This week’s Great British Bake Off was all about bread and the themes were English muffins, bread sticks and showstopper loaves.
I was immediately excited to try the bread stick challenge because it’s something I’ve wanted to make for a while.
Like one of the contestants, Ruby, I don’t have a mixer at home and made mine by hand also (which was surprisingly enjoyable!)
I’m not sure how or why I came up with beer and black pepper, but as soon as I did, I couldn’t wait to try it.
The beer gives it a dark, bitterness whilst the black pepper injects a kick of flavour into your taste buds. I loved the combination!
At first, I was tempted to use a nice English dark ale but because this is based on an Italian recipe, I decided to go for Peroni Doppio Malta (double malt) which gives a really nice strong, dark flavour.
Beer & Black Pepper Grissini
Crispy Grissini with beer and a kick of black pepper. Made by hand (no mixer)
Ingredients
- 65g (½ cup) wholegrain flour
- 180ml (¾ cup) strong beer
- 1 tsp honey
- 1 tbsp dried active yeast
- 165g (1 + ½ cup) plain flour
- 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil + extra for the bowl
- 2 tsp salt
- 2 tsp ground black pepper
Instructions
- In a large bowl, mix the wholegrain flour, yeast, beer and honey. Stir with a wooden spoon so it's well combined and leave it to sit for 10-15 minutes.
- Then stir in the plain flour, 3 tbsp olive oil and 1 tsp of salt. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured board and knead for 5 minutes or so until it becomes elastic, smooth and glossy looking.
- Now transfer the dough into a smaller bowl, coat in a tiny bit of olive oil and cover with a tea towel or plastic wrap and leave in a warm place for an hour. It will double in size so make sure there is enough room in the bowl!
- Once the dough has double in bulk, preheat the oven to 220C/fan 200C. and line 2-3 baking trays with greaseproof paper. (I used one baking tray and cooked them in 3 batches.)
- Turn the dough out onto a board (doesn't need to be floured because of the olive oil) Add the remaining salt and the black pepper to the dough and knead in well. Then shape into a rough rectangle shape.
- Using a sharp knife, cut about ½ an inch of the dough off and roll into a very thin, long sausage shape. Bear in mind they will expand in the oven so make them a little thinner than you want them to turn out.
- Keep the sticks about ½ inch apart on the baking tray to allow them room to expand. Bake for 10-15 minutes, turning half way.
- Let cool and store in an air-tight container for a few days. Enjoy!
Katy says
These look so perfect! I just made some grissini based on that recipe and they are so wobbly and even! And a batch of mine stuck to the greaseproof paper :( Sure people won’t notice…….
Aimee says
oh no! well I’m sure they still tasted good! It did take me a few tries to get them right, I have to say
HELEN says
I loved these when I first saw them, they look perfect – great with a Peroni for sure! Love your food styling too!
Aimee says
Thanks Helen! I was enjoying the rest of the beer when I photographed them. So rock’n’roll…
Nutritious Deliciousness says
I must try breadsticks, so much you can do with them! Yours look great, the beer is certainly an interesting ingredient.
Aimee says
Thanks! Now that I know how to make them, I think I’ll make them quite often. They’re great for nibbles and bringing to parties, picnics etc. And you can really play with the flavours to make it different each time :-)
jenny paulin says
i am seriously impressed that you made some grissini – what a wonderful flavour combination and they look so good like restaurant made and again i do like the way you style your photos. I want to make breadsticks now !!! thank you for linking up x
Aimee says
Thank you for the lovely comment Jenny :-) I don’t know about restaurant made!! but I’m quite happy with them (well, the third batch anyway.) I really think you should give them a go, they are easier than you’d think!
bluebirdsunshine says
Your grissini are like the slim, elegant breadsticks I was aiming for, but didn’t achieve! They look amazing. Great tips too, I’m definitely going to give them another go and persevere with a few batches.
Aimee says
Thank you for the very sweet comment! You should have seen my first 2 batches though… it was definitely a question of trial and error…
veganmiam.com says
Wow, I love your first photo, especially the beer background and the frosted glass. Beautiful! I had my first homemade grissini in Colombia, and they would serve it with celery soup.
Aimee says
Thanks Rika :-) I wanted to make some soup to serve with them but ended up eating them all before I got that far! I’ll have to make some more…
Pamela @ Brooklyn Farm Girl says
You did such a great job on these, they look perfect! You should set up a stand and sell these, I would stop by every single day! :)
Aimee says
D’aw, shucks! Thanks Pamela :-)
Miss Messy says
I’ve wanted to try grissini for ages! These sound delicious!
Aimee says
Try it! it’s easier than you’d think :-)
Helen The good life mum says
OH Mrs these are just wonderful i love your sense of taste with the flavour choice you have inspired me to try these too
Aimee says
I was very tempted to try the English muffins too, yours looked so comforting and delicious! But these bread sticks were fun to make and you can really experiment with the flavours.
Jennifer says
I’m also wishing that I’d tried breadsticks this week as I’ve not made them before and yours look so tasty! Yours look delicious and they look perfect
Aimee says
Thank you Jennifer! I was very impressed with your plaited bread :-)
Nelly Ritchie says
These sound amazing! I wasn’t too inspired by any of the flavours on GBBO (Maybe with the exception of Ali’s blue cheese ones) but I would totally make these.
I opted to make the muffins for the GBBOBAKEALONG but now wishing I had opted for breadsticks.
Aimee says
No, I loved the look of your English muffins! I was tempted to make some too but decided to make the bread sticks because you can play around with the flavours more.
Jackie {The Beeroness} says
I love that you added beer! Those look perfect :)
Aimee says
Thanks! I think I must have been subconsciously inspired by your beer-glazed donuts I saw the other day… (still on my mind, clearly!)