breadstick
{{Short description|Italian bread}}
{{Distinguish|text=baguettes}}
{{Use American English|date=December 2024}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2024}}
{{Infobox food
| name = Breadstick
| image = 2016 1129 Turin Grissini.jpg
| image_size = 250px
| caption = Grissini in a restaurant in Turin, Italy
| alternate_name = Grissini (plural), grissino (singular)
| country = Italy
| creator = Antonio Brunero (according to traditions)
| course =
| type = Bread
| served =
| main_ingredient = Flour, water, yeast
| variations =
}}
Breadsticks, also known as grissini ({{singular}}: grissino; Piedmontese: ghërsin, {{IPA|pms|gəɾˈsiŋ|lang}}), are generally pencil-sized sticks of crisp, dry baked bread that originated in the Italian city of Turin, Piedmont.
History
It is believed that the breadstick originated in 1643, when a Florentine abbot described a long-shaped and "bone-thin" bread being made in Lanzo Torinese, a town outside of Turin.{{Cite web|url=http://www.thenibble.com/reviews/main/breadstuffs/breadstick-history.asp|title=The Nibble: Breadstick History|website=www.thenibble.com|access-date=16 April 2018}}{{Cite news|url=https://leitesculinaria.com/88402/recipes-italian-breadsticks.html|title=Grissini Recipe {{!}} Italian Breadsticks {{!}} Leite's Culinaria|date=11 November 2016|work=Leite's Culinaria|access-date=16 April 2018|language=en-US}} Tradition states, however, that it originated in the region of Piedmont in the 17th century, invented by a baker called Antonio Brunero, from Turin. It was a food that was intended to be easier to digest for the Duke Victor Amadeus II of Savoy, who had digestive problems in his childhood.{{Cite web|url=http://www.claudiosspecialtybreads.com/history.html|title=The History of Grissini|last=cobblestonewebdesign.com|website=www.claudiosspecialtybreads.com|access-date=16 April 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180415203130/http://www.claudiosspecialtybreads.com/history.html|archive-date=15 April 2018|url-status=dead}}{{Cite web|url=http://blog.italian-connection.com/italian-food-culture/grissini-italian-breadstick-recipe-piedmont-walking|title=Grissini - Breadsticks from Piedmont with Recipe & History|website=blog.italian-connection.com|access-date=16 April 2018|date=7 March 2013|archive-date=23 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180923133700/http://blog.italian-connection.com/italian-food-culture/grissini-italian-breadstick-recipe-piedmont-walking|url-status=dead}}{{Cite news|url=http://www.dearitaly.com/piedmont/piedmontese-cuisine/grissini-turin-breadsticks/|title=The famous Grissini of Turin are traditional breadsticks - Dear Italy Piedmont|date=19 November 2014|work=Piedmont|access-date=16 April 2018|language=en-GB}}{{Cite news|url=https://meetpiemonte.com/en/blog/grissini-noble-origins|title=Grissini were invented around 1670 in Turin by a baker|date=9 September 2017|work=Meet Piemonte|access-date=16 April 2018|language=en-US}}
Serving
In Italian restaurants, breadsticks are often offered as an appetizer (antipasto), especially in their traditional shape, together with or replacing bread, which is commonly provided with all meals. They may also be combined with ingredients such as prosciutto. This appears to be the case with restaurants in the United States as well;{{cite web|first=Ryan|last=Joseph|title=Why Olive Garden Serves Unlimited Breadsticks|url=https://www.thrillist.com/eat/nation/olive-garden-breadsticks-history|website=Thrillist|date=9 August 2018|access-date=19 August 2018}} in some instances or regions, they may be a type that is larger than pencil-sized, as well as soft instead of hard.
In many North American restaurants, breadsticks are soft, frequently topped with butter, garlic, and cheese when served as appetizers; as a dessert item, they can be topped with cinnamon, sugar,Various references:
- {{cite web|url=http://www.theherald-news.com/lists/2018/05/22/62c4e53147664979b3564dc893c5eccd/index.xml?page=1|title=Cinnamon Stix rule at Jet's Pizza in Joliet|website=theherald-news.com|access-date=29 August 2018}}
- {{cite web|url=https://www.franchising.com/news/20180814_doughnate_to_help_end_childhood_hunger_at_pie_five.html|title=Dough-nate to Help End Childhood Hunger at Pie Five|website=franchising.com|access-date=29 August 2018}}
- {{cite web|url=http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2018/aug/18/30-years-running-pizza-pipeline-focuses-on-its-lo/|title=30 years running, Pizza Pipeline focuses on its local roots|website=spokesman.com|access-date=29 August 2018}}
- {{cite web|url=https://www.brandeating.com/2015/07/cinnabon-brings-back-cinnabon-stix.html|title=Cinnabon Brings Back Cinnabon Stix|website=www.brandeating.com|access-date=29 August 2018}} and icing.{{cite web|first=Tom|last=Broyles|title=Earn more dough by making some bread . . . sticks|url=http://www.pmq.com/Winter-2002/Earn-More-Dough-by-Making-Some-Bread-sticks/|website=PMQ Pizza Magazine|access-date=19 August 2018}}
Pre-made, dried breadsticks can be found being sold in markets as a quick snack or a pre-meal appetizer for home use, somewhat similar to a cracker. In Italy they are often consumed as a snack on their own, but in the United States they are usually served with a dip of some sort, such as cheese.{{Cite web|url=https://www.thelaughingcow.com/products/creamy-swiss-with-classic-breadsticks|title=Creamy Swiss with Classic Breadsticks|website=The Laughing Cow|language=en-US|access-date=16 April 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180417023513/https://www.thelaughingcow.com/products/creamy-swiss-with-classic-breadsticks|archive-date=17 April 2018|url-status=dead}}
Another recipe for breadsticks, called rosquilletas, exists in the Valencian Community.{{Cite web|url=http://aimarosquilletas.com/|title=Aima Rosquilletas Artesanas Hechas a Mano · Castellón|website=Aima Rosquilletas|language=es-ES|access-date=16 April 2018}}
Image:Grissini.jpg|Unbaked home-made grissini on a baking tray, seasoned with herbs
Image:Grissinistirati.jpg|Grissini in the proper case to be served at table