Homemade Pretzels

I haven't made these in years and D has been mentioning them more frequently over the past month or so. As in, "remember those pretzels you used to make, boy those were good". I knew it was time to revist them. Plus I'm hoping that J likes them and I can use them as snacks for him. I'm really glad I did make these today - I had forgotten how incredibly quick and easy the recipe is. I've already had my first one (with mustard of course!). My version is based Alton Brown's recipe for soft pretzels.

 



Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups warm water
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 2.25 teaspoons package active dry yeast
• 4.5 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 ounces unsalted butter, melted
• 10 cups water
• 2/3 cup baking soda
• Maldon sea salt
• Olive oile

Directions

Combine the water, sugar and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer and sprinkle the yeast on top. Allow to sit for 5 minutes or until the mixture begins to foam. Add the flour and butter and, using the dough hook attachment, mix on low speed until well combined. Change to medium speed and knead until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the side of the bowl, approximately 4 to 5 minutes. Remove the dough from the bowl and oil the bowl well with olive oil. Return the dough to the bowl, cover with beeswax canvas (or plastic wrap) and sit in a warm place for approximately 50 to 55 minutes or until the dough has doubled in size.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Line 2 half-sheet pans with parchment paper or use a silpat. Set aside.

Bring the 10 cups of water and the baking soda to a rolling boil in an 8-quart saucepan.

In the meantime, turn the dough out onto a slightly oiled work surface and divide into 12 equal pieces. Roll out each piece of dough into a rope (J calls them worms). Make a U-shape with the rope, holding the ends of the rope, cross them over each other and press onto the bottom of the U in order to form the shape of a pretzel. Place onto the parchment-lined half sheet pan.

Place the pretzels into the boiling water, 1 by 1, for 30 seconds. Remove them from the water using a large flat spatula. Return to the half sheet pan, brush the top of each pretzel with olive oil and sprinkle with the Maldon sea salt (or any chunky salt). Bake until dark golden brown in color, approximately 12 to 14 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack for at least 5 minutes before serving (if you can wait that long).