Soft Pretzels

 

 

I spent last night preparing/divvying up dried food and packing up one of these fabulous packs. I’m still not quite sure how I am going to carry all my stuff in a giant 30+ pound backpack into a canyon for 10 miles (and don’t even get me started thinking about the way out..)

 

 

But I cannot contain my excitement! I mean, we are hiking to this gorgeous place!

Source: WildBackpacker.com

I feel like in the end, it will be all worth it :)

 

 

So I know pretty much all of the Oktoberfest activities are done for the year, but I still think you should make these pretzels! Maybe you could enjoy them with some pumpkin beer?

 

 

 

 

Homemade pretzels are one of those things that I have always been scared of…there’s something about it that makes me a little nervous, but I decided to give these a go! What better place to turn when you’re trying something new than to Alton Brown – and his recipe is really delicious! I need a little practice on my pretzel shaping but these are lots of fun to make. We dipped some of these in a queso sauce and some in mustard – both make excellent accompaniments.

 

 

Soft Pretzels

Printable Recipe

 

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups warm (110 to 115 degrees F) water

1 tablespoon sugar

2 teaspoons kosher salt

1 package active dry yeast

22 ounces all-purpose flour, approximately 4 1/2 cups

2 ounces unsalted butter, melted

Vegetable oil, for pan

10 cups water

2/3 cup baking soda

1 large egg yolk beaten with 1 tablespoon water

Pretzel salt

 

Directions:

Combine the water, sugar and kosher 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, clean the bowl and then oil it well with vegetable oil. Return the dough to the bowl, cover with 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 and lightly brush with the vegetable oil. Set aside.

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

In the meantime, turn the dough out onto a slightly oiled work surface and divide into 8 equal pieces. Roll out each piece of dough into a 24-inch rope. 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 the beaten egg yolk and water mixture and sprinkle with the pretzel 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.

Recipe by Alton Brown