Twisted Cheesy Breadsticks
A simple pizza dough twisted up with herbs, Italian meat, and cheese! Enjoy these delicious breadsticks for a quick lunch or snack!
Necessity is the mother of invention, and this is especially true at the lunch hour.
Our lunches run the gamut here– from lunch trays assembled to share while we do lessons, packed lunches on co-op or adventure days, YOYO days in which the kids are on their own for figuring out what they want to eat…
… and hot lunches that are both deliciously satisfying and simple enough that we almost always have the ingredients on hand.
These twisted breadsticks fit the last description. I can easily stir together a quick pizza dough, and twist together whatever mix of meat, cheese, and veggies is in the fridge. All done in about 30 minutes.
One portion of my homemade pizza dough can make 10-12 breadsticks. Last week for my crew of 6, I made 2 dozen breadsticks– half twisted with ham and half with spicy pepperoni. It was the perfect lunch to make when I really needed to get to the grocery store.
If you haven’t tried my pizza dough before, it’s hugely popular for a good reason. It comes together very easily and very quickly, making it perfect for lunches and simple family pizza nights. (I use it for Stromboli, too!) All you need is flour, sea salt, active dry yeast, and warm water.
Give these breadsticks a try this week! Lunch or dinner, they are sure to please. Serve them with dipping bowls of marinara sauce for extra tastiness. (My favorite homemade marinara recipe is in my Instant Pot cookbook. It’s super easy and SO good!)
Check out these other healthy and easy lunch ideas too:
- Garlic Orzo with Bacon & Greens
- Instant Pot Ramen Noodles
- Homemade Pigs in A Blanket
- Sheet Pan Nachos
- Our Favorite Tuna Salad
- Stovetop Popcorn
Twisted Cheesy Breadsticks
Description
A simple pizza dough twisted up with herbs, Italian meat, and cheese! Enjoy these delicious breadsticks for a quick lunch or snack!
Ingredients
- simple thin crust pizza dough
- 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp Italian herbs
- 1 handful (about 1 C) spinach leaves, roughly chopped
- 1 C shredded mozzarella cheese
- Italian meat– salami, capicola ham, prosciutto, etc
- 1/4 C grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 500° (to use with a baking stone/steel) or 450° (to use with a baking sheet).
2. Make the pizza dough. (One portion per 10-12 breadsticks).
3. Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface into a rectangle about 10″x15″. Drizzle olive oil across the top of the dough, then sprinkle the salt, pepper, and spices on top. Distribute the chopped spinach, cheeses, and meat evenly across the dough.
4. Fold the bottom third of the rectangle up towards the middle. Fold the top third down, to form a sealed “envelope”. Use a dough scraper or knife to divide the dough envelope into 10-12 strips.
5. Twist each strip twice and place on a piece of parchment paper. Bake for 8-10 minutes at 500°, or 12-15 minutes at 450°.
6. Let cool slightly and serve with marinara dipping sauce.
These cheesy twists were so easy and delicious, my kids devoured them instantly and asked for more.
This has become a staple in my house. I got this recipe over 5 years ago and now it’s taped to the inside of my cabinet door because I use this weekly. I have successfully doubled and multiplied this recipe up to 12x in one batch. It’s very versatile. Pizzas a win, turning into fried donuts a win, and our favorite is making it into calzones with leftovers. Just happened to get on for the recipe to send to a friend today and thought I should leave a review because seriously it’s a staple, mega go-to in our house.
Hey Lisa! My 8 yo boy just HUGGED ME and said this was the best lunch ever!! ????
We’re gluten free, so I used a cup for cup baking flour (from bobs red mill) and it turned out a little too dry. I addd a little extra hot water, and it was still more flaky than soft. I ended up skipping the twisting part of the recipe, left the strips flat on the pan, because of the dryness. It still baked beautifully, was SO delicious! So my question is, do you have any specific tips for me, on using gluten free flour for this recipe? We’ve already voted this one in as our Sunday lunch go-to!
So you use bread flour or regular all purpose flour for the pizza dough?
Regular all-purpose, or freshly ground flour.
Is there a print option for this recipe? I can’t print it without all the ads and pics. Thanks!
We had these tonight and everyone loved them 🙂
Lisa, thank you for this recipe!! I’m going to make this for my kids’ birthday party this Sunday! 🙂
No rise time?
You can let it rise for 10 or so minutes, but it’s not mandatory. I typically let my pizzas rise for a short time (5-10 minutes), but not typically the breadsticks.
I will be nannying 7 and 6 year old boys this summer. My guess is that that is about how old your boys are. I’m trying to come up with fun things to do with them. I know that they enjoyed making cookies with me one time. Do you think that this would be a good recipe to make with them?
Definitely Heidi! Especially since a recipe like this is super versatile. You could throw in chicken or pepperoni. Change up the cheese. Add a different veggie. Plus, it’s a great option for kids because the dough is so quick and they do not have to bake long. I have a lot more recipes and ideas for cooking with kids too (search “kids in the kitchen”). I think that kids are capable of doing a lot in the kitchen! (Also, just in case you’re curious, my boys are almost 6 and 4).
Thanks for the reply, Lisa! Will definitely try some of those other recipes, too. I enjoyed your kids in the kitchen series.