Grissini

Ingredients

• 1 3/4 tsp dry yeast
• 1 1/4 cups warm water
• 1 Tbsp malt
• 1/4 cup olive oil, plus additional for brushing the dough
• 3 3/4 cups unbleached all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup chopped sage

Method

Stir the yeast and malt into the warm water in a large mixing bowl, let stand until foamy, about 10 mins. Stir in 2 Tbsp oil. Add the flour and salt and stir until the dough comes together. Knead on a lightly floured surface until smooth, soft  and elastic approximately  8 to 10 minutes. Work  in the sage at the very end of the kneading.

First Rise -

Pat the dough with your hands into a 14 x 4 inch rectangle on a well floured surface. Lighly brush the top with oil. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour.

Cut the dough crosswise into 4 equal sections and then cut each section into 5 strips, each about the width of a fat finger. The dough is so elastic you can simply pick up each piece, hold each end with your fingers and pull and stretch to fit the width ( or length) of a baking sheet. Place the sticks a few centimetres apart on a lightly oiled baking sheet.

Bake at 180°c for  15 minutes or until golden brown and crunchy.