If you love grabbing the warm breadsticks from the bread basket of your favorite Italian restaurant the minute they place them on the table, you'll love these herb and asiago cheese breadsticks.
These breadsticks are loaded with three types of fresh herbs; basil, parsley, and oregano. Plus, the asiago cheese is both in the dough and on the crust of the breadsticks.
Even though I have a cupboard full of jars of dried herbs, I love using fresh herbs when they are available. Ever since I first made bread stuffing with fresh herbs rather than dried, I try to use them whenever I think it will make a difference.
For the cheese, I used asiago, the same cheese that is so delicious on asiago cheese bagels from my favorite bagel shop. It's flavor is somewhere between Parmesan and Romano, but not as salty.
The next time you make spaghetti or lasagna for dinner, make these bread sticks. They're also great for serving as a snack with Bolognese sauce, or with an Italian-style chopped salad.
These breadsticks are both soft and chewy at the same time, perfect for dipping in sauces, soups, and stews.
Ingredients:
All-purpose flour.
Instant yeast.
Salt.
Onion powder.
Extra virgin olive oil.
Asiago cheese: You can substitute Parmesan or pecorino cheese if you prefer.
Egg: For an egg wash before baking.
Fresh herbs: parsley, oregano, and basil.
How to Shape These Breadsticks:
First, once your dough has completed the first rise, divide it in two and roll each piece into a 9-inch long cylinder. Divide each cylinder into nine pieces, and roll each into a ball. Be sure to keep the dough covered with oiled plastic wrap while you are working with the rest. Once all of the dough pieces are shaped into balls, let them rest, covered, for 30 minutes.
Next, roll each dough ball into an 8-inch long cylinder and place them on two parchment-lined baking sheets. Cover them and let them rise until nearly doubled.
You will need to heat your oven to 500 degrees F before baking. Because the breadsticks fully bake in about 15 minutes, the higher oven temperature will help ensure that the breadsticks turn golden.
These breadsticks are fabulous warm from the oven. They will also stay fresh in an airtight bag and can be reheated wrapped in foil in a 350 degree F oven for 10 minutes.
You can also freeze these for up to a month and then reheat them after thawing.
One of my favorite ways to enjoy these is dipped in warm Alfredo sauce. Heaven!
Welcome to Farmers Market Week, hosted by Jolene's Recipe Journal. We are sharing recipes that include ingredients you might find at a Farmers Market. In this case, fresh herbs and cheese!
I hope you check out everyone's recipes!
Herb and Asiago Breadsticks
Ingredients
- 567 grams (20 ounces/4 cups) unbleached all-purposed flour
- 1 tablespoon instant yeast
- 1 tablespoon table salt
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- 340 grams (12 ounces/1 1/2 cups) water, room temperature
- 50 grams (1 3/4 ounces/1/4 cup) extra virgin olive oil
- 113 grams (4 ounces/1 cup) grated asiago cheese
- 2 tablespoons each of finely minced fresh basil, fresh parsley, and fresh oregano
- 1 large egg plus 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil plus a pinch of salt, beaten together for the egg wash
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together the flour, yeast, salt, and onion powder. In a liquid measuring cup, combine the water and olive oil.
- Turn the mixer on with the dough hook on low speed. Slowly pour in the water and oil mixture while the mixer is running and mix until the dough begins to come together, about 2 minutes. Change the speed to medium-low and knead until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes.
- Combine 1/2 cup of the asiago with all of the chopped herbs. Reduce the speed of the mixer to low and slowly add the cheese and herb mixture, about 2 tablespoons at a time. Mix about 2 minutes.
- Transfer the dough to your work surface and finish kneading by hand until the cheese is fully incorporated. Form the dough into a ball and place it into an oiled boil, cover, and let rise until doubled, about 60 to 90 minutes.
- Deflate the dough and place it on your work surface. Divide the dough in two and roll each piece into a 9-inch long cylinder. Divide each cylinder into nine pieces, and roll each into a ball. Be sure to keep the dough covered with oiled plastic wrap while you are working with the rest. Once all of the dough pieces are shaped into balls, let them rest, covered, for 30 minutes.
- Roll each dough ball into an 8-inch long cylinder and place on two parchment-lined baking sheets, about 1 1/2 inches apart. Cover with oiled plastic wrap and let rise until nearly doubled, about 30 minutes.
- In the meantime, heat your oven to 500 degrees F with a rack in the middle. Brush the risen breadsticks with the egg wash and sprinkle with the rest of the cheese.
- Bake the breadsticks, one sheet at a time, for about 14 minutes. Cool on a wire rack for about 15 minutes. Serve warm.
Nutrition Facts
Calories
165Fat (grams)
5 gSat. Fat (grams)
1 gCarbs (grams)
25 gFiber (grams)
1 gNet carbs
24 gSugar (grams)
0 gProtein (grams)
6 gCholesterol (grams)
4 mgRecipe adapted from Bread Illustrated: A Step-by-Step Guide to Achieving Bakery-Quality Results at Home.
That shot of the breadstick broken open actually made me drool.
ReplyDeleteReally? You're making drool with these beauties!!! I'd eat the whole batch by myself for sure!!!
ReplyDeleteSo fluffy! I just can't tell you how much your posts have really inspired me to improve my yeast and bread baking skills over the last few years. Everything you make looks bakery quality and your instructions are awesome.
ReplyDeleteAsiago is one of my favorite cheeses and I feel it doesn't get a lot of love. I'm so glad you used it because these sound amazing! Perfect for pasta night!
ReplyDeleteThese breadsticks will definitely be eaten fast here....there won't be a single crumb left!
ReplyDeleteThe herbs and the cheese sound divine in this bread. Your breads are beautiful always and I love them.
ReplyDeleteI used to love when breadsticks were everywhere, but homemade would be even better
ReplyDeleteAs usual, this bread looks amazing! All the herbs inside and cheese on top look so delicious!
ReplyDeleteYum! These sound and look so good!
ReplyDelete