"Jude" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...
Quoted message said:now, how about sharing your recipe for the breadsticks?
Ok, Jude, here you go-I got lucky in that it's still on the Epicurious site
so I don't have to type it all up<G> The only changes I make to the recipe
are that I make the dough in the bread machine, let it rise overnight in the
fridge, and spritz the sticks with water just before baking.
Original link:
http://makeashorterlink.com/?V26432D2B
or
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/13084?epiSearchPage=htt
p://www.epicurious.com/recipes/find/results?threshold=4500&search=breadstick
s&type=simple
BASIC BREADSTICKS
For dough
1 cup warm water (about 105°F.; 95°F.-100°F. if using a food processor)
a 1/4-ounce package active dry yeast (2 1/2 teaspoons)
3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons salt
5 tablespoons fat such as extra-virgin olive oil, vegetable oil, cold
unsalted butter (cut into pieces), or cold lard (cut into pieces)
2 to 3 tablespoons cornmeal for dusting pans
In a small bowl whisk together water and yeast and let stand while combining
remaining dough ingredients.
To make dough in a food processor:
Pulse together flour and salt 2 or 3 times to combine. Add oil, butter, or
lard and pulse until combined well, 10 to 20 times. Add yeast mixture,
scraping all of it from bowl with a rubber spatula, and pulse until dough
forms a ball, about 10 times. Let dough rest in processor 5 minutes. Process
dough continuously 10 seconds. On a lightly floured surface knead dough just
until it forms a smooth ball.
To make dough in a standing electric mixer fitted with paddle attachment:
In bowl combine flour and salt and mix on low speed until combined. Add oil,
butter, or lard and beat until thoroughly combined, about 3 minutes,
stopping to scrape bowl and paddle as necessary. Add yeast mixture, scraping
all of it from bowl with a rubber spatula, and beat on low speed until dough
forms a ball, about 5 minutes. Let dough rest 5 minutes and beat on low
speed 1 minute. On a lightly floured surface knead dough just until it forms
a smooth ball.
To make dough by hand:
In a large bowl stir together flour and salt. Add oil, butter, or lard and
blend with fingertips or a pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse
meal. Add yeast mixture, scraping all of it from bowl with a rubber spatula,
and stir until a rough dough forms. On a lightly floured surface knead dough
just until it forms a smooth ball, about 5 minutes.
For rising:
Put dough in a lightly greased bowl, turning to coat, and let rise, covered
tightly with plastic wrap, at room temperature until doubled in bulk, about
1 hour.
On lightly surface knead dough lightly to deflate and form into a ball.
Grease bowl again and return dough to bowl, turning to coat. Chill dough,
covered tightly with plastic wrap, at least 2 hours and up to 1 day.
To form and bake breadsticks:
Preheat oven to 325°F. and lightly dust 3 jelly-roll pans or large baking
sheets with cornmeal.
Turn dough out onto lightly floured surface, making sure dough emerges from
bowl in one piece and doesn't fold. (Folded dough becomes too elastic and is
difficult to form into breadsticks.) Pat dough into a 9-inch square and cut
in half to form 2 rectangles. Cut each rectangle crosswise into 4 1/2- by
1/2-inch strips for a total of 36 pieces and cover with plastic wrap or
kitchen towel to keep them from forming skin.
Roll and stretch each piece of dough with palms of hands to form a narrow
stick 12 to 15 inches long. (If dough resists, let pieces rest, covered, 5
minutes, and they will roll and stretch easily.) Arrange breadsticks as
formed on pans about 1/2 inch apart and let rest 10 minutes. Bake 2 pans of
breadsticks in upper and lower thirds of oven, switching their positions
halfway through baking, until breadsticks are firm, crisp, and pale golden,
20 to 30 minutes. (Third pan of breadsticks may be kept at room temperature
while first 2 pans bake.) Transfer breadsticks to racks and cool. Bake
remaining pan of breadsticks in middle of oven and cool. Breadsticks may be
kept, loosely covered with plastic wrap or in a paper bag, at room
temperature up to 1 week. If they absorb humidity and soften, recrisp in a
preheated 325°F. oven about 5 minutes.
Makes 36 breadsticks.
Gourmet
October 1995
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