I recently got back from the girls state basketball tournaments.
It was awesome to cheer on my brother’s Perham Yellowjackets team and the BGMR Gators!
I indulged in one concession stand food…. the soft pretzel. I am a fan of dipping it in mustard instead of the canned cheese sauce, after scraping off most of the salt! Here is my easy soft pretzel recipe that you can make in your kitchen with a sweet and tangy mustard sauce! This is one that we frequently make during football season!
*After the pretzels are boiled, they can be placed on a cookie sheet and covered tightly with plastic wrap for up to 24 hours. Then you simply take them out of the refrigerator and bake them as instructed.
Soft Pretzels
Ingredients
• 1 1/2 cups warm water
• 2 1/4 teaspoons instant or active dry yeast -1 standard packet
• 1 Teaspoon salt
• 1 Tablespoon brown sugar or granulated sugar
• 1 Tablespoon unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
• 3 3/4 to 4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for hands and the kneading work surface.
• Coarse salt or coarse sea salt for sprinkling, or these toppings: --Everything bagel seasoning --Granulated Garlic --Crushed red peppers --Poppy seeds --Poppy seeds --Sesame seeds ----------- *Whisk the yeast into warm water. Allow to sit for 1 minute. Whisk in salt, brown sugar, and melted butter.
Slowly add 3 cups of flour, 1 cup at a time. Mix with a wooden spoon (or dough hook attached to stand mixer) until dough is thick. Add 3/4 cup more flour until the dough is no longer sticky. If it is still sticky, add 1/4 – 1/2 cup more, as needed. Poke the dough with your finger – if it bounces back, it is ready to knead.
*Turn the dough out onto a floured surface. Knead the dough for 3 minutes and shape into a ball. Cover lightly with a towel and allow to rest for 10 minutes. (Meanwhile, I like to get 9 cups of watter + 1/2 cupbaking soda boiling.) *Preheat oven to 400°F.
*Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or better yet, silicone baking mats. If using parchment paper, lightly spray with nonstick spray or grease with butter. Set aside.
*With a sharp knife or pizza cutter, cut dough into 1/3 cup sections. Roll the dough into a 20-22 inch rope. Form a circle with the dough by bringing the two ends together at the top of the circle. Twist the ends together. Bring the twisted ends back down towards yourself and press them down to form a pretzel shape.
*Bring baking soda and 9 cups of water to a boil in a large pot.
*Drop 1-2 pretzels into the boiling water for 20-30 seconds. Any more than that and your pretzels will have a metallic taste.
*Using a slotted spatula, lift the pretzel out of the water and allow as much of the excess water to drip off. Place pretzel onto prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle each with coarse sea salt. Repeat with remaining pretzels.
*Bake for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown.
Sweet Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce
Ingredients
• 1/4 c mayonnaise (do not use light)
• 1/4 c Creole mustard, whole grain or dijon. (You can also use 2 T of ALL these mustards for great texture and flavor. )
• 1/4 c yellow mustard
• 4 T honey ----------- *Whisk all ingredients together in a bowl, serve with soft pretzels.
Come to the Cook is a food blog created by Kara Super-Peterson.
