Garlic Knots Bread – a classic pizzeria snack made from scratch that’s soft, fluffy with a nice little chew in between. Smothered in garlic, butter and herbs mixture then baked to golden perfection. Great as a snack, appetizer or as a side dish, too. 

Does it feel like the weekend already on your end? Well, here at home, the “weekend-feel” starts as early as Thursday. That’s the time that I make plans for the weekend, and usually, for me, it’s more like either grocery shopping or baking time at home. Sounds boring to some, but hey, that’s how I roll! 😉

Today’s recipe is a great weekend baking inspiration for you all and also a fantastic addition to your Thanksgiving or holiday menu. A basket of this won’t be enough especially if you have a couple of “bread-o-holic” (is that even a word??..LOL 😆) around the table. You and your guests will find yourselves reaching for one after another of these tasty GARLIC KNOTS!

What’s in a Garlic Knot?

A Garlic Knot is typically garlic bread shaped into small tight overhand knots smothered in a herby, garlicky, and buttery mixture. It was said that the first-ever garlic knot recipe was developed in  1973 by Amir Zamani as a way to make use of pizza dough scraps. Today, you can find most restaurants are offering garlic knots as a side to tomato soups, salads, pasta or meat.

Our recipe here uses a simple made-from-scratch yeast dough. Maybe I’m a little bit biased, but nothing taste quite as good as homemade bread. Don’t be intimidated though when working with yeast. If you can bake a cookie, then you can make this one, too. Just simply follow the recipe to a “T” and you’ll be fine.

Below are the ingredients to make these wonderful and fun knot bread:

• warm water
•  rapid rise yeast
• milk
• sugar
• salt
• melted butter
• all-purpose flour

Garlic Butter Mixture

For our garlic butter mixture, you’ll need:

• melted butter
• olive oil
• finely chopped garlic
• Italian seasoning
• salt
• minced fresh parsley or parmesan cheese for garnishing (optional)

Can I Use Store-Bought Dough?

I know sometimes you might be pressed for time, I am too, almost all the time. While I do encourage you to use this homemade dough, you may buy store-bought pizza or biscuit dough. When buying biscuit dough, choose regular instead of flaky ones. But just a caveat, I’ve read a couple of feedback forums online that state it’s hard to get rid of that underlying biscuit taste as opposed to eating a proper garlic knot bread.

So I guess, your best bet would be using a store-bought like Trader Joe’s pizza dough. If you still have some frozen leftovers from our homemade Pizza Dough HERE, that sounds even better.

How to Make Garlic Butter Mixture?

These homemade garlic knots are so indulgent because they’re a soft and tasty dough PLUS its garlic butter topping. You shouldn’t skip that topping as that what makes these garlic rolls fragrant and over-the-top delicious especially when served warm.

To bring out more of that garlic flavor and aroma, I heated up this garlic butter mixture in the microwave. If you’re a serious garlic lover, you may add more finely chopped garlic into the bowl before it gets microwaved.

Can I Make Garlic Knots Recipe in Advance?

Yes, you can!

To Freeze the Dough: Make the garlic rolls up to step 9 EXCEPT for the rising part. What you do instead is place the rolls on the prepared sheet pan, cover with plastic wrap, and flash freeze them in the freezer for at least an hour or until hard enough to touch. Then transfer the rolls to a freezer-safe container or Ziploc bag and freeze for up to 3 months. 

To Bake Frozen Dough: When ready to bake, thaw frozen homemade garlic knots in a greased sheet pan on the countertop and let it rise for about 1 hour or until dough is puffy. Lastly, bake them in a preheated oven at 350 F° for about 18-22 minutes, or until golden brown on top.

How to Store Garlic Knots?

These garlic knots are best enjoyed when warm. But feel-free to store them in an airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days. To last longer, you may freeze completely cooled baked knots in a freezer-safe container or Ziploc bag for up to 2 months. When ready to serve, thaw them at room temperature or pop them in the microwave for a few seconds or until heated through.

What to Serve with Homemade Garlic Knots?

These bad boys here are best served immediately. My homemade Pizza Sauce HERE is the perfect complement to these addictive baked goods. However, you may also serve a basket of these to go along with these ones below:

• Chicken Marsala
• Tomato Bisque
• Baked Ziti
• Corn Chowder
• Chili
• Southern Baked Mac and Cheese

Love Bread? Try These Other Roll/Bread Recipes

• Easy Dinner Rolls
• Challah Bread
• Garlic Bread
• Focaccia Bread
• Samoan Coconut Bread Rolls (Pani Popo)

 

How To Make Garlic Knot Bread

 

Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper, spray with  baking spray. Set aside. In a large bowl, combine lukewarm water and yeast. Let it sit for about 5 minutes. Add milk, sugar, salt and melted butter , stir until fully combined. Mix in flour to form a  soft dough. Turn dough on lightly floured surface and knead for 3-4 minutes.

Place dough in a greased bowl, turning once to coat the dough. Cover loosely with a clean cloth and let it rise in a warm, draft-free place for 1 to 2 hours or until doubled. Punch the dough down

Roll dough into a rectangle, about  1/2 inch thickness. Use any sharp object like knife or pizza cutter to cut dough into strips about 5-6 inches long, tie into a knot, tucking the ends. Preheat oven to 350 F°. Line cooking sheet with parchment or foil paper and spray with cooking spray , then place rolls on prepared sheet  pan about ½ – 1 inch apart. Repeat with the remaining dough. Cover lightly with kitchen towel and let rise for about 30 minutes or until dough is  puffy.

Making the Garlic Butter Mixture

Add butter, olive oil , garlic, Italian seasoning , salt and minced parsley  in a microwave bowl. Cook for about  30 seconds-1 minute or until butter has melted completely. Set aside.

Once garlic knots have risen, brush garlic knots generously with garlic butter mixture (reserve some for later). Place cookie sheet in preheated oven and bake for about 15-20 minutes, or until nicely browned on top. Remove from the oven and let cool for about 5 minutes. Brush garlic knots with remaining garlic butter mixture. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese, if desired. Serve with pizza sauce for dipping, if desired.

 

Watch How To Make It

 

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