Need some help and info on making breadsticks and saving for traveling

[tfmc]

Ok guys,
Here's the story.
I make breadsticks at home, and they turn out fantastic.
Now my wife and I are meeting some friends at an Airbnb and staying for a week, like a mini vacation.
I was going to make a meal and take it with us so that when everyone arrives, we won't have to go shopping or go out to eat because everyone will be tired.
Some are driving for 2 days, some are flying, and it is taking us about 3 -1/2 hours driving. Anyway, I want to make breadsticks, and they are better fresh, but I don't know if the place we are staying at has a stand mixer or what kind of pans they have. (I need sheet pans).
I can bring my own pans.
My question is, how can I make the dough and save it until we get there?
Do I make the dough, then put it in a bowl and then in the fridge overnight, and keep it in a cooler till we get there, then make the breadsticks?
Or make the breadsticks the night before, bake them, then freeze them and thaw and reheat before serving?
I have had them the 2nd day after, and they are good, but nothing like when they just come out of the oven.
Sorry to be so long-winded.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
thank you

 

[retired baker]

I would bake and wrap them, just before serving run under water briefly to wet them and bake in a hot oven to bring the crust back again.

 

[Norcalbaker59]

Ok guys,
Here's the story.
I make breadsticks at home, and they turn out fantastic.
Now my wife and I are meeting some friends at an Airbnb and staying for a week, like a mini vacation.
I was going to make a meal and take it with us so that when everyone arrives, we won't have to go shopping or go out to eat because everyone will be tired.
Some are driving for 2 days, some are flying, and it is taking us about 3 -1/2 hours driving. Anyway, I want to make breadsticks, and they are better fresh, but I don't know if the place we are staying at has a stand mixer or what kind of pans they have. (I need sheet pans).
I can bring my own pans.
My question is, how can I make the dough and save it until we get there?
Do I make the dough, then put it in a bowl and then in the fridge overnight, and keep it in a cooler till we get there, then make the breadsticks?
Or make the breadsticks the night before, bake them, then freeze them and thaw and reheat before serving?
I have had them the 2nd day after, and they are good, but nothing like when they just come out of the oven.
Sorry to be so long-winded.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
thank you

I make sourdough bread and English muffins two to three times a week. The standard process is mix, bulk ferment, shape, and then cold ferment for 12 hours. When working with wild yeast, even with enriched doughs, long cold fermentation actually improves flavor and oven spring.

Unfortunately, commercial yeast growth is significantly more rapid than wild yeast, making long cold fermentation challenging. Commercial yeast strains were developed for same day mixing and baking of doughs. Still, I think your idea to mix the dough and refrigerate overnight is the right approach; but the recipe will most likely need a few adjustments.

If you’re using Instant Yeast, try switching to Active Dry Yeast. Instant Yeast was designed for speed—mix to bake in just a few hours. Instant Yeast does not do long fermentation well given the rapid growth. If you long ferment an Instant Yeast dough, more likely than not it will be weak and flaccid by the time you are ready to bake.

Active Dry Yeast ferments more slowly, which makes it better suited for an overnight chill. But you still need to be careful.

Try reducing the amount of yeast. Think pizza dough—most recipes are cold fermented for 24–36 hours and often include oil, which slows gluten development. The key to successful long term fermentation pizza dough is a very low yeast-to-flour ratio. So aside from using Active Dry Yeast, consider using half the amount called for in the recipe.

Whatever approach you decide to go with, I recommend you try a trial batch. Baking is all chemistry, so small changes can have significant effects on dough. After I relocated, I was forced to change flour brands. It took a few months, countless loaves and tweaking my formula to get my bread back to what it was.