Breadsticks and Soft White Bread

Did you love the breadsticks they serve with meals at Olive Garden?  When you found out you couldn't have wheat anymore, did you think you'd never get to have anything like them again?  Well, fear not, today's recipe for breadsticks doesn't look as pretty as theirs (I'll bet they've got some cunning little pans that they cook theirs in), but taste great and will satisfy your craving. 

I actually came up with these kind of by accident.  One of my little grandsons has been complaining of a tummy ache every time he eats wheat products lately, so I've been experimenting with the Favorite White Bread recipe to see if I could make it lighter and more flavorful so he'd think it was wonderful.  I made some ingredient changes and then decided to try just mixing it in the bread maker, but baking it in my oven.  After putting what I needed in the pan, there was dough left over, so I thought I'd make them into breadsticks and see how they tasted.  I wish I had let them raise longer -- I think they would have looked better -- but my husband was clamoring for me to hurry up and cook them (I cooked the bread first, and you know how fresh bread baking smells, and he knew he wasn't getting any of that :), so I hurried them up too fast and they didn't get plump enough before they went in the oven.  Oh well.  He said they tasted great, however, and the little guy likes the bread, so I'm counting the experiment as a success.  So here's the recipe, and the instructions for both the breadsticks and the bread:

Breadsticks and Soft White Bread

4 Tbsp butter, melted
3/4 Cup evaporated milk
3/4 Cup warm water
3 eggs
1-1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vinegar

Whisk together and put into bread machine pan.

3 Cups Basic Gluten-Free Flour Mix
1/2 Cup tapioca flour
1/3 Cup potato flakes
1/4 Cup sugar
1 Tbsp xanthan gum

Whisk together and put on top of liquid in bread machine pan.  Make well in flour mixture and fill with:

1 scant Tbsp yeast (see picture of this step in this post if this doesn't make sense to you)

Choose setting on your bread machine that will mix the dough, but not bake it.

When it's completed the mixing setting, remove pan from bread machine and divide dough into two medium sized (4" x 7-1/2") bread pans that have been liberally sprayed with Pam, or 1 bread pan and 1 sprayed cookie sheet, or make it all into breadsticks -- you choose.  Remember, the dough will not be firm enough to handle, like regular bread dough -- it's much more liquidy.  For the bread loaves, smooth the top and let raise until it passes the edge of the pan and looks like a real loaf of bread.  For the bread sticks, pat the dough with greased fingers (it helps to spray the top of the dough with Pam too) into a rectangle, and then cut into strips with a sprayed pizza cutter.  After cutting them, scoot them apart from each other a little so you'll have individual sticks.  Let raise to whatever size you like.  For both the bread and the breadsticks, bake in a 375 oven until browned on top and a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

For the breadsticks, remove from oven and brush immediately with butter and sprinkle lightly with garlic salt.  Serve warm.

For the bread, remove from oven, brush top with butter, let rest 2 or 3 minutes, then remove from pan and place on rack until completely cooled.