Olive Garden Breadsticks (Original Post 6/13/11)

If you have ever been to Olive Garden, you know how great these breadsticks are. Again, this recipe is from the book Top Secret Restaurant Recipes 3 by Todd Wilbur.

Ingredients:

2 TBS. granulated sugar

3/4 tsp. active dry yeast

1 cup plus 1 TBS warm water (105 to 115 degrees F)

16 ounces bread flour (3 cups)

1 1/2 tsp. salt

1/4cup (1/2 stick) butter, softened

Topping Ingredients:

2 TBS butter melted

1/2 tsp. garlic salt

Directions:

Dissolve the sugar and yeast in the warm water in a small bowl or measuring cup and let the mixture sit for 5 minutes or until it becomes foamy on top. Combine the flour and salt in a large bowl. Use the paddle attachment on a stand mixer to mix the soften butter into the flour. If you don’t have a stand mixer; use a mixing spoon to combine the butter with the flour. When the yeast mixture is foamy, pour it into the flour mixture and use a dough hook on your mixer to combine the ingredients and knead the dough for approximately 10 minutes. If you don’t have a stand mixer; combine the ingredients and then knead the dough by hand on the counter top for 10 minutes. Place the dough in a covered container and let it sit for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, until it doubles in size. When the dough has doubled, measure out a 2-ounce portions and roll the dough between your hands or on a countertop to form sticks that are 7 inches long. Place the dough on parchment paper-lined baking sheets, cover, and set aside for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, or until the dough doubles in size once again. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Bake the breadsticks for 12 minutes, or until golden brown. When the breadsticks come out of the oven, immediately brush each one with melted butter and sprinkle with a little garlic salt.

Tips:

If you are pressed for time or just don’t want to deal with making the breadsticks from scratch, I have seen frozen bread sticks in my grocery store freezer section, use those instead for a quick version of these.