the kitchen counter overnight. You can freshen them up in the toaster oven for a couple of minutes before serving. Even the stale ones can be good torn into a bowl of soup Ribollita style.
- Make Ahead + Freezing. If making the dough in advance you can shape the breadsticks and refrigerate or freeze for later use. Once shaped the breadsticks can be frozen solid on a cookie sheet then wrapped in parchment paper and placed inside a freezer bag. When ready to bake bring them out to room temperature, place on a baking sheet and allow to rise for a couple of hours or until doubled in size before baking per recipe instructions.
- Note Worthy - These are not Grissini, the extra thin and crispy Italian breadsticks usually served in high end restaurants, stay tuned for that recipe in a future post. These are bigger soft and fluffy with a slightly crisp crust but not crunchy and skinny.
