Twisted Goodness

I like pretzels. No, I love pretzels. Big, chewy, soft pretzels preferably slathered in mustard. To Germans this is an ignominy but I grew up in Philly where serving anything but mustard with pretzels is viewed as suspect. But, the philly pretzels, I admit (shhhh) are not my favorites so I went in search of a recipe that I could make my own.  I tried several from respected sources (and no, recipes.com is not what I consider a respected source) but none of them hit it out of the park for me until I mashed a few together to get it the way I like it.

I also modified the techniques to make it easier and faster. Just because I like to cook from scratch doesn’t mean I’m not lazy. Trust me on this or ask my husband!  Thanks to Joan for getting me off my lazy butt to post this - I’ve been meaning to do it for some time.

For this recipe I use a food processor fitted with the plastic dough blade since it’s so much faster and easier than the mixing bowl version - the dough kneads itself in just a few short minutes! So here goes, let’s make some pretzels!

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups very warm water (115-120 degrees)
• 1 Tbs sugar
• 2 1/2 tsp active dry yeast (not rapid rise)
• 4-5 cups bread flour
• 4 Tbs softened butter
• 2 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup baking soda
• 2 quarts water (for boiling the pretzels)
• Coarse kosher salt or pretzel salt (some say this is optional but it ain’t a pretzel without it!)

Method

In the large container of your food processor pour the 1 1/2 cups water, add the sugar and yeast and pulse once or twice to combine. Let this proof for about 10 minutes until it’s nice and bubbly. Add in 4 cups of the flour, salt and softened butter. Pulse until thoroughly combined. Add in additional flour 1/2 cup at a time and continue to pulse just until dough forms a ball and pulls away from the sides of the bowl. You may need more or less flour depending on where you live, I usually end up using about 4 1/2 cups.  The dough should be slightly sticky but not wet. Continue to pulse until the dough has a smooth look. You should pulse instead of running constantly to avoid getting the dough too warm from the processor. Alternatively you can do this in your stand mixer starting out with the paddle attachment and switching to the dough hook once the dough forms a ball.

Dump the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and give it a couple of turns by hand. Place in a greased bowl turning once to grease both sides. I cover it tightly with plastic wrap as it seems to rise faster that way but you can also cover loosely with a plain kitchen towel (no terry cloth!)

When the dough has doubled in size, remove it from he bowl and punch it down. Divide the dough (use a pastry scraper or knife) into 10 equal portions. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees - you want a nice hot oven! Bring the water to a boil with the baking soda in a pot (use a wider pot that is just deep enough to submerge the pretzels.

Roll each dough portion into a long rope - about 24” each and form the pretzel shape by laying the rope out in a U shape with the ends facing away from you. Take each end and form a loop around each other and press lightly against the bottom of the U. Line 2 baking sheets with split or parchment paper. You want to ensure that you leave enough space between the pretzels to get adequate browning on all sides.

Now for the most important part of the process - dip each pretzel into the simmering baking soda water, turning once while in the bath. I do a total of 30 seconds per side, you can do less or more depending on your preference. The longer it bathes in the solution, the chewier the crust will be. I take them out just at the point that they look like your shriveled hands after soaking in a bath too long!

Remove with a slotted spoon, draining over the pot. Place on prepared baking sheet and sprinkle immediately with the coarse salt to taste.

Bake in the center of the 450 oven for about 10-15 minutes or until the desired color. Be sure to rotate the pan about half way through to ensure even browning.

Cool on a wire rack and eat!!

You could also take those ropes you made and using the pastry scraper, cut them into 2 inch pieces and continue the recipe, skipping the folding part. This makes awesome soft pretzel nuggets for a party and if your house is like mine, it guarantees I will get some before my husband scarfs them all down with a beer!

I hope you enjoy these as much as I do!