Breadsticks / Grissini / Italian breadsticks

Makes about 2 dozen

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup of whole wheat flour 
• 3/4 cup warm water 
• 1 teaspoon honey 
• 1 package (1 scant tablespoon) active-dry yeast 
• 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour 
• 3 tablespoons good extra-virgin olive oil 
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt 
• Oil for the bowl 
• Optional additions: sesame seeds; poppy seeds; chopped thyme, sage, or rosemary; sea salt or flavored salt; coarse ground black pepper 

Equipment

• Measuring ups and spoons 
• Stand mixer (or mixing bowl) 
• Wooden spoon 
• Small bowl 
• Tea towel or plastic wrap 
• Baking sheets 
• Parchment paper 
• Sharp knife or bench scraper 
• Cooling rack 

Instructions

1. Proof the yeast. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the whole wheat flour, water, honey and yeast. Stir with a wooden spoon to combine and let sit for 10 minutes. The mixture should be foamy and show some liveliness. 
2. Add the remaining ingredients. Add the all-purpose flour, olive oil, and salt. Mix on low speed with the dough hook attachment until combined, and then on medium speed for 5 to 7 minutes until the dough is smooth and shiny. 
3. Let rest. Remove the dough from the mixer bowl and transfer it to a small bowl. Drizzle a tiny amount of olive oil over the dough and roll it around until it has been coated. Cover with a tea towel or plastic wrap, and let sit undisturbed in a warm place for one hour or until doubled in bulk. 
4. Preheat the oven and prep the baking sheets.When the dough is ready, preheat your oven to 425°F and line 2 or 3 baking sheets with parchment paper. 
5. Divide dough (optional). If you would like to make several different varieties of grissini from a single batch, punch the dough down and divide into portions. For this post, I made plain, rosemary and black sesame seed grissini, so I divided the dough into three pieces. 
6. Shape the dough. For plain grissini, shape the dough into a rough, flat rectangle. Slice a finger-sized piece from the long length of the rectangle with a sharp knife or a bench scrapper. Roll it into a long, irregularly shaped snake and place on the baking sheet. Continue with the remaining dough, placing the dough snakes about 1/2" apart. Note: The dough contains enough olive oil that you shouldn't need flour to roll it out. If, for some reason, it is sticky, sprinkle a small amount of four on your surface before rolling. 
7. Add flavor to the grissini (optional.) To add herbs, knead about 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of finely chopped fresh herbs into the dough and roll into snakes, as above. To add seeds, make the snakes as above. Measure out a couple of tablespoons of seeds and coax them into a long, thin line — as long as your snakes but fatter. Lay your snake over the seeds and press gently to make the seeds adhere. Place snakes on the baking sheet. Pick up one end and twist several times to create a swirl. 
8. Let the grissini rise until puffed. Let the grissini rest for a few minutes before baking, so they puff up a bit, about 15 minutes. 
9. Bake the grissini. Place the baking sheets with grissini into the oven and bake for 10 to 15 minutes. At 5 minutes, rotate the pans and check their progress. The grissini are quite thin, so they will burn easily! Keep an eye on them and take them out when they are golden brown. 
10. Cool and store. Carefully move the grissini to a cooling rack to cool. Once they are cool, store them in an airtight container (for up to 2 to 3 days) until ready to serve. 
11. Recipe Notes 
12. If you want to add coarse salt or flavored salts to the outside of your grissini, decrease the salt by 1/2 teaspoon while making the dough. 
13. To make the grissini dough without a stand mixer, mix it by hand in a mixing bowl and then knead it on the counter for about 10 minutes. You may need to sprinkle on a little flour at first.

THIS IS THE VIDEO HOW TO MAKE BREADSTICKS :

http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-make-grissini-cooking-lessons-from-the-kitchn-191541

Posted by : Gabriela Natasya