Soft Pretzels

Soft Pretzels

from the kitchen of Ellen, thanks to Alton Brown

Ingredients:

Soft Pretzels

Combine:

water, sugar, and kosher salt in the bowl of a stand mixer and sprinkle the yeast on top. Allow to sit for 5 minutes or until the mixture begins to foam. Add the flour and butter, and using the dough hook attachment, mix on low speed until well combined. Change to medium speed and knead until the dough is smooth and pulls aways from the side of the bowl, approximately 4-5 minutes. Remove the dough from the bowl, clean the bowl, and then oil it well with vegetable oil. Return the dough to the bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let sit in a warm place for about 1 hour or until the dough has doubled in size.

Preheat:

oven to 450 degrees. Line two half-sheet pans with parchment paper and lightly brush with vegetable oil. Set aside.

Bring:

10 cups of water and the baking soda to a rolling boil in an 8 quart saucepan or roasting pan.

Turn:

the dough out onto a slightly oiled work surface and divide into 8 equal pieces. Roll out each piece of dough into a 24 inch rope. Make a U shape with the rope, holding the ends of the rope, cross them over each other and press onto the bottom of the U in order to form the shape of a pretzel. Place onto the parchment lined half sheet pan.

Place:

the pretzels into the boiling water, 1 by 1, for 30 seconds. Remove them from the water using a large flat spatula. Return to the half sheet pan, brush the top of each pretzel with the beaten egg yolk and water mixture and sprinkle with salt.

Bake:

until dark golden brown in color, approximately 12-14 minutes. Transfer to cooling rack for at least 5 minutes before serving.

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