Friday, March 09, 2012

Cheesy Pretzel Sticks

Mmm... Yah. They are as good as they sound. I discovered this recipe over on Joy the Baker and made her super amazing mini pretzel dogs. They were awesome, but I found by the end I was just pulling the pretzel off and eating it. So if you are a bread fiend like me, you will understand that it made perfect sense to make just straight pretzels. The addition of cheese came from my childhood. When my sister and I were little, my mom used to take us to this German bakery across from the mall and they made thee most incredible soft pretzels with mass amounts of cheddar cheese on them. Hence the creation of homemade soft pretzel cheese sticks. omg. I wish I was eating one right now... I made them on the weekend :( sad.


I have to be honest... I actually screwed up this recipe, had a melt down- threw the dough on the counter. It was officially a 2 year old tantrum because my dough was too stiff (these are the things that upset me...). I did manage to rescue it with a little added melted butter- but take my advice: Do Not add all of the flour at once. "This is what years of baking teaches you" (thanks mom). You start by adding the active, dry yeast and sugar to warm water. The sugar helps to activate the yeast and within 5 minutes it should be frothy- like the top of your latte.


Now its time to add salt, melted butter and the flour. NOTE, add the flour in batches- I was rushing and added all that was called for- I have adjusted the recipe as per what I needed but keep in mind that you should have a smooth, springy dough- not dry and crumbly (me).
Dump out the dough, gather it all together and oil the bowl- throw the dough back in the bowl and leave it to rise for an hour. I love this part- and the smell of fresh yeast, mmm. Ps. I am not being sarcastic, it is honestly an awesome bready, yeasty smell! I swear!
Once the dough has risen to double its size dump it out and cut it in half, divide each half into 12 or so (depending on how big you want the sticks). Meanwhile- get a large pot of water boiling with 1 cup of baking soda in it (weird, I know).
Roll out your dough balls into sticks and boil them! Whaaat? Yah- its cool. Boil them for 30 seconds. This causes a chemical reaction with the dough and gives the pretzels that dark golden brown skin when baked.

Lay the boiled sticks on a baking sheet and brush with your egg wash. Sprinkle with sea salt and as much cheese as your heart desires. I used about 1 1/2 cups of shredded old cheddar. Bake and eat. YUM.

Happy FRIDAY. Woooot.

 

Recipe Adapted from Joy the Baker.

1 ½ cups warm water (not hot!)
1 tbsp granulated sugar
2 ¼ tsp (or 1 package) active dry yeast
4 1/4 cups of flour
2 tsp salt
2 tbsp butter (melted and cooled)
about 14 cups of water
1 cup baking soda
1 large egg, beaten, with a tbsp of water
large sea salt for topping (i used maldon)

In the bowl of an electric stand mixer, sprinkle the yeast and sugar over the warm water. Leave for 5 minutes- the yeast should become thick and frothy. If this doesn't happen- your yeast is dead- try a new package.

Fit the mixer with the dough hook and add the flour in 4 additions, as well as the salt and melted butter. Mix on low until well combined. Increase the speed to medium and mix for around 4 minutes, until the dough pulls away from the bowl and a ball is created around the hook.

Remove the dough from the bowl and scrape out any bits left behind- kneed them all together, make a ball and place back into a well oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and allow it to rise for an hour or so- until its doubled in size.

Turn out onto your work surface and divide into roughly 24 pieces, depending on the size of sticks you want. Bring a large pot with the water and baking soda in it to a boil on the stove top and preheat your oven to 425 degrees. Boil the sticks in batches, dropping in and taking out with a slotted spoon, for 30 seconds.

Lay your boiled sticks onto parchment paper lined baking trays (brush the parchment paper with oil- the pretzels will stick). Mix together the egg and tbsp of water and brush the sticks, sprinkle generously with sea salt and the cheddar cheese.

Bake the pretzels for 16 minutes or until deep golden brown. Your time may change depending on the size of your sticks.

Allow them to cool slightly and then transfer to a rack. The pretzels are best the day of- but you can also freeze them and thaw wrapped tightly in tin foil in the oven.

Enjoy!

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