Hot Buttered Pretzels

(from largomason’s recipe box)

Ingredients

  • Dough
  • 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast
  • 1 cup warm water (about 100 F)
  • Topping
  • 1/2 cup warm water
  • 2 tablespoons baking soda
  • coarse salt
  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Directions

  1. Add the flour, salt, sugar and yeast to the bowl of your food processor. Pulse a few times to combine. Pour the water through the feed tube, then process for 7-10 seconds, or until the dough starts to clear the sides of the bowl. Process the dough for 45 seconds – you should have a soft, slack dough that’s somewhat tacky. Remove the dough from the bowl of the food processor, shape it into a ball and coat it with flour. Put the dough in a large resealable plastic bag. Seal the bag, but don’t press out the air – you want to leave room for the dough to expand. Let the dough rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.

  2. Preheat oven to 500 F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

  3. Transfer the dough to a lightly greased work surface, and divide it into eight equal pieces (about 70 g each). Allow the pieces to rest, uncovered, for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, add 1/2 cup warm water and the baking soda to a small bowl and whisk until the baking soda is completely dissolved.

  4. Working with one piece at a time, roll the dough into a long, thin rope (between 25 and 30 inches long). Shape each rope into a pretzel by making a U-shape and then twisting the ends of the rope over one another and pressing them onto the bottom of the U-shape (see illustration here). Dip each pretzel in the baking soda solution, flipping the pretzel if necessary to make sure the whole thing is coated, then place them on the prepared baking sheets. Sprinkle the pretzels lightly with coarse salt. Allow them to rest, uncovered, for 10 minutes.

  5. Bake the pretzels for 8-9 minutes, or until golden brown, rotating the baking sheets at the halfway point.

  6. Remove the pretzels from the oven, and brush all of the melted butter evenly over them. The pretzels are best when warm but can be reheated in the microwave.

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