I was going to post the turkey stuffed with tamales recipe last night and Troutbend beat me to it.

We have lately been enjoying home-made soft pretzels. The lovely crust color and texture comes from pre-boiling the shaped dough in a baking soda-water bath, the way bagels are treated before baking.

Mike’s Signature Pretzel Bread

2 ¼ tsp yeast
1 cup water (110-120 degrees)
2 Tbsp room temperature milk
1 Tbsp dark brown sugar
3 Tbsp butter
1 tsp kosher salt
2 ½ – 3 cups bread flour
4 quarts water
½ cup baking soda
Kosher salt to taste
2 Tbsp melted butter

Add yeast, water, milk, brown sugar and butter into a large bowl, whisking until all ingredients are combined. Let mixture rest for 10 minutes for yeast to activate. Mix in kosher salt. Start by adding two cups of the flour to the bowl, combining it with other ingredients. Add more flour as it’s needed, reserving just a bit for coating the dough mat later.

The dough should form a slightly tacky, but firm ball. Cover with a damp towel for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, knead the dough by hand or machine (mixer with dough hook) for at least 5-10 minutes until the dough is elastic and satiny. Place dough back in the bowl and recover for 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees and bring the 4 quarts of water to a boil.

When the water is boiling, slowly add the baking soda (it will foam up).

Remove the dough from the bowl and gently deflate it. Cut into 8 or 10 pieces, roll each one into a long rope, and shape like a pretzel (think of it as a person crossing their arms with hands on their own shoulders). Drop each into the baking soda bath for no longer than 30 seconds, turning it once to guarantee both sides covered. Drain the excess water from the dough and place it on an oiled baking sheet.

Sprinkle the kosher salt over the bread to your specific tastes (go easy).

Cook the bread for 22 minutes, rotating the baking sheet once.
Once removed from the oven, immediately brush the melted butter over the pretzels to guarantee a soft crust.

You can also shape this into round loaves, or dinner rolls, or wrap the dough around a hot dog before baking.

Serve with yellow mustard or butter.



This is my first batch. I made the mistake of rolling the dough in the salt, so there was far too much of it, but it looks nice in the picture.

These are so very good and easy to make. Next time I'm going to double the recipe and freeze some.