Olive Garden Breadsticks are a welcome addition to the chain’s many pastas, salads, and soups. No one can resist a basket of pillowy, buttery breadsticks accented with garlic! Now, you can replicate the recipe at home with our Copycat Olive Garden Breadsticks. These breadsticks may be made from scratch, but they’re not time-intensive.
This is a wonderful recipe because it’s fix-it-and-forget-it—at least for a couple of hours while the dough rises! Your actual hands-on time is minimal, but you get the dopamine boost of creating something from scratch.
Friends and family will be amazed at how similar these fluffy breadsticks are to Olive Garden’s! Serve them with our Copycat Zuppa Toscana, chili, or Caesar salad, or have them plain with a dipping sauce. We know you’ll be just as obsessed with this recipe as we are.
Olive Garden Fun Facts
What’s the history behind Olive Garden? Get the 411 with these fun facts.
- The first Olive Garden was in Orlando, Florida. The chain’s creator always envisioned it as a chain and wanted it to be the Italian version of Red Lobster.
- Olive Garden is known for its generosity. Over the last twenty years, the chain has donated over 49 million pounds of food to needy people.
- Olive Garden’s slogan was “When you’re here, you’re family!” until the late 1990s, before switching to the less formal “We’re all family here” in the 2000s.
- Olive Garden used to place a considerable emphasis on salad, with their primary marketing hook being unlimited salad. This appealed to health-conscious diners and helped lighten the caloric load of all those breadsticks!
- Despite Olive Garden’s emphasis on health, much of its food, including its breadsticks, isn’t made in-house.
- Olive Garden has expanded its products outside its four walls, expanding to nearby grocery stores. Now, you can snag a bottle of their famous dressing for your home.
RELATED: My Favorite Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana Recipe: A Taste of Tuscany
Cost of Making the Olive Garden Breadsticks Recipe
If you visit Olive Garden, a batch of 12 breadsticks would cost you at least $6.79. In contrast, you can make 12 of our Copycat Olive Garden Breadsticks for just $2.71. Wow! That is SUCH a huge price difference. Plus, you know exactly what’s in your breadsticks, and they’re made fresh!
Keep in mind that this may differ based on your locale and ingredient availability.
Here’s how that breaks down:
- Yeast: $0.10
- Sugar: $0.03
- Olive oil: $0.90
- Salt: $0.03
- Flour: $1.05
- Butter: $0.50
- Garlic powder: $0.10
Grand Total: $2.71
This is one of those times that it totally pays to make food from scratch!
RELATED: The Delicious Olive Garden Alfredo Sauce Recipe
How to Make Copycat Olive Garden Breadsticks
Learn how to make a mouthwatering batch of Copycat Olive Garden Breadsticks.
Step One: Make the Breadstick Dough
Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Combine the water, yeast, sugar, olive oil, and salt in a stand mixer bowl. This is best done using a dough hook.
Turn the mixer to low and add 3 cups of flour. Knead the dough for 10 minutes, until it’s tacky and slightly sticky. If your dough is too hard to work with, add more flour. Remember, a little goes a long way!
Step Two: Let the Dough Rise
Remove the dough from the stand mixer and place in a greased bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled. Depending on your ingredients and climate, this can take 1-2 hours.
Step Three: Form the Olive Garden Breadsticks
Once the dough is doubled in size, it’s time to form the breadsticks. Divide the dough into 10 even pieces and roll into a log shape. Flouring your working space makes this job easy as pie. Gently set on the prepared baking tray and let rise for 30 minutes to 1 hour, until doubled in size.
Step Four: Bake and Serve
Preheat the oven to 400°F and bake the breadsticks for 10-12 minutes. Remove from the oven and brush with melted butter, then sprinkle with salt and garlic powder. Your Copycat Olive Garden Breadsticks are best served warm, so bon appetite!
RELATED: Olive Garden Bread Dipping Oil Recipe
What to Serve With Olive Garden Breadsticks
Serve your breadsticks with a soup, chili, stew, or salad. They’d also be a delicious companion to your favorite pizza or pasta dish. You can eat them on their own, paired with marinara sauce, ranch dressing, or garlic butter.
Storing Leftover Olive Garden Breadsticks
You can store leftover Olive Garden Breadsticks in the fridge for up to 5 days or freeze them for up to 6 months. This is a great freezer meal option when you need a quick side dish!
This Olive Garden Breadsticks Recipe is My Saving Grace
Bring the taste of little Italy to your home with our Copycat Olive Garden Breadsticks. These breadsticks are as soft as a pillow and topped with a garlic-infused butter, making every bite heavenly. Plus, you can make them for a fraction of the cost as Olive Garden’s version. This is one recipe you won’t want to keep to yourself.
- Oven
- Parchment Paper
- Stand mixer with dough hook attachment or Mixing Bowls
- Basting Brush
- 1 1/2 cups warm water
- 2 teaspoons yeast
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3-4 cups flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 3 tablespoons butter (melted)
Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Combine the water, yeast, sugar, olive oil, and salt in a stand mixer bowl. This is best done using a dough hook. Turn the mixer to low and add 3 cups of flour. Knead the dough for 10 minutes, until it’s tacky and slightly sticky. If your dough is too hard to work with, add more flour.
Remove the dough from the stand mixer and place in a greased bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled. Depending on your ingredients and climate, this can take anywhere from 1-2 hours.
Once the dough is doubled in size, it’s time to form the breadsticks. Divide the dough into 10 even pieces and roll into a log shape. Gently set on the prepared baking tray and let rise for 30 minutes to 1 hour, until doubled in size.
Preheat the oven to 400°F and bake the breadsticks for 10-12 minutes. Remove from the oven and brush with melted butter, then sprinkle with salt and garlic powder. Your Copycat Olive Garden Breadsticks are best served warm, so bon appetite!