Grissini with Rosemary and Olive Oil

Among my favourite Italian bread types are grissini, those long bread sticks that you can nibble on while waiting for the meal to be served. They come in various different flavours, but I prefer the ones with rosemary.

On Wednesday, I tried baking my own grissini for the first time. The taste compensates the somewhat imperfect shape!

I made the dough using sourdough starter instead of commercial yeast and once again, you really don’t taste it. I love to play with the idea that in 1679 when grissini are said to be invented there was no commercial yeast - so the recipe that follows just could be the original one..! Who knows?

For 20 long, thin grissini you need

• 450g flour (I used spelt, type 630 - next time I’ll try with whole-grain)


• 300g water


• 150g sourdough starter, refreshed 3-4 hours before (but doubled in volume - if not, wait until it has)


• 3 Tbsp olive oil


• 2 tsp dried rosemary


• 11g salt


• Plus some more olive oil, salt, and fresh rosemary (optional) for finishing.

In a baking bowl, combine flour and water and let stand for about 30 minutes. Then add all other ingredients and knead 10 minutes or so. Cover the dough with a damp kitchen towel and let ferment 6-8 hours.

On a baking surface, work the dough so that the air bubbles disappear. Divide the dough in 20 parts, and work each part into a long, thin bread. Place on an oven pan (either greased or covered with greaseproof paper) and let ferment about 20-30 minutes. Brush your grissini evenly with olive oil and grind some salt on top. If you want, you can also decorate your grissini with fresh rosemary leaves. Bake in a preheated oven (225C) 10-15 minutes or until golden brown (but be careful, they burn easily!).

Serve as an appetizer with a glass of red wine! If anything is left over, store in a dry and cool place.