If you love buttery, garlic breadsticks, then you will swoon for this Copycat Olive Garden Breadsticks recipe. Simple to make & tastes just like your favorite Italian restaurant.
If there is one thing I really love, it’s bread. It is the one thing that can get me up & in the kitchen when the craving strikes. I’m known for making 4-5 different bread recipes all in one day – because they all look so good when I’m thumbing through grandma’s old cookbook. I always want to make them all.
So when I found her traditional breadstick recipe she noted some particular characteristics that made them sound just like Olive Garden’s famous sticks. I decided to make them & add a couple of my own twists to give it the restaurant flare. They turned out even better than I had hoped & tastes just like the real thing.
Scroll to the bottom for the Printable Recipe
Breadstick Recipes
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There is one thing we eat a ton of when we dine out- BREAD. When we hit Anthony’s it’s all about the sourdough loaf. We have them bring us probably 3-4 loaves while we are there & always order a couple more to take home.
So when we go out for Italian it’s the same. They only put like 7-8 sticks in the basket, so when there are 5 of us all wanting one – you can see how quickly a basket can empty.
So, of course, we ask for them to refill it multiple times while we dine. This means it should come as no surprise that when I can make them at home & we don’t have to ask for more & fear being judged by the waitress – we are all in! 🙂
Between grandmas’ recipe, the butter & garlic seasoning – these really taste just like what we are used to. I loved every single bite. I may or may not have polished off a decent number all by myself.
Here are some commonly asked questions
Can I use Gluten-Free flour?
I have not tried that yet. If you decide to give it a go, I would suggest using one that has a 1:1 ratio for the best possible results. Please let me know how it turns out. I’d love to share that with others.
That’s a lot of sugar, can I reduce?
The sugar is what helps to feed the yeast. Please don’t reduce it. It does not make these breadsticks sweet at all.
Can these breadsticks be frozen?
You can freeze them after they are baked. Just wrap them tightly in plastic wrap and mark with the date. Use within 3 months. I have not tried freezing the dough for baking later, so I can’t give an accurate answer on that one.
Copycat Olive Garden Breadsticks Recipe
Stay tuned – I’m working on a way to make these in just 1 hour. 😉
SO GOOD!
How many can this serve?
This recipe makes 24 breadsticks. So it will depend on your portion sizes and how many each person has. I can tell you that when our family of 5 dines at Olive Garden, we probably plow through 24 between us all.
recipe for olive garden breadsticks
Can this recipe be doubled?
You can, and we do it often. But you will need the larger mixer or be ready to knead it by hand. This makes a lot of dough.
HOW DO YOU MAKE Copycat Olive Garden Breadsticks?
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine yeast & sugar with warm water and then wait until yeast proofs (about 5 minutes).
- Add salt, oil & 2 cups flour. Mix on low with the paddle attachment to combine.
- On low, slowly add the remaining flour until the dough is smooth.
- Switch to the dough hook & knead the dough for 10 minutes.
- Place dough into a large, greased bowl.
- Cover & set in a warm place to rise for 1 hour.
- Punch dough down & place on a lightly floured surface.
- Roll dough into one big log.
- Divide that log into the number of breadsticks you want. (This will make approx 24 breadsticks)
- Roll out each piece into a long, thin stick. Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet about 1-inch apart.
- Cover the breadsticks with a towel (or lightly greased plastic wrap), & let rise until double in size; approx 30 to 60 minutes.
- Lightly spray the tops of the breadsticks with cooking spray before baking.
- Bake at 425 degrees for 12 to 14 minutes or until golden brown.
- Melt the remaining butter in the microwave.
- In a small bowl, combine the salt & granulated garlic – mix.
- Remove breadsticks from oven & immediately brush the tops & sprinkle with salt/garlic mixture.
- Enjoy warm. Store leftovers in an airtight container.
What is the best way to store leftover breadsticks?
I like to place them in a zip-top bag and refrigerate until ready to enjoy again. To reheat, I like to use my air fryer at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes to keep them from getting too hard and chewy.
To make Homemade Copycat Olive Garden Breadsticks you will need…
- warm water
- dry active yeast
- granulated sugar
- salt
- oil
- all-purpose flour
- butter – topping
- salt
- granulated garlic
best breadsticks recipe
Products I love when making copycat breadsticks…
This homemade breadsticks recipe is SUPER EASY and delicious – and if you’re like me, then you maybe already have some of these items on hand OR maybe you have never made homemade breadsticks before, & you might be a bit nervous – but you’re going to love them. I have made a list below of the things I absolutely can’t live without when it comes to making this side dish recipe.
- pro-6 qt mixer
- Yeast
- granulated sugar
- all-purpose flour
- table salt
- mixing bowl
- 3/4 sheet pans
- granulated garlic
If you love this Easy Copycat Olive Garden Breadsticks recipe, you’re going to love these other delicious recipes too. Please click each link below to find the easy, printable recipe!
Spinach & Sausage One-Pan Alfredo
olive garden bread recipe
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Copycat Olive Garden Breadsticks
Ingredients
- 1 cup + 2 tbsp of warm water 115˚F is perfect
- 2 tbsp granulated sugar
- 1 ¼ tsp dry active yeast or 1¼ oz packet
- 1½ tsp salt
- 3 tbsp oil
- 3-3¼ cups all-purpose flour
Topping
- 4 tbsp butter
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp granulated garlic
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine yeast & sugar with warm water and then wait until yeast proofs (about 5 minutes).
- Add salt, oil & 2 cups of the flour. Mix on low with the paddle attachment to combine.
- On low, slowly add the remaining flour until the dough is smooth.
- Switch to the dough hook & knead the dough for 10 minutes.
- Place the dough into a large, greased bowl. Cover & set in a warm place to rise for 1 hour.
- Punch dough down & place on a lightly floured surface. Roll dough into one big log.
- Divide that log into the number of breadsticks you want. (This will make approx 24 breadsticks)
- Roll out each piece into a long, thin stick. Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet about 1-inch apart.
- Cover the breadsticks with a towel (or lightly greased plastic wrap), & let rise until double in size; approx 30 to 60 minutes.
- Lightly spray the tops of the breadsticks with cooking spray before baking.
- Bake at 425 degrees for 12-14 minutes or until golden brown.
- Melt the remaining butter in the microwave.
- In a small bowl, combine the salt & granulated garlic – mix.
- Remove breadsticks from oven & immediately brush the tops with the melted butter & sprinkle with salt/garlic mixture.
- Enjoy warm. Store leftovers in an airtight container.
Tracy Albiero says
Just ate there last night. I am super glad to have the recipe to bring these to my home!!! #wwbloghop
Miz Helen says
I can’t wait to make these awesome Bread Sticks, always love them at Olive Garden! Hope you are having a great week and thanks so much for sharing with us at Full Plate Thursday and come back to see us real soon!
Miz Helen
Molly says
I love this recipe! You get amazing softness on the inside with the perfect shell on the outside!
Judy Gunderman says
I made these breadsticks and they were very easy the mixer did all the kneading and the were delicious
Katie says
What temperature do you put them in the air fryer to be reheated?
Gina Kleinworth says
I would do 370 for about 5-7 minutes but check on them often & pull them out early if needed.
Kate says
Directions say 2 cups of flour but list of ingredients says 4-5 cups. Am I missing something? Thanks
Gina Kleinworth says
Hi there. Thanks for the question. You’ll start with 2 cups of flour in step 2 & then in step 3 you’ll add the remaining flour.
Julie says
It
does say in step 2. to add 2 cups of flour but in step 3. it says you are to slowly add the remaining flour which is between 2.5 cups and 3 cups which would give you your total flour of 4.5 to 5 cups. I suggest starting with the lesser amount as mine only required 4.5 cups total. And you can always add the other half cup if it appears to sticky.
Lila says
Tried to make these today and followed the directions to a T but the dough never rose and was so dense it wouldn’t even come together to form a smooth ball. It’s a shame because they looked so good in the picture but definitely disappointed in the recipe.
Gina Kleinworth says
It sounds like your yeast didn’t proof properly, which will kill any rising that would happen later. This can be caused by water being too hot or cold, the yeast not being fresh or may be already dead depending on the climate in your home. I’m so sorry to hear this happened, yeast can be quite fickle, especially in the winter.
Shauna says
I loved the texture, but these breadsticks were about as tasty as Saltine crackers. Extremely bland with little flavor. They were not anything like Olive Garden breadsticks which burst with flavor. Really, the only way I could eat them was to soak them up in my soup. I don’t know if they needed more sugar or butter or what…
Gina Kleinworth says
Did you alter the recipe in any way? Leave out brushing with butter & adding the garlic/salt mixture at the end? They should have plenty of flavor if you did that at the end.
I don’t recommend changing the amount of sugar as the sure isn’t as much for flavor as it is there to help the yeast ferment – so that would change the consistency of the dough.
Candice says
My first attempt at making bread ever was this recipe. It was much easier than I thought it would be and they were so good. I thought we would end up freezing half since it is just me, my husband and our 2 year old daughter but we finished half of them the first night. I wrapped them in foil and reheated them in the oven for 5 minutes at 350 degrees the second night. My husband was very impressed and we even joked that we won’t need to go out to dinner anymore haha.
Gina Kleinworth says
This is AWESOME! Great job! I’m so thrilled to hear this – thank you!