Soft and Delicious 100% Whole Wheat Breadsticks (Better than Little Caesar’s!)

Hello friends!

This past week I was on a quest to find THE go-to recipe for 100% whole wheat breadsticks.  I’ve tried recipes in the past that use a combination of white flour and whole wheat flour with good results, but I still wasn’t satisfied. I wanted my breadsticks to be 100% whole wheat AND to also be soft and delicious–just like my favorite white flour breadsticks from Little Caesars. If you’ve had their breadsticks, you know exactly what I mean. Those buttery, garlicky, loaded-with-butter breadsticks can almost melt in your mouth!

This recipe is not necessarily identical to the taste of my inspiration breadsticks–but they do turn out just as soft and–in my humble opinion–taste way better! You’ll also be amazed at how easy they are to make. In about an hour, you’ll have 100% whole wheat breadsticks ready to serve with your favorite pizza or pasta dish.

Another bonus with this recipe is that you don’t need a bread mixer to make it. The kneading is minimal and I do it by hand. Easy peasy! So, what do you say? Are you ready to try this super easy recipe?

Let’s do it! (Printable recipe at the bottom of this post!)

100% Whole Wheat Breadsticks

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Combine warm water, oil, and honey. Add one cup of whole wheat flour, yeast, baking powder, and salt. Using your hand-held dough whisk, combine all the ingredients well.

Continue to add flour slowly and mix with your dough whisk. When all the water is absorbed, dump your dough on an oiled surface (or on a silicone mat) and knead the dough for a couple of minutes until soft. Depending on how you measured your flour, you may have to add a bit more water or a bit more flour. The dough will be a bit sticky but still manageable while kneading. Towards the end, I oil my hands to keep them from sticking to the dough.

Place your dough ball in an oiled bowl (I put the smooth side of my dough ball down first to get some of the oil, then turn it over). Cover and let rise for about 30-45 minutes or until double in size.

Roll your dough into a small rectangle, about 10″ X 7″, and slice the dough into 16 equal parts (a pizza cutter works great for this step).

Transfer them to an oiled cookie sheet (use butter or nonstick spray) and let them rest for about 5-10 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400 F (I do this while the breadsticks are resting). Bake breadsticks for 10 minutes. Watch them your first time to make sure you don’t over-bake them. They should be barely golden and puffed up. The amount of puffing sometimes depends on the quality of your yeast and kneading time. Once baked, take a butter stick (or melt some butter) and spread butter all over the breadsticks while still warm. Be generous with the butter! Sprinkle with garlic salt and Parmesan cheese to your liking. Serve warm. Yum!

One more picture, just for kicks!

Recipe:

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups freshly ground whole wheat flour (I prefer white whole wheat)
• 1 cup warm water (115 F)
• 1 TBSP SAF Yeast
• 1 TBSP Olive Oil
• 1 TBSP Honey
• 1 tsp Baking Powder
• 2 tsp Salt
• 1 butter stick (salted)
• Grated Parmesan Cheese
• Garlic Salt or Garlic Powder

Instructions

1. Combine the warm water, oil, and honey. Add one cup of whole wheat flour, yeast, baking powder, and salt. Using your dough whisk, combine all the ingredients well.
2. Continue to add the leftover flour slowly and mix with your dough whisk. When all the water is absorbed, dump your dough on an oiled surface (or on a silicone mat) and knead the dough for a couple of minutes until soft. Depending on how you measured your flour, you may have to add a bit more water or a bit more flour. The dough will be a bit sticky but still manageable while kneading.
3. Put a bit of oil in a bowl and take your ball of dough and roll it inside the bowl to pick up on some of the oil. Turn the oily side up and cover the bowl to let rise for about 30-45 minutes or until double in size.
4. Roll your dough into a small rectangle, about 10″ X 7″, and slice the dough into 16 equal parts (a pizza cutter works great for this step).
5. Transfer them to an oiled cookie sheet (use butter or nonstick spray) and let them rest for about 5-10 minutes.
6. While the dough is resting, preheat oven to 400 F. Once preheated, bake breadsticks for 10 minutes. Watch them your first time to make sure you don’t overbake them. They should be barely golden and puffed up. The amount of puffing sometimes depends on the quality of your yeast and kneading time.
7. Once baked, take a butter stick (or melt some butter and use a pastry brush) and spread butter all over the breadsticks while still warm. Be generous with the butter! Sprinkle with Garlic salt and Parmesan cheese (or you can mix the two and sprinkle together). If you’re using garlic powder, mix the Parmesan cheese with the garlic powder and add a bit of salt. Serve warm. Yum!