Sesame Grissini rubata ( Hand rolled sesame bread sticks )

Grissini are a dry long and thin bread sticks that originate from Torino, Italy. The Grissini dough is identical to bread and is produced only with Extra Virgin Olive Oil making them more crisp and flavorsome.
The stories about the origin of Grissini are numerous. But I like to believe in this particularly story
When, the young Duke Vittorio Amadeo di Savoia was so sick he couldn’t keep anything down, Carlo Emanuele II asked a baker from Turin, Antonio Brunero, to create some thing that the young duke could digest. The request was for something ‘long, light and subtle’.



From his ovens, Antonio produced a thin crispy breadstick called Ghersino, a smaller version of Ghersa, which was long thin bread. His creation was a great success and the bread became so popular it entered the daily life of the Torinesi and later the whole of Italy.



The young Duke (who was also a Prince) ate the breadsticks until he recovered from his illness. A little later, while parts of Italy were under the control of Napoleon Bonaparte, the breadsticks became a court favorite as he appreciated this Torinese specialty as well. Known only for a short while as ghersino, the breadsticks soon became Grissini with two variations: Stirato (straight) and Rubata (hand rolled).


Note: Grissini are easy to flavor: Add 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary to the dough. Or add freshly cracked black pepper, thyme, caraway or other spices or herbs. Or sprinkle the grissini with sea salt or other specialty salt, chopped parmesan or sesame seeds, as this recipe just before baking.

Ingredients • 200g flour • 50g semolina • 10g dry yeast • 140ml warm water • 1 teaspoon sea salt • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 50g sesame seed to topping

In a large bowl, combine flour, salt and semolina Put dry yeast in the water and stir until dissolved, let stand for a couple of minutes. Add to this mix olive oil Make a hole in the centre of the flour mixture, and stir in water-yeast-olive oil mix until it forms dough. Knead until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Wash out the bowl and coat it with a thin layer of olive oil. Place the dough in the bowl, cover with a kitchen towel and allow rising in a warm place for 1 hour.