Our Favorite Soft Pretzels (3 Ways)
You know what I’ve been missing this year? Well, LOTS of things (like the rest of the world), but lately- fun date nights and the food that accompanied it. This is my favorite time of year to go catch a movie, cheer on our basketball team from the stands, and visit fall markets (October was just not the same without Oktoberfest). I haven’t had movie popcorn in over a year… that’s kind of insane. Anyone else?! Emmett & I were talking about “event food” that we miss and soft pretzels came up. I decided to take matters into my own hands and put together some pretzel combinations for us, here at home. When living in Ohio, we actually took a culinary class on beer & pretzel pairing. We learned how to make lots of different pretzels (from savory to sweet), and we sampled a lot of beer and cocktails that paired nicely with them. It has been years since our pretzel making days, but I’m happy I resurrected our recipes! Click through for three of our favorite soft pretzel flavor combinations…Â
I’m going to share our dough recipe (the one from the cooking class we took), but you can also buy frozen store-bought pretzels and test out the topping combinations. Pretzel making is really fun, but I totally get not having time and still wanting to try a few different options. The recipe takes longer than most, but it’s the BEST.
Buttery Soft Pretzel Dough
Ingredients
Dough
- 1 1/2 cups warm water between 110-115 degrees F
- 1 tablespoon yeast (1 packet)
- 1 1/2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 4 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter melted
Dipping Liquid
- 10 cups water
- 2/3 cup baking soda
Egg Wash
- 2 egg yolks
- 1 tablespoon water
Instructions
Mix Dough
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the sugar and yeast to the warm water. Allow it to sit for at least 5 minutes, giving the yeast a chance to activate.
- Mix the flour and salt together in a large bowl. You will use this bowl later to allow the dough to rise.
- Add the melted butter and flour to the mixer, and mix on low until all of the ingredients are combined. Once fully incorporated, increase the speed to medium. Knead for 4-5 minutes, until the dough is smooth and elastic.
- Lightly oil the flour bowl and cover it with plastic wrap. Allow the dough to rise for at least one hour in a warm place.
Shape Pretzels
- Once the dough has doubled in size, divide it into 8 equal portions. Work with one part at a time and keep the others covered in the oiled bowl. DO NOT FLOUR YOUR WORKING SURFACE! You will need the surface clean and unfloured to help the pretzels hold their shape.
- Roll each portion into a rope, 24" long. Begin in the middle and roll while pushing down and out. Try to maintain a consistent thickness around the rope. Make a "U" shape and twist the ends. Fold over, and if necessary- secure the "legs" with a drop of water.
- Allow the shaped pretzels to rest and slightly rise, for about 20 minutes. This will also help the seams seal and reduce leakage in stuffed pretzels. These can now be covered and refrigerated overnight.
Prepare Dipping Solution
- Preheat the oven to 450 degrees, and line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a large stainless steel pot, heat 10 cups of water. Stir in the baking soda carefully and continue to heat to a boil. Once boiling, decrease the heat to medium. The water should be hot, but not boiling during the dipping process.
- Place one or two pretzels at a time into the liquid. Leave them for 30 seconds before lifting them out of the water. Allow them to drip dry and place them on the parchment lined baking sheet.
Egg Wash & Salt
- Mix the egg yolks and water in a small bowl. Brush the tops of the pretzels with egg yolks before adding the pretzel salt.
Baking
- Place the prepared pretzels in the top half of the oven and set a timer for 8 minutes. Baking may take 8-12 minutes, depending on the thickness of your pretzels. Use convection, if available. Rotate pans top to bottom and front to back, halfway through baking.
- Buttery pretzels should have a brown top and sides. When done, remove from baking sheets and place on a cooling rack. These are best served warm! To enjoy later- place in a warm oven for 2-3 minutes to cirsp the outside and warm the center.
Notes
The key to getting brown pretzels with a crisp outer layer and a soft, buttery interior is soaking them in the baking soda solution before baking. Our pretzels never looked like the ones we’d enjoy at events, and until taking the cooking class- I never knew why. That was a major takeaway for me, during our pretzel making culinary experience. Ready for our favorite combinations?
Classic Salted Pretzel & Cheese
Ok, I’m not going to lie- I tried to make “real” cheese sauce from actual cheese and it was just not the same as the crappy nacho cheese that you get at the movie theater. Is it wrong to love processed nacho cheese? Ugh, I know… it’s so bad, but it’s also very good. The struggle! Emmett was not impressed with my homemade cheese sauce, so he decided to order actual nacho cheese from Amazon (the same kind that carry at events, the mall, and theaters). I’m here to tell you- that is the way to go. The faux cheese (lol!) was perfectly delicious and nostalgic. 10/10 would recommend. If you’re making soft pretzels and are craving that type of nacho cheese… save yourself the effort and just buy it. Lesson learned! If you’re trying to be healthy, just disregard this entire paragraph. Ha!
Another winning combination we learned in culinary school was the cheddar jalapeño pretzel! If you like a little spice, give that one a try. You can add jalapeño to the dough, or the cheese.
Rosemary Mozzarella Pretzel & Mustard
In our class, we made mozzarella stuffed pretzel bites, with rosemary and butter sprinkled on top. YUM! You can use the dough however you like (it’s a versatile recipe!), but I was lazy and just topped our pretzels with the flavor combo. Still very good!
Emmett likes to dip these in honey pale ale mustard (pictured above), but I prefer them plain… or dipped into oil & balsamic. We’re condiment people, and we love having dipping sauce options!
Cinnamon Sugar Pretzel & Chocolate Ganache
Last, but not least- the SWEET option. You probably assumed this classic combo was coming… the cinnamon sugar topped pretzel. I like to whip up a chocolate ganache dipping sauce for this one. Just sprinkle some chocolate chips into a microwave safe condiment dish, add a tiny bit of heavy cream, then mix it really well- voila, ganache! I’ve always enjoyed a dessert pretzel.
We love dreaming about our home and future renovations here- I’m sure you can guess what Emmett has been dreaming of lately… the basement media room. Someday when we renovate downstairs for real, he has requested a nacho cheese machine and a home theater. HAHA! It’s not happening (the nacho cheese machine)! Can you even imagine?! Our recent dive back into soft pretzels has created a monster. I will say, it was fun to reminisce and pretend like we were at the movies eating our favorite snacks. However, instead of watching a movie, we binged The Queen’s Gambit (10/10, would also recommend). If you’re looking for a fun night at home as the cold weather rolls in, make yourself some soft pretzels and turn on your favorite show. You’ll be glad you did!
