Garlic Bread Twists
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These soft and chewy Garlic Bread Twists are a great use for pizza dough. This family-friendly, kid-approved homemade bread recipe is great served with pasta, braises, or an appetizer at your next party. Learn the simple ingredients need and the shaping method to make twisted garlic bread in your home kitchen.
Once I mastered my family’s favorite fluffy pizza dough recipe, it appeared regularly on our dinner menu. The kids like their standard pepperoni and cheese, and my husband and I prefer to change things up with potato and leek pizza or fig and goat cheese pizza.
But pizza dough is very versatile, for more than just pizza and flatbreads. It’s great for stuffing to make calzones or savory hand pies, and it can be used to create dynamite breadsticks, like these garlic bread twists. This simple use for pizza dough is easy to whip up with just a few additional ingredients. We enjoy them with our classic spaghetti meat sauce, Dr. Pepper short ribs, and more.
Recipe Highlights
- These can be made with homemade pizza dough or your favorite store-bought dough.
- Customize the garlic flavor with herbs and cheese…or don’t!
- Make, bake, and freeze a large batch for easy dinner breadsticks whenever!
Ingredients & Substitutions
The best thing about this recipe is its flexibility. Want to make your dough? A half batch of my fluffy pizza dough recipe makes 12 breadsticks. Or, pick up a bag of dough in the deli or freezer section of your local grocery store.
- Pizza dough, homemade or store-bought, is great. It must be stretchable and yeast-raised. I don’t recommend Pillsbury.
- Parmesan – Any type is great. Pre-shredded even works for this recipe.
- Butter – I always cook with unsalted, and salt the recipe to taste.
- Salt
- Dried herbs – I used oregano and basil. Change the herbs and seasonings to suit your tastes and preferences.
- Garlic – Minced and fresh or roasted garlic smashed into a paste.
Step by Step Instructions
If you’re making the dough, I recommend starting that process about three hours before you’d like to eat. For a 6 p.m. dinner, I would start making my homemade pizza dough around 3 p.m. That allows plenty of kneading, rising, and shaping time. If your dough is ready, shaping the twisted garlic breadsticks and baking takes between 30 and 45 minutes.
Step 1 – Make Garlic Butter
Homemade garlic butter for pizza and breadsticks is a great way to add flavor to dough. Start by melting butter over low heat in a wide saute pan. Add one tablespoon of minced garlic and the salt, and saute until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes. For roasted garlic, stir frequently until well blended with the butter, and watch carefully for burning.
Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the dried herbs. Set aside until needed.
Step 2 – Portion & Shape Dough
Portion the dough into 12 balls. Shape the dough into a flat circle and cut it into equal wedges, or cut it into chunks and measure them on a kitchen scale for consistency.
Shape a bread twist by cutting a dough ball in half. Roll the dough on a flat, clean surface to create a 6-inch long rope. If the dough sticks, wipe the surface lightly with olive oil.
Press the ends of the ropes together. Twist tightly and slowly to prevent gaps between the ropes. Press the ends together and pinch the seam.
Step 3 – Top and Bake Breadstick Twists
Arrange the breadsticks on the baking sheet. Brush the garlic butter on the top; ensure the garlic and herbs make it, too. Sprinkle each breadstick with a generous tablespoon of grated cheese.
Bake in a 425°F oven for 15-18 minutes. Cool on the baking sheet. Store in an airtight container for up to 3- days. Or freeze them in a freezer-safe container for up to 6 months.
FAQs
No! You can simply shape each dough ball into a log or even a ball, like I do for my burger bun recipe. The baking time should be about the same, give or take a few minutes.
No, you can skip the cheese and just brush the butter on. Or, you can swap the Parmesan for something different, like Asiago, Romano, or Grana Padano.
Olive oil can replace the butter easily. Follow the steps of heating it with the garlic and herbs.
Love this recipe? Please consider leaving a 5 star rating in the recipe card below, or a comment to share your experience with fellow home cooks. I hope you enjoy and as always, Happy Eating!
Garlic Bread Twists
Ingredients
- 300 grams pizza dough 1 pizza worth
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup Parmesan cheese grated, optional
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano optional
- 1/2 teaspoon dried basil optional
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a saute pan over low heat.
- Add the garlic and salt to the butter and saute gently for 1-2 minutes, until fragrant.
- Remove from heat and mix in herbs if using. Set aside.
- Preheat the oven 425°F. Divide the dough into 12 equal sized balls.
- Cut each ball in half and roll each half into a 6 inch long rope.
- Press one end of each rope together and begin to cross one over the other, going back and forth to create a twist. Go slow and keep the twist tight. Pinch the ends together to close the twist.
- Transfer to a baking sheet. Brush the garlic butter on top. Sprinkle each bread twist with a generous tablespoon of shredded cheese, if desired.
- Bake for 15-18 minutes, until the edges and cheese on top are a light golden brown.
Notes
- Butter – Olive oil
- Herbs – Any dried herbs you like or spices.
- Cheese – Any hard, aged cheese that can be shredded.
- Garlic – Roasted garlic smashed into a paste, one tablespoon.
- Use a stretchy, yeast-raised dough for best shaping and texture.
- Bake a large batch and freeze for up to 6 months. They thaw within a few hours.
Nutrition
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Nutrition information and cooking times are provided as a best estimate. Values may vary based upon ingredients and equipment.
