Homemade Pretzels Today
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Another post today - whew!
I pulled the bread machine off the shelf today and made a loaf of honey wheat bread for my sister-in-law to take home with her. She was visiting for a few days. We took a ride to the Lancaster/Lebanon area to visit a farmer's market and do some sightseeing. After finishing the wheat bread, I mixed a batch of dough for soft pretzels. I never tried making them before. They definitely were not what I expected. Philly soft pretzels are indescribably good - definitely doughy on the inside and with a slight crust on the outside.
I turned the finished dough out onto a pastry sheet and divided it into 16 equal parts. Each part would have to be rolled into a snake-like rope, then twisted into a pretzel shape. Rolling these things are great exercise for the arms - believe me. After shaping the pretzels, they go onto a greased baking sheet and you brush them with a wash of egg white and water. They rise again for about another 30 minutes, and then bake for 15-20 minutes - I checked several times and judged them by their color. They rose into something that vaguely resembled a pretzel, but were they ever delicious! The outside was a tender crust and the inside texture is more like a bread than a pretzel, but it definitely has a great pretzel taste. My family raved about them. I will definitely be making them again.
Oh, I've made these before myself!.. but not with a bread machine. If I still had mine, I'd try it!.. With or without the machine, homemade soft pretzels ARE a lot of work. I can vouch for that! They're definitely worth the effort though, and yours look wonderful. We like dipping ours in melted cheese!! mmm-mmmmm! ~tina
ReplyDeleteVERY ambitious! Look delicious!
ReplyDeleteTHOSE LOOK GREAT! With all of the bread baking I do, I have yet to make pretzels. I think you've inspired me!
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