You know your friends love you when they send you fourteen packets of yeast in the mail during a global pandemic. When I got the message that the ‘yeast fairy’ had visited my house, I was not expecting that much! But I am so happy (thanks, Jess!) that she did because now I can present to you one of my favorite recipes to date: Pizza Dough Garlic Knots.
Keeping pizza dough in the freezer really is such a versatile pantry staple. And for those of you that do not have your own sourdough starter (a la last week’s sourdough pizza crust,) I’ll also be showing you a recipe for my other favorite, bulk pizza dough. The recipe yields enough for four pizza dough balls.
That means you can make one recipe of these giant garlic knots and then have three pizzas later!
Or, you can have sixteen garlic knots now and two pizzas later.
OR, you can just go crazy and make thirty two, glorious, fist-sized garlic knots. Who am I to judge?
How To Prepare Pizza Dough Garlic Knots
First, we will need our pizza dough.Well, actually, that is a lie. First you will need a head of roasted garlic. Or two heads, depending on how garlicky you like things. If you are here on a garlic knots recipe, I assume you want things to be pretty darn garlicky, so let’s say two heads. If you don’t have any, pop over to my roasted garlic tutorial for instructions on how to roast a ton of it and keep it in the freezer. You’ll thank me later!
Okay, now we can make our pizza dough. You’ll need bread flour, white sugar, salt, instant yeast, warn water, and olive oil. Dump everything into a stand mixer outfitted with a dough hook and knead that bad boy for about ten minutes until it forms a smooth dough. If needed, add a little extra flour or a little extra oil if the dough is either too dry or too sticky. Cover the bowl in plastic wrap and leave it to rise for thirty minutes. It will puff up significantly!
Remember, this makes four pizza’s worth of dough. Before proceeding, divide the dough into fourths and use 1/4 for this recipe.
PROTIP: Do not add your roasted garlic to the dough until after it rises! Too much garlic can inhibit yeast growth. And believe me, we want way too much garlic in this recipe. Offensive amounts of garlic. Wait until your dough ball is fully risen.
Now, we knead in our garlic. Use floured hands. Garlic makes things sticky. And delicious. You will be tempted to lick your fingers. Wait until you’re all done here, please.
Divide your garlicky dough ball into eight equal pieces and roll into ropes, then tie into knots. I tuck the ends of the knot underneath, but you do not have to. Eater’s choice!
I brush the tops with a little bit of olive oil to help with browning before popping them on a baking tray lined with a silicone mat. Baked at 375 degrees for fifteen to eighteen minutes, or until delightfully golden.
When they are finished, top with whatever you please. I brush with vegan butter, then sprinkle on some vegan parmesan and dried parsley. OH, and my favorite marinara sauce for dipping. Perfection.
What about the leftover pizza dough?
Like most things I make in the kitchen, this pizza dough freezes and defrosts like a dream. Put each of the three leftover pieces into individual zip-top bags, squeeze out the excess air and freeze for up to three months. Pizza and garlic knots on demand are a big YES in this household.
Pizza Dough Garlic Knots (+ Bulk Pizza Dough)
Equipment
- Stand Mixer with dough hook attachment
- Large baking sheet
- Cutting board
- Silicone baking mat or parchment paper
Ingredients
For the Bulk Pizza Dough
- 5 cups Bread flour (625g)
- 1 heaping tablespoon Instant or Rapid-Rise yeast
- 2 cups Water (450g) room temperature
- 2 teaspoons White sugar (10g)
- 1 teaspoon Kosher salt (5g)
- ¼ cup Olive oil (32g) extra virgin
For the Garlic Knots
- ¼ portion Bulk Pizza Dough recipe (see above)
- 1 head Roasted garlic
- Olive oil for brushing
- 1 tablespoon Vegan butter (optional) melted, for brushing
- ½ teaspoon Dried parsley (optional)
- 2 tablespoons Vegan parmesan cheese (optional)
- ⅛ teaspoon Flaky sea salt (optional)
- Marinara sauce of your choice for dipping
Instructions
- If you have not already, prepare the roasted garlic
To Prepare the Bulk Pizza Dough
- Add all ingredients to the bowl of a stand mixer and knead with the dough hook attachment for ten minutes until a smooth dough forms. Or, knead until the dough stop sticking to the sides of the bowl and wraps around the dough hook.
- Cover the bowl in plastic wrap or a damp dishtowel and leave to rise for half an hour. The dough will rise significantly during this time.
- Turn the dough out onto a cutting board and divide into four equal portions. Use one portion to prepare garlic knots.
- Place the remaining three portions into a individual zip-top freezer bags and freeze for up to three months.
To Prepare the Garlic Knots
- Preheat your oven to 375°
- Knead the roasted garlic into the risen pizza dough so it is incorporated evenly. To do this, I mash the roasted garlic with a fork until it resembles a paste, then spread it over the top of the dough before kneading. This helps to ensure even incorporation.
- Divide the dough into 8 equal portions and roll each piece into a rope 6-8 inches in length. If the dough seems to snap back into place while rolling or is having difficulty stretching, allow the dough to rest for ten minutes before continuing.
- With floured hands, gently tie each strand into a knot, tucking the ends underneath.
- Transfer the garlic knots to a baking sheet lined with either a silicone mat or parchment paper.
- Brush the tops with additional olive oil to assist with browning. Be generous!
- Bake for 15-18 minutes, or until the tops become golden brown.
- While the garlic knots are still warm, brush with melted vegan butter and sprinkle with dried parsley, vegan parmesan, and flaky sea salt.
- Serve with your favorite marinara sauce for dipping.
If you prepare this recipe, please let me know! Snap a picture and tag me @kettleandkale on Instagram. Enjoy!
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