two branches homestead

One of the most delicious and well received additions to any of our meals are homemade garlic knots.  The smell that fills the house when we are making these fills your head with thoughts of your favorite Italian restaurant.  They are soft and fluffy in the center and just a little crisp in the bottom and when combined with butter, olive oil, and fresh garlic from our garden they are heavenly. We start out by using our Italian bread recipe.

Italian Bread Recipe

Ingredients

Again our kitchen aid mixer and its dough hook come in handy.  First we combine yeast, sugar, and 1 cup warm water in bowl of the kitchen aid’s bowl and let stand 5 minutes.

Next we  add 2 cups flour, oil, and salt to bowl, and beat at low speed, using dough hook attachment, 1 minute. Gradually add additional flour until dough begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl.

Then increase speed to medium, and beat 5 minutes. Cover bowl of dough with plastic wrap, and let stand in a warm place for 30 minutes or until doubled in bulk. Punch dough down, and let stand 10 minutes longer.

Now comes the fun part. On a floured surface roll out the dough until it is about 1/4 inch thick. Then cut into strips with a pizza cutter and tie into a knot. Then place on a pan covered in parchment paper .

      bake 400° for 16 minutes or until golden brown.

While the knots are baking, its time to make the magic. Heat equal parts butter and olive oil in a pan (the amount just depends on how much magic you can handle).  And add fresh crushed garlic cook until garlic barely browns and remove from heat

finally drizzle the garlic mixture over your beautiful golden brown knots, toss to coat and watch them get devoured.