Garlic Breadsticks

Garlic breadsticks and steaming hot soup, garlic breadsticks and marinara for dipping, garlic breadsticks and spaghetti, garlic breadsticks with a Greek or Italian salad, garlic breadsticks with snickerdoodles...okay, maybe not snickerdoodles, but these breadsticks DO taste great with a whole lot of things. My family can eat them with ALMOST anything! I'll let you in on the recipe for these yummy garlic breadsticks with a warning**do not make more than one batch at a time or your family may not ingest any of the other nutritionally necessary food groups.**

Here is the way I do it:

I start by putting 1 1/2 cups of warm water in my mixer's bowl. I don't measure the temperature, I just make sure it is a little warmer than lukewarm ~ not hot. Then I put in 1 tablespoon yeast and 2 tablespoons of sugar. I give it a stir and then let it sit for 5-10 minutes until it starts getting foamy ~ this means the yeast is doing it's thing.

When it's foamy like this it's time to add the remaining ingredients.

I add one tablespoon of salt (sometimes sea salt, kosher salt, or table salt ~ it doesn't seem to matter), 3 tablespoons of softened butter, and 3 cups of bread flour (bread flour has more gluten which helps to make the breadsticks chewy, rather than crispy). Then, using the dough hook on my mixer I mix for about 3 minutes, or until all the ingredients are incorporated. (If you don't have a mixer with a dough hook you can mix this together with a wooden spoon.)

When everything seems mixed I keep the mixer running on low and then add more flour 1/2 cup at a time until the dough cleans the sides of the bowl. It usually takes about 1 more cup of flour to get to this point, but depending on the humidity you may need up to 2 more cups of flour. When your dough gets to this point keep the mixer on low and knead the dough for 7 minutes ~ turn your timer on and walk away...If you don't have a mixer to do the kneading for you, put the dough on a floured surface and knead by hand for 7 minutes.

Now I put the dough on a floured surface and with my hands I roll it into a long log. I spray the blade of a knife with cooking spray and cut my dough-log into 14 pieces. Then I take each of those pieces and roll it between my hands to make 14 sticks.

I put those lovely breadsticks on cookie sheets lined with silicone. You could  use cooking spray or parchment paper instead of silicone , but I LOVE silicone. You'll notice my breadsticks are not perfectly identical. I find they taste better if you don't spend too much time rolling them around trying for perfection. Anyway, that's part of their charm!

I don't have a picture of this...but I put the breadsticks in my oven set at it's lowest setting for about 20 minutes. They should almost double in size. At that point I take them out and reset the oven temperature to 400 degrees. 

And while the oven is preheating to 400 degrees I get to the decadent part...I melt a full stick of butter and put seasoned salt and garlic powder in it.  With this batch I used Tastefully Simple's "Garlic-Garlic", and their Seasoned Salt, but it is also good with other brands.

I brush that buttery, garlicy goodness all over the tops, and I usually go over them a couple of times to let it soak in and slather all over...mmm, mmm, mmm...I reserve about a quarter of the butter mixture to use when they come out of the oven.

I pop them in the oven and set my timer for 7 minutes. When the timer goes off I switch the trays so they brown evenly and reset the oven for another 7 minutes.

As soon as I take them out of the oven I brush on the remaining butter mixture and I sprinkle them liberally with Parmesan cheese...and I try not to get into them until it's time to eat dinner...and I try to keep GoodMan out of them...and I try to keep the grandkids out of them...and then I give up and consider them the appetizer.

Here's the official recipe for Garlic Breadsticks

1 1/2 cups warm water

1 tbl yeast

2 tbl sugar

1 tbl salt (sounds like a lot ~ but it's not a typo) 

3 tbl butter, softened

4-5 cups bread flour

topping

1/2 cup butter, melted

1/2 tsp seasoned salt

2 tsp Tastefully Simple "Garlic-Garlic" seasoning - or may use 1/2 tsp garlic powder

Parmesan Cheese - you'll probably use 1/3 cup

For the breadsticks:
In a mixer bowl stir the warm water, sugar, and yeast. Let the mixture "bloom" (blooming is what the yeast does as it makes contact with the warm water and sugar ~ it should get foamy) for about 10 minutes.

With mixer on low and using a dough hook attachment, mix in the salt, butter, and 3 cups of flour. When all ingredients are incorporated add in additional flour 1/2 cup at a time until the dough cleans the sides of the bowl. (I usually end up using about 4 cups of flour, but you may use more
depending on the humidity and other factors.)

When the dough has cleaned the sides of the bowl leave the mixer on low and knead for 7 minutes. (Turn the timer on and walk away ~ don't touch it for 7 minutes!) If you don't have a mixer with a dough hook you can knead it by hand for 7 minutes.

When kneading is finished take the dough out and roll by hand into a large log. Use a sharp knife sprayed with cooking spray to cut 14 equal pieces. Roll each of the pieces by hand into sticks.

Put sticks on 2 greased cookie sheets. Put the cookie sheets in an oven turned to the lowest setting (my oven says 170 degrees) for 20 minutes, or until about doubled in size.

When sticks have doubled in size take them out of the oven. Turn the oven temperature up to 400 degrees. While the oven is heating up mix all the topping ingredients together in a small bowl. Use a pastry brush to spread the topping mixture on all the sticks. Reserve 1/4 of the topping mixture.

Bake breadsticks for 14 minutes (switch trays half way through to allow for even browning.) Immediately after removing from the oven brush the remaining butter mixture over the breadsticks and sprinkle Parmesan cheese over the top.

What is the taste tester's bottom line?

Everybody loves these...the warmer, the better...

Bottom line: Keep bread flour and yeast in the pantry at all times!