Grissini - Thin and Crispy Italian Breadsticks

Ready to impress your guests with these made-from-scratch, deliciously crunchy Italian breadsticks?!?

Imagine. One of these deliciously crispy breadsticks wrapped with savory Italian Prosciutto. Or next to a fancy cheese platter and tasty olives. You can even place some of these breadsticks into a tall glass or in a small vase and make a deliciously edible centerpiece. Everyone will be impressed, especially when they find out you made these from scratch. So remember: go for a rustic look, not perfectly shaped, like store-bought grissini.

The good news, you can wow everybody, without too much effort. Just prepare a simple pizza dough. And as you do for pizza, make sure to knead the dough until smooth and elastic. Store covered in a warm place, and give it enough time for it to rise. Stretch the dough, brush with tasty olive oil, cut it in strips and stretch the breadsticks. At this point you can add different flavors to the grissini, from herbs like chopped rosemary, to poppy or sesame seeds. Make it fun and delicious.
As usual I'm not just going to tell you how easy this recipe is, but I will show you in this video:

Here are a few things to keep in mind, when doing this recipe.
As I always say, please take your time to weight the flour. It makes a huge difference when you pick up the flour with the measuring cup or when you pour it in.
Also your breadstick are handmade, so they won't be perfect and all the same size and thickness. As I said, I like that rustic look. But keep in mind that a thinner breadstick bakes faster. And burn more easily. The end points are a little thicker, and will not be as crispy as the rest. So, don't go too crazy on the rustic :)
Enjoy!

Ingredients: to make about 20 long breadsticks       PRINTABLE RECIPE

• 2 cups (300 gr) of  bread flour
• 1/2 teaspoon of sugar
• one package (15 gr) of active dry yeast 
• 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil (divided)
• 3/4 cup (175 ml) of warm water
• 1 teaspoon salt 6 gr
• poppy seeds, or sesame seeds (optional)

Preparation time: 45 minutes, plus at least two hours inactive

Directions:
1. In a large bowl mix the flour with the sugar and the dry yeast.

2. Add two tablespoons of olive oil to the flour, and half cup of warm water. Mix with a spoon.

3. Dissolve one teaspoon of salt in a quarter cup of warm water. Add it to the dough, and mix with a spoon first until all the water is absorbed. Move the dough to the counter and knead by hand for a few minutes (maybe 5) until the dough is smooth and elastic.

 Add a bit of water if too hard. Or a bit of flour if too sticky.
4. Make the dough into a ball and cover in plastic wrap and a kitchen towel to keep warm. Let rise for at least an hour.

5. Flatten and stretch the the dough into a rectangular shape about 1/4 inch thick and 14 x 9 inch. Brush with one tablespoon of olive oil.

6. Cover again with plastic wrap and let sit for one more hour or longer.

7. Preheat the oven to 400° F (200° C).
Cut the dough on the shorter side in strips, about 1/3 of an inch (1 cm) wide, using sharp knife or a pizza cutter. Stretch each strip to almost double its size or the length of your baking sheet.

If you'd like, you can sprinkle with sesames or poppy seeds, and roll the breadsticks so the seeds stick to the dough.

8. Bake the breadsticks for about 12 minutes. Watch carefully while baking. The time can vary based on the thickness of your breadsticks.
When completely cool, eat or store in an airtight container for up to 2 days

Enjoy :)

Homemade Lemon-Poppy Seed Muffins

These lemon-poppy seed muffins are full of a summery citrus flavor,

with a super soft and fluffy texture, and the added crunchiness of the poppy seeds 

Nothing says spring like just-picked, juicy lemons.
Here is Southern California all the trees are blooming with beautiful flowers and lots of fruits. If you are not sure how to use your fresh lemons, here is the perfect idea. These muffins are soft, fluffy and bursting with lemon zest and juice.
This recipe is very easy and quick. You can prepare these muffins in minutes without the use of a blender. To keep the muffins soft and moist is actually recommended to whisk the batter by hand, so that you don't overmix it. And the secret to make the perfect high top of a bakery-style muffin: fill the muffin cups almost to the top with the batter, and bake the muffins at 400 degrees for the first 10 minutes, and lower temperature for the rest. It's that simple!

Here is something new for my blog: I'm super excited to show you my first video recipe for these muffins. You can find it on YouTube here:

Please let me know what you think! All comments are welcomed. 

Ingredients: to make 12 muffins

• 6 tablespoons (80 gr) of unsalted butter
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup (100 gr) of white sugar 
• 1/4 cup (50 gr) of brown sugar
• grated zest of 2 lemons
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1/2 cup (120 ml) of milk
• 2 tablespoons (20 gr) of poppy seeds 
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
• pinch of salt
• 2 1/2 cups (375 gr) of all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon (16 gr) of baking powder 
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 
• 1 tablespoon of coarse sugar or white sparkling sugar for decorating (optional)

Preparation time: 45 minutes
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Melt the butter, in a double-boiler or in the microwave (about 30 seconds). In a large bowl mix the eggs with the white and brown sugar and the melted butter.

2. Mix in the lemon zest, lemon juice, milk, poppy seeds, vanilla extract and salt.

3. In a separate bowl, mix together the flour with the baking powder and baking soda.

4. Gently mix the dry ingredients into the other mixture, only until combined. Don't over mix or the muffins will come out not as soft.

5. Spoon the batter evenly into 12 paper lined  muffin tins. They should fill almost to the top.

6. Sprinkle with coarse sugar if you'd like. Bake for 10 minutes at 400 degrees. Lower the temperature to 350 degrees, and without removing or opening the oven, bake for 15 more minutes, or until golden on top. Test with a toothpick, check if it comes out clean when inserted in the center.

Enjoy!