I first experienced real pretzels on a trip to Las Vegas four years ago and had the pleasure of enjoying them again recently while visiting New York.  These are huge in New York where every street corner they tempt you with their salt or sesame covered goodness and welcoming warmth on a cold winter night.  At specialty Pretzel shops you are bombarded with a selection of various Pretzel flavors like ’7 types of Chilli, Cinnamon Raisin and Chocolate’ along with a huge range of dips to accompany them.

Well, I’m back in Brisbane, Australia and the availability of these twisted dough delights is virtually nonexistent.  I was having a craving for the New York Pretzels I have come to love, so I hunted round the internet in search of a recipe to recreate my New York Pretzel experience…… and thankfully, I found one!

The process was a little time consuming as they require a bit of time for the dough to rise at various stages throughout the process, but I was surprised at how easy they were to make.  They were well received by everyone who ate them, I am sure I will make them again many more times!

New York Pretzels

Recipe Adapted from Allrecipes.com

Ingredients

Pretzel Dough:

• 1 package (2 1/4tsp) of dry active yeast
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 1/8 teaspoons salt
• 1 1/2 cups warm water (45c / 110f)
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup of bread flour

Baking Soda Solution:

• 5 cups water
• 2 tablespoons baking soda

Pretzel Toppings (optional):

• 2 tablespoons butter, melted
• 2 tablespoons coarse sea salt or rock salt – ground with a mortar & pestle to a medium grain
• 4 tablespoons of sesame seeds
• Cinnamon Sugar: 1 tablespoon of ground cinnamon mixed with 3 tablespoons of white sugar

Method

1. In a small bowl bowl, dissolve the yeast, brown sugar and salt in 1 1/2 cups warm water. Leave for 10 – 15min until frothy.
2. Put the flour in a large mixing bowl and pour in the frothy water & yeast mixture. Mix until combined then turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead dough until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, and turn to coat the surface. Cover with glad wrap, and leave to let rise for one hour.
3. After the dough has risen, line 2 large baking trays with baking paper and then grease paper and pre-heat oven to 230C. Place the ingredients for the baking soda solution in a medium size saucepan and bring to the boil then cover and reduce to a simmer while rolling and shaping the pretzels.
4. Cut the dough into 12 pieces. Roll each piece into a 80cm rope – pencil thin or thinner. Twist into a pretzel shape, and dip into the baking soda solution for 5 – 10 seconds. Sit dipped pretzel on paper towel for a couple of seconds to drain excess solution then place on baking tray, and let rise 15 to 20 minutes. (I would allow for 3-4 pretzels per tray as they will end up quite large after rising and expanding in the oven.)
5. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or until golden brown.
6. Once out of the oven brush with melted butter and sprinkle with coarse salt, sesame seeds or cinnamon sugar. Serve the Cinnamon Pretzels with Nutella and the Salt & Sesame Pretzels with Beetroot and Horseradish Dip  (recipe follows).

Note: 11/10/10: I made these pretzels again yesterday and tried a chili variety.  I added 1/2tsp of chili flakes to the individual portion of dough along with a pinch of chili powder and I can’t wait to make them again and try even more varieties

Also, these are best eaten the day of baking and the sooner out of the oven, the more scrumptious they are!  However, if you do manage to have any left over the next day, a few minutes in a hot oven and they are back to mouth watering, pretzely goodness!

Beetroot and Horseradish Dip

Original Creation by myfoodobsession.com

Ingredients

• 1 425g canned beetroot drained
• 60g Cream Cheese
• 2 tablespoons of horseradish
• 1 teaspoon of lime juice

1. Combine all ingredients in a food processor until combined. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.