Copycat Olive Garden Breadsticks

Copycat Olive Garden Breadsticks bring that basket of warm, soft breadsticks to your own kitchen, brushed with garlic butter the minute they come out of the oven. What most people want from them is the bread-basket moment at home on a regular weeknight, not just on a night out.

The dough only needs six pantry staples, so there’s no special shopping trip, and the recipe makes sixteen. Whether they turn out soft or dense depends entirely on the second rise, and that’s where I’ll show you what goes wrong.

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Affiliate, if you purchase through those links, I earn a commission. Thank you!

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• The dough is six everyday ingredients, flour, yeast, water, sugar, salt, and oil, so there’s no special trip to make a batch.
• One batch makes sixteen breadsticks, enough for a family dinner with some left over to freeze.
• They freeze well for up to 2 months, so you can bake once and pull a few out whenever pasta night comes around.
• Brushing the warm garlic butter on twice soaks it into the crumb instead of leaving it sitting on the surface.
• It’s a practical way to put the restaurant bread basket on your own table instead of ordering out.

Ingredients You’ll Need

Here’s what’s worth a word before you start; the printable card below has the full list with quantities.

• Active dry yeast. This is what makes the breadsticks rise, so it has to be alive. If it doesn’t foam in the warm water within about ten minutes, it’s dead, and the dough won’t rise no matter how long you wait.
• Warm water. Aim for around 110°F (43°C). Too cool and the yeast is sluggish; too hot and it kills the yeast outright, which is the most common reason a first batch stays flat.
• All-purpose flour. Spoon it into the cup and level it rather than scooping, since packing in too much flour is what turns the breadsticks dense and heavy.
• Olive oil. Three tablespoons go into the dough for a tender crumb and a little richness.
• Unsalted butter and garlic powder. These make the topping. Unsalted butter lets you control the salt yourself, and garlic powder blends into the melted butter more evenly than fresh garlic, which can catch and brown on a hot breadstick.

How to Make Copycat Olive Garden Breadsticks

Scroll down for the full recipe card containing a full printable recipe and measurements in both US customary and metric units.

Activate the yeast

Combine the warm water, sugar, and yeast in a small bowl and let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes, until the top looks foamy. That foam means the yeast is alive. If nothing happens, pour it out and start again with fresh yeast rather than pressing on with dough that won’t rise.

Mix and knead the dough

Stir the flour and salt together in a large bowl, then add the yeast mixture and the olive oil, and mix until a shaggy dough comes together and no dry flour is left. Knead it for 5 to 6 minutes in a stand mixer, or 8 to 10 minutes by hand, until it’s smooth and just slightly sticky.

If you’re kneading by hand and it’s sticking to everything, add flour a tablespoon at a time, but stop as soon as it comes together.

Too much extra flour leaves you with a dense, dry result instead of a soft, tender one.

Let the dough rise

Set the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and turn it once to coat. Cover it and leave it somewhere warm for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, until it has doubled in size.

First Rise

Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and turn to coat. Cover and let it rise in a warm place for 1 to 1½ hours, or until doubled.

Shape the breadsticks

Punch the dough down and divide it into 16 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a rope about 7 to 8 inches long, then lay them on a parchment-lined baking sheet with space between them so they can puff up as they rise.

Give them a second rise and heat the oven

Cover the shaped ropes and let them rise for 30 to 45 minutes, until they look puffy. Don’t rush this one. Set the oven to 400°F (200°C) as the breadsticks rest.

Bake

Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until the tops are golden brown.

Brush with garlic butter

While they bake, stir the melted butter together with the garlic powder and salt. Brush it over the breadsticks as soon as they come out of the oven; let it soak in for a minute, then give them a second light coat so the flavor sinks into the crumb.

Recipe Notes and Expert Tips

• Go easy with the flour. The single biggest reason homemade breadsticks come out dense is too much flour worked in during kneading, so add it a spoonful at a time and stop when the dough is smooth and slightly tacky.
• Let the second rise finish. Breadsticks baked before they’re properly puffy come out tight and hard instead of soft, so give them the full 30 to 45 minutes.
• Roll the ropes to an even thickness so they bake at the same rate rather than some browning while others are still pale.
• Brush the butter twice. One coat sits on top, but a second coat after the first has soaked in is what gets that garlic butter right through the crumb.

Recipe Variations

• For more garlic flavor through the whole breadstick, work a teaspoon of garlic powder or dried Italian herbs into the flour before you mix. It seasons the crumb without changing the rise, though I keep the tested batch plain and let the butter do the work.
• Grated Parmesan stirred into the warm garlic butter gives a garlic-Parmesan finish that’s a reliable, well-supported swap, since it changes only the topping and not the dough.
• For a sharper finish, sprinkle flaky or garlic salt over the breadsticks once they’re buttered. It changes only the seasoning on top and not the dough, so it’s a supported swap rather than one I’ve tested in this batch.

How to Store Leftovers

You can make the dough ahead. A slow rise in the refrigerator overnight, or a cold second rise for the shaped ropes, both work and are standard bread-dough practice, though the timing above is written for a same-day batch.

Store leftover breadsticks in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. To freeze, lay the cooled breadsticks in a single layer until firm, then move them to a freezer container for up to 2 months, and thaw them at room temperature for about an hour.

Reheat wrapped in foil at 300°F (149°C) for 5 to 7 minutes, and add a little fresh garlic butter once they’re warm.

What to Serve With Copycat Olive Garden Breadsticks

Breadsticks were made for soaking up a bowl of soup or the sauce off a plate of pasta, so build the meal around that. Start the table with a warm Spinach Artichoke Dip for people to tear the first breadstick into, then bring out a bowl of Copycat Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana to keep the whole meal in that same restaurant lane.

For a heartier plate, a serving of Creamy Chicken Alfredo gives the breadsticks a rich sauce to mop up and turns the basket into dinner.

FAQs

More Easy Sides and Breads to Round Out Dinner

If these earn a spot in your rotation, here’s where I’d send you next.

• Homemade Garlic Bread: when you want the same warm, garlicky idea on a night you don’t have hours for a yeast rise.
• Cheddar Biscuits: the one for a night you’d rather have something cheesy and tender than a chewy breadstick.
• Grilled Potatoes: a simple side to round out the breadsticks and soup into a fuller plate.