Garlic Bread Twists, Breadsticks, or Knots are one of the best side dishes or appetizers to serve with marinara or dipping sauce for a Pizza party or dinner party. We generally like to have pizza night or pasta night once in 15 days and today on the menu it was BIANCA PIZZA - CLASSIC WHITE PIZZA with these yummy Garlic Bread Twists. I am a big fan of Domino’s Pizza. We just love the taste and flavor of their pizza plus it comes with a reasonable price tag. But it’s always fun to replicate things that you love. Am I right? This post was in my draft for a long time now. I prepare it often with pizza or pasta but due to personal commitments couldn’t post this on time as promised. The pizza dough is made from scratch at home. This pizza dough gives you soft and fluffy twists or knots plus while making dough at home you are free to add any additional flavorings to the dough if you like plus it’s free from all preservatives.
Having said that, if you are in a hurry you can use store-bought dough or buttermilk biscuits. The recipe below yields one 10 inch pizza or 14 to 16 bread twists. If you want to make both of them together, simply double the amount of ingredients while making the dough. I love to make twists over knots just because the shape is much fun and it’s easier to make. You just have to twist the strips to get these shapes. But if you know how to tie a knot, go for it. I have included steps on how to make both twists and knots.
For the pizza dough (If using store-bought ignore this step) ¾ cup warm Water 1 packet Active dry yeast ( 2 ¼ tsp) 1 teaspoon Sugar ¾ teaspoon Salt 2 tablespoon Olive oil ¼ teaspoon Garlic powder 2 to 2 ¼ cups All-purpose flour (maida, Use more or less as needed) For the topping 5 tablespoon melted Butter 1 teaspoon Garlic powder 3 tablespoon Parmesan cheese (fresh or powdered) ¼ teaspoon Salt ½ teaspoon Dried parsley or Basil (or both) ¼ teaspoon Oregano
In a large mixing bowl, add warm water, sugar, and mix. Sprinkle yeast. Cover and leave it undisturbed for 5 to 10 minutes. Let the yeast activate. Now add salt, olive oil, garlic powder, half of the flour and mix using a wooden spoon or spatula. Add the remaining flour in parts and mix till dough is formed. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead it to form a soft and smooth dough. When you poke the dough with your finger, it should slowly bounce back which means the dough is ready to rise. Else knead for some more time. Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover, and let it rise at room temperature for 1 hour or until doubled in size.
When the dough is ready, transfer it to a lightly floured working surface and punch it down. Roll the dough into a rectangle approx ¾ inch thick. Using a pizza cutter cut them into 16 strips. Twist each strip to form bread twists (as you see in the pictures), stretching them if necessary, and place them on a parchment lined baking sheet at least 1 inch apart. If you prefer to make knots: Tie each strip loosely into knots (over, under, through), tucking the ends. Stretch them if necessary. You can tuck the ends of the knot underneath the knot or leave them out. Cover the shaped bread twists and let this rest for 20 to 30 minutes. This will puff up and give you softer, airy bread twists.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. In a small bowl mix melted butter, garlic powder, parmesan cheese, basil or parsley (or both), salt, oregano, and mix well. Brush this mixture on each twist. Reserve some to apply when the twists or knots come out of the oven. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown on top. Remove from the oven and brush with any remaining butter mixture. Sprinkle with some more parmesan cheese if desired.
While making garlic parmesan butter you can add olive oil along with butter. I add seasoning available in my pantry. You can add basil, parsley, thyme, oregano, or any Italian seasoning. Vary the amount to taste. I dust it with parmesan powder at the end to give it restaurant-style look and taste. You can use fresh or powdered parmesan. If fresh herbs are available you can also garnish them at the end for more flavor. To make it spicy or give it a little kick, feel free to add red pepper flakes and black pepper powder. If you are not able to find garlic powder you can even add freshly minced garlic cloves.
The pizza dough is vegan. For the topping, instead of butter use olive oil and vegan parmesan cheese.
These taste the best when served fresh. But if you have any leftovers, you can store them in airtight container at room temperature for 2 days or in the refrigerator for a week. You can keep it in the freezer (once cooled completely) up to 2 months. Reheat using your preferred method. Now if you are feeling quite lazy and don’t want any additional work of making twists or knots, you can make delicious garlic parmesan breadsticks. To make garlic breadsticks, simply roll the risen dough into a rectangle. Transfer to a baking sheet. Cover and let it sit for 10 minutes. Using a pizza cutter, score them into breadsticks of desired thickness. Brush it with the garlic parmesan herbed butter and bake.
Recipe card
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