The christmas tree, an iconic holiday symbol! So much so that we even make foods that look like them 🙂
My take is a Breadstick Tree stuffed with a filling that’s akin to a very spinach-ey spinach dip with cream cheese, parm & your favourite melty cheese. So you know it’s gotta be delicious, right? It also gave me an opportunity to create an edible peice of art 😉
We don’t need to overcomplicate our lives during the holidays now do we? That’s why this breadstick tree is made with Pillsbury refrigerated pizza dough. There’s no weighing, no rising time. You just roll it out, cut some triangles and you’re basically done (except for the super easy filling)
The filling made with mostly spinach (frozen), cream cheese, Parmigiano Reggiano and either cheddar or mozzarella. I have a friend who said he’d use ricotta. “Great!”, I said, Do whatever you want lol. I’ve even seen this made more like garlic bread where you just put garlic butter and parmesan between the layers. Make it like a pizza with very thinly sliced pepperoni or something. I like a good spinach and cheese filling because it’s delicious and your vegetarian friends can enjoy it too.
The assembly and twisting of the breadsticks is fun to do and yes, you can do it! Once you get going you’ll see it’s easy, you will be so proud of yourself in the end. Think about all of the praise you’ll get 😜 I’ve included my instagram video above so you can see how I put it together.
The garnishes are fresh rosemary, the most Christmasy herb there is, and freshly grated Pecorino Romano because my tree needed a light dusting of snow! You can use freshly grated parm if you prefer. I stress the fact that it must be freshly grated because it’s super fine and fluffy. (You don’t want shreds or very grainy snow)
The verdict from my number 1 taste tester, Mr. Vanilla Bean, is that it is one of the best things I’ve ever made and then proceeded to eat 5 “branches” in 2 seconds. Later that evening he had more and said, “Oh my God, It’s just as good cold!”.
When I make recipes to share with you on my website and on Instagram, I often end up with lots of leftovers but don’t worry, nothing goes to waste, trust me! My work friends take care of that! They also loved this and many will be making this for the holidays as well!
Remember to visit me on Instagram where I share easy recipes and daily meal inspo!
Note: This recipe was found on https://www.itsalwaysautumn.com/wprm_print/18972
Christmas Tree Spinach & Cheese Breadsticks
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 340 g Frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry 340g=12oz
- 6 oz cream cheese softened
- 2 cloves garlic Grated or 1 tsp of garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning (Get Clubhouse brand, it’s life changing 😉
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1 cup grated cheddar OR mozzarella cheese divided in half
- 1 tube refrigerated thin crust pizza crust **at least 12 oz** I used Pillsbury **SEE NOTE**
Butter topping
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
Garnishes
- Freshly grated Pecorino Romano or Parm (Snow 😉
- Fresh Rosemary
Instructions
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- In a bowl, beat together the spinach and cream cheese.
- Add garlic, salt, onion powder, chili powder, pepper, and Italian seasoning and beat to combine.
- Add parmesan cheese and half of the cheddar or mozzarella cheese and beat to combine. (The other half of the cheddar or mozzarella cheese will be sprinkled over the filling when you shape the Christmas tree.)
- To make the Christmas tree shape, unroll the pizza crust onto a sheet of parchment paper. Use a pizza cutter to cut it as shown into one larger tree shaped triangle and two smaller triangles. Move the smaller triangles to a second sheet of parchment paper with their straight edges touching to create a second triangle of dough that is the same shape as the first.
- Spread the spinach dip across the second triangle you made and sprinkle it with the rest of the cheese. Flip the first triangle over on top so you have layers of pizza dough with spinach dip sandwiched between them.
- Now you'll make cuts, leaving about an inch in the center intact. Cut from near the center out to the side on both the left and right every inch or so to create slices. (Map out where your cuts are going to be by lightly scoring the dough. This way you can ensure that your branches are all the same width and that they’re straight.)
- Grab each “slice” and twist it upwards. At the top where they are short you’ll only twist halfway around. At the bottom where they are longer you can do two or three full twists.
- Bake for about 22 minutes until quite golden brown on top and cooked through on the bottom.
- Melt butter and stir in garlic salt and seasoning, then brush over breadsticks, and serve warm.
- Optional – garnish with some “snow” Pecorino Romano or Parmigiano Reggiano and fresh Rosemary
