I tried a really fun new recipe from Smitten Kitchen that I've been meaning to test out for years. My former co-worker, Megan, originally turned me onto the SK blog for the homemade oreos (which are deeeelicious, by the way). And then later, Megan raved over the soft pretzels she'd made for a party she was attending. Megan suggested I prepare them for a crowd because they were better on the day they were made and also on a day when I had plenty of time for the lengthy recipe.
I decided to bring them to our New Year's party at my sister in law's house and, in truth, the recipe wasn't nearly as long as I expected. (Deb generally takes the long route for all food preparation. Haha!) I used the dough hook on my stand mixer for the first time ever! Not sure what was holding me back from trying it ever before?? But as with everything for me, it was probably just the fear of the unknown. I was like "hold ooooonnnn... are you telling me this eliminates most of the kneading?" It's a beautiful thing, that dough hook.
After all was incorporated, I still turned the dough out onto my pastry mat for about 10 or so kneads "until all was smooth", as Deb directed.
Then into an oiled bowl it went, flipped once and covered with a towel. I forgot to upload the picture of how I let it rise, but I placed it in my oven alongside a glass bowl of the hottest faucet water my sink could manage. This creates a nice warm, draft-free environment.
Meanwhile (because the first rise is one hour), Sophie and I mixed up some marshmallow-laced hot fudge sauce to take for sundaes at the party as well. Here she's stirring some hot cream into our bowl of chocolate, cocoa powder and a bit of instant espresso.
Once that was combined, she whisked in some marshmallow creme for a glossy, fudgy sauce.
As the tradition goes, the cook gets to lick the utensil afterward. :)
Post-rise, I punched the dough down and divided it into 16 balls.
Each ball gets rolled into an 18" strip and twisted into the pretzel shape.
Then they rise again for 15 minutes.
Here's the odd/unexpected part. The unbaked pretzels are poached in a simmering bath of water containing baking soda and sugar. I assume this gives the outer "shell" a crispier texture during baking while leaving the inside puffy and soft.
After the bath and just before baking, the pretzels are brushed with an egg glaze to create that beautiful, golden color and sprinkled with sea salt. I brought yellow and dijon mustards to the party for serving and the kids and I split a pretzel fresh out of the oven... to see if they were okay for others.
Ta da!! Totally worth the wait. Soooo yummy.
1 comment:
Those look so amazing!
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