Pretzels 1/9/2010

In the first of what will be many recipes, I have made Pretzels. I began by gathering the ingredients. We have flour, eggs, sugar, butter, yeast, milk, and salt both flake and rock. We start by proofing the yeast, that ever loveable living but dormant friend of ours that provides for the creation of lift and air; it does so by converting the sugars into carbon dioxide and ethanol. We put our ¼ teaspoon of sugar and one teaspoon of yeast into a bowl. One yeast packet contains 2 ¼ teaspoons of yeast. We pour into 5 fluid ounces of warm milk into the bowl of sugar and yeast. We stir it, and let it sit aside for ten minutes. The yeast will develop over this time and produce small bubbles on the surface; it will foam up and should increase in volume. This is all very good, if it doesn’t happen this is bad. It means your yeast is dead and you must start again with new yeast and sugar and warm milk.

We put the flour and salt into a large bowl, stir together. We create a well in the middle. We pour in the milk, yeast, sugar mixture and 1 ounce of melted butter. We mix it together, it combines and lumps up. It won’t be smooth at this point; we must turn it onto a floured surface and knead it for ten minutes. Adding flour to reduce the stickiness and it will smooth out.After the dough is kneaded place the dough into an oiled bowl and oil the top of the dough. Cover and set aside for an hour or until doubled in size.At this point, dough is giving off a wonderful smell, if you have not ever made bread yourself, take this moment to savor this smell. It is one of the most beautiful smells created in the kitchen. It reminds me of many times when I was younger and I would help my Mom in the kitchen making rolls. This is a lovely moment in the process.

We now must punch down the bread to release some of the gases in the dough and knead the dough again. I cut up the dough after kneading it into small pieces and placed back into the oiled bowl and cover them up while working with each piece.

We take each piece and roll them out, they will shrink back on you when rolling, but you are stronger and your force will prevail. Roll them out to about 14” to 16” inches. Shape the rolled dough into a pretzel. Create a circle. Cross the ends over each other. Twist the ends over each other. Either my hands are HUGE, or this particular pretzel is pretty darn small.

Lay the completed pretzels on a lined baking sheet. Cover, and set aside for 20-30 minutes to let rise again. Brush the pretzels with beaten egg white. Sprinkle coarse salt.Spray with water and bake in a preheated 375⁰ oven for 12-15 minutes. Delicious and golden brown, covered in salt. Soft and light and fluffy inside with a slightly crusty outside, eaten alone or with mustard or cheese sauce they make a delightful snack.

They are best if you store them in a paper bag and not a plastic bag, I would recommend that you eat them sooner rather than later (they are just a better product if you don’t leave them around too long) I wouldn’t recommend this as a make a day a head for a party snack, they simply are better the day they are made.

Recipe:

1 teaspoon dried yeast

1/4 teaspoon sugar

5 fluid ounces warm milk

1 1/2 cups white flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 ounce butter, melted

1 egg yolk, beaten

coarse sea salt