How to Make Italian Breadsticks

**We now use our Nutrimill to grind our wheat.**

There are so many fun things you can do with bread dough! Man, the possibilities are endless! Let’s explore the world of breadsticks today. These are delicious! They make the house smell like Olive Garden. They make your hips expand involuntarily. But man oh man, are they worth it. Let’s bake!

We’ll need yeast, warm water, sugar, salt, oil, Parmesan cheese, garlic powder, bread flour, egg white, water, and sesame seed (poppy seeds or coarse salt can be used instead). You could use fresh Parmesan if you had it but I only had the canned stuff. The fresh version is expensive for my blood, so it’s an occasional treat.

In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in the warm water. Lean down and sniff. Heavenly!

When the yeast is dissolved, add sugar, salt, oil, cheese, garlic powder, and part of the flour. Beat it until it’s smooth.

Add the rest of the flour until you get a stiff dough. It should come together into a ball when you’re stirring it. Don’t give up! Sometimes it feels like it will take forever to work all that flour in. Just think of it as exercise. That way you won’t feel guilty when you polish off 5 straight out of the oven.

Turn out onto a floured surface and knead for about 2-3 minutes or until it’s smooth. These shouldn’t be kneaded as long as loaf bread. It will feel weirdo when you’re kneading because of that Parmesan cheese. The smell makes up for the weirdness though. Divide dough into fourths and roll each part into a ball. See how mine aren’t the same size? I’m not good at division. Diversity!

Cut each ball into 9 pieces. I didn’t get 9 pieces out of each section, but that’s ok! It’s not an exact science.

Roll each piece into a pencil thin breadstick. I made mine all different sizes. I like variety. Plus, I don’t feel bad when I eat 10 small ones because they were SMALL after all. I left the large ones. So there! Brush each breadstick with oil.

Cover the pans with towels and let them raise in a warm spot for about 45 minutes. I stuck mine in the oven with the light on. They won’t double in size, so don’t expect it.

In a small bowl, mix together your egg white and a little water. Brush this mixture over the breadsticks and then sprinkle with your desired topping. I love sesame seeds. They just taste so, so…….sesamey.

Bake them in a preheated oven until browned. Your house smells divine right about now. They’re excellent with lasagna…….or plain………or dipped in the leftover ranch dressing from your salad – or so I’ve heard.