TASTE
Lighten breadsticks with whole-wheat flour
| • | Kids in the kitchen |
By Elaine Magee
| |||
 |
|
||
Q. My family loves those Olive Garden breadsticks! Is there a way I can make these at home so they are healthier for my family? I have a bread machine, too.
A. Do I know about the breadsticks: They bring a basket to your table and in a few minutes, no one knows how it suddenly became empty.
I love your idea of making a version for home, so I started with a basic breadstick recipe but replaced more than half of the white flour with whole-wheat flour, added Italian seasoning to the dough, used a tablespoon of olive oil in the dough instead of melted butter, and a higher omega-3 egg.
After these breadsticks bake, brush the top lightly with a little olive oil or melted butter/margarine and sprinkle with garlic salt to taste.
I usually use about 1 1/2 tablespoons of melted margarine to coat the tops while the original recipe calls for 4 tablespoons of melted butter. This brought the calories down from 195 to 160 and the fat grams went from 7 grams to 4. Each breadstick contributes 2 1/2 grams fiber while the all-white flour version only has 0.2 gram.
MOCK OLIVE GARDEN BREADSTICKS
Topping:
Add milk, egg, 1 tablespoon olive oil, sugar, salt, flours, and Italian seasoning, in that order, to your bread machine pan. Make a well in the center of the flour and pour in the yeast.
Set bread machine to the dough cycle and start (the cycle takes about 1 hour and 40 minutes).
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface. Roll the dough into a 9-inch-by-11-inch rectangle. Use a serrated knife or pizza cutter to slice the dough lengthwise into 10 strips. Roll the strips gently so they are rounded like a rope. Place them on a nonstick jellyroll pan coated with canola cooking spray. Let rise in a warm part of your kitchen until nearly double in size (about 30 minutes).
Bake in a preheated 375-degree oven until breadsticks are golden brown (about 18 to 22 minutes). Brush top gently with melted margarine, butter or olive oil, then sprinkle with garlic salt as desired. Serve as a snack or with soup, salad or any dinner entree.
Makes 10 breadsticks.
