With the Superbowl tomorrow, I have an awesome menu of appetizers planned, including spinach artichoke dip, olive tapenade on crustinis, bruschetta, mini-meatballs, crudites, cheesecake lollipops, and beer (one couple is also bringing guacamole and chips, another is bringing spicy chicken wings). Can it get any better than that?
It has been requested that I start adding the recipes to the things I make onto my blog. And while it may not always be possible for me to do so, I decided to document the steps of making soft pretzels, including ingredients, directions, and pictures to follow. Bon Appetite! Go Bears!
Soft PretzelsIngredients:
4 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
1 packet of dry active yeast
1/4 c. of sugar
1 tsp. salt
2. tablespoons salt
1 1/2 cups milk
2 tablespoons cooking oil
1 slightly beaten egg white plus 1 tablespoon of water
course salt, poppy seeds, sesame seeds or cinnamon sugar (whatever topping your prefer)
Directions:
Mix 1 1/2 c. of flour and yeast in a large bowl (or food processor with dough function as I have done). In a medium sauce pan, mix the milk, sugar, oil, and salt and bring to 120 degree. Pour liquid mixture into flour and yeast, and kneed (or blend for 30 seconds. Add the rest of the flour (3 cups) and mix well. Put ball of dough on a floured surface and kneed for 6-8 minutes. Place ball of dough in a greased bowl (making sure the dough is also greased on all sides) and put in warm place for 1 1/4 hour (I heat my oven to 170 degrees and then turn it off, giving the dough a nice, warm place to rise). SEE PHOTOS 1-10 BELOW
After it has finished rising, place dough on a floured surface and punch it out. Let it rest for another 10 minutes. While it is resting, preheat your oven to 475 degrees and prepare two greased baking sheets. Then, roll out the dough into a 12" x 10" rectange. Cut into strips about an inch wide and 12" long. Roll out each strip into 16" (or you can make some smaller as I have done). To form pretzel, cross both ends over once, and then twice, and fold the twisted end over the looped end. SEE PHOTOS 11-15 BELOW
Put on baking sheets, spread about 2-3 inches apart, and bake for 4 minutes. Take out of oven and lower the heat down to 350 degrees. Boil 3 quarts of water. When the water is boiling, add 2 tablespoons of salt. Drop the pretzels in water for two minutes, turning them over half way through. Take them out of the water and put them quickly on a paper-towel lined plate for only a few secrets. Quickly transfer them to a greased backing sheet (so they don't stick to the paper towels). Prepare the egg wash with 1 egg white and 1 tablespoon of water. Brush the pretzels with the egg wash and sprinkle them with kosher salt (or sesame seeds, cinnamon sugar, poppy seeds, or whatever topping you prefer). SEE PHOTOS 16-18 BELOW
Put them in the 350 degree oven, for 20-25 minutes or until brown top. When finished, quickly transfer them onto a wire rack. Best eaten when fresh and warm, but definitely ok to store in a well sealed container (only seal when they have completely cooled). SEE PHOTOS 19-20 BELOW
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