My kids are addicted to these hot buttered pretzels from King Arthur Flour. They are soft and buttery, and kind of roll like. The pretzels are not dipped in lye like the soft pretzels you get at theme parks or the movies (although I do want to try that soon). They are quick and easy to make, with only a few ingredients. Every time I make them, the kids request I make them more often. This is really easy beginner bread item to try too. We love to dip our soft pretzels in mustard, how about you?
I had picked up some sausages at Aldi and some frozen pierogies at Wegmans last week. I decided to make those for dinner tonight along with these hot buttered pretzels, some sauerkraut, and some creamy cucumber salad. Is anyone else a major pierogi fan? I have made them from scratch a few times and love them homemade. However, they are a major project, which I don’t always have time for. The frozen ones are pretty decent if you cook them right so today we are having those.
For the pretzels, you make and knead the dough just like any other bread dough. See my post on sandwich bread for a tutorial and tips on making bread. Then let the dough rise, but not as long as bread dough would rise. Then shape it into a pretzel shape like the pics below (don’t worry if they are a bit wonky like mine are 🙂 they will still taste great). Next give them a dip in some sugar water to help with browning, sprinkle on a bit of salt and let them rest a bit before baking in a hot oven. Now for the the best part, when they are done baking, brush them with hot melted butter…. Yum!! These are best served warm right out of the oven.
Hot Buttered Pretzels
Ingredients
Dough
- 2 1/2 cups AP flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp sugar
- 2 1/4 tsp instant yeast
- 1 cup water give or take a little
Topping:
- 1/2 cup warm water
- 1 tsp sugar
- kosher salt
- 3 tbsp salted butter melted
Instructions
- Place all the ingredients for the dough in the stand mixer with the dough hook (or you can knead by hand)
- Knead until it is soft and smooth, adding a bit of flour or water if needed to get a fairly slack dough. Check that it passes the window pane test and if not knead it longer.
- Coat with a sprinkling of flour so it doesn't stick and let it rise 30-45 minutes in the bowl covered with plastic wrap or in a plastic bag.
- Line 2 sheets with parchment and preheat the oven to 500.
- Transfer the dough to a lightly greased work surface and divide into 8 pieces. Let it rest a few minutes to relax again.
- Take each piece and roll it between your hands and the counter out until it is a rope about 28 inches long.
- Twist into a pretzel shape and place on one of the trays.
- Dip them into the warm water mixed with sugar and put back onto the tray and sprinkle with salt. Let them rest uncovered for 10 minutes.
- Bake for 8-9 minutes until they are golden brown, rotating the baking sheet half way through.
- Remove them and brush them with the melted butter. Eat them warm. You can store cooled pretzels in the freezer and reheat in the oven or microwave.
Creamy Dill Cucumber Salad
Ingredients
- 4-6 mini cucumbers sliced
- 1 tbsp kosher salt
- 1/2 red onion sliced
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 3/4 cup sour cream or to taste
- 2 tbsp cider vinegar
- 2 tsp fresh dill or dried
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp black pepper
Instructions
- Toss the sliced cucumbers in the salt and allow to drain in a colander for 30 minutes.
- Rinse them to remove all the extra salt and pat dry with paper towels. You can skip doing this pre salt step if you want, it just gives a better texture to the cucumbers if they release some water.
- Mix them with the rest of the ingredients in a bowl and taste and adjust seasoning.
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