Homemade Soft Pretzel Bites
On Fridays, I teach cooking classes to two kids in our neighborhood. They are pretty knowledgeable-so my job is easy:) I think it is fantastic that they want to learn how to cook at such a young age-they are in the 3rd and 4th grade. Since we don’t have any kiddos yet, I am glad I get to work with these kids. We have a great time in the kitchen.
On Friday we made homemade soft pretzels,the traditional salty ones and cinnamon and sugar pretzels. We made a cheddar cheese sauce to go with the savory pretzels and a vanilla cream cheese frosting for the cinnamon sugar pretzels. The kids were pros! They did a great job rolling out the dough, twisting, boiling, and baking the pretzels.
For fun, we also made pretzel bites. everyone loved these. They are perfect for dipping and snacking. I think I will make these again on Sunday for our big Super Bowl party…and you should make them too!
Is everyone ready for the big game? I will be sharing more Super Bowl friendly recipes this week, so come on back. Here are a few favorites to start out the week:
Buffalo Hot Wings-these are Josh’s all time favorite. They are always a hit and perfect for the big game.
Chicken Smothered Nachos-we made these last year and everyone loved them. They are loaded with goodness!
Pizza Stromboli with Spinach, Mushrooms, and Cheese-the great taste of pizza in one big roll!
Black Bean Soup with Spicy Corn Muffins-perfect for serving up a crowd!
My good friend Gaby, from What’s Gaby Cooking, made Pulled Pork Sliders for the big game. Go check out the recipe-it’s a good one!
Homemade Soft Pretzel Bites
Ingredients:
Soft Pretzels:
1 1/2 cups warm water
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
1 package active dry yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)
3 ounces unsalted butter, melted
2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
4 1/2 to 5 cups all-purpose flour
Vegetable oil
3 quarts water
3/4 cup baking soda
1 whole egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon cold water
Coarse sea saltFor the cheese sauce:
½ Tablespoon unsalted butter
½ Tablespoon all-purpose flour
½ cup milk
8 ounces Cheddar cheese, gratedDirections:
For the Pretzels: Combine the water, sugar, yeast, and butter in the bowl of a stand mixer and mix with the dough hook until combined. Let sit for 5 minutes.
Add the salt and flour and mix on low speed until combined. Increase the speed to medium and continue kneading until the dough is smooth and begins to pull away from the side of the bowl, about 3 to 4 minutes. If the dough appears too wet, add additional flour, 1 tablespoon at a time. Remove the dough from the bowl, place on a flat surface and knead into a ball with your hands.
Oil a bowl with vegetable oil, add the dough and turn to coat with the oil. Cover with a clean towel or plastic wrap and place in a warm spot until the dough doubles in size, about 1 hour.
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
Bring the water to a boil in a small roasting pan over high heat and add the baking soda.
Remove the dough from the bowl and place on a flat surface. Divide the dough into 8 equal pieces, about 4 1/4 to 4 1/2 ounces each. Roll each piece into a long rope measuring 22 inches and shape. Cut the dough into one inch pieces to make the pretzel bites. Boil the pretzel bites in the water solution in batches. We did about 15 bites at a time. Boil for about 30 seconds. Remove with a large slotted spoon. Place pretzel bites on a baking sheet that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Make sure they are not touching. Brush the tops with the egg wash and season liberally with the salt. Place into the oven and bake for 15 to 18 minutes until golden brown.
Remove to a baking rack and let rest 5 minutes before eating. Serve with cheese sauce.
To make the cheese sauce:
Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour and cook 1 minute. Whisk in the milk and cook until slightly thickened. Remove from heat and stir in the Cheddar cheese until smooth and all of the cheese is melted. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.*If you want to make cinnamon and sugar pretzel bites-instead of adding salt, sprinkle the bites with cinnamon and sugar. For the frosting mix-soft cream cheese-about 3 T, powdered sugar, a teaspoon of vanilla extract, and a little bit of milk. Whisk together. Add more milk if it is too thick, if it is too thin, add more powdered sugar. I don't measure. I just guess until the consistency is right.*
Recipe makes a lot of bites-perfect for sharing!
Adapted from Bobby Flay
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Ooops, I meant bites!
~ingrid
Your pretzels bites look awesome…
Those look divine. I wish I could dip into the screen and plunge one into that cheese sauce. I love doughy pretzels, the only place I know in UK that seems to sell them is our cafe chain Pret a Manger and I used to buy them for breakfast on the way to work. I’ve not seen them as bites but can imagine they are very tasty.
i’ll bet you’re an awesome teacher, maria. these little niblets look perfect–nicely done to all involved!
OMG, I adore Pretzels of any kind, and bite sized! I am so going to make this for my Superbowl party!
Those look delicious and perfect. Sounds like a good FHE treat to me!
Pretzels are hot right now. Dawn of Vanilla Sugar sent me a link to bites like these but stuffed with ham and cheese. I love your sauce with these. Beautiful photos too!
I just printed the recipe and can’t wait to try. My granddaughter loves the pretzel bites that are coated with lots of cheese at The Pretzelmaker in the mall. I might try to replicate those using your recipe. Thanks Maria!
These look absolutely delicious. If they taste half as good as they look, it would great!
oh wow these look amazing must be a fun job to cook with kids
What delicious pretzel bites! I’m tempted to go make some right now!
They came out so well and how cool is it that you get to make them with kids! Much better than some chains stores in the mall. I’m really excited to test these out!:)
I am in the kinda mood now that these soft pretzel bites would be just perfect sitting by my side. I don’t think they would last very long. The cheddar cheese dipping sauce is a great idea. My kids would love to dip these. That is so neat that you are teaching the 2 neighbor kiddos how to cook. You are teaching them skills that will last a lifetime.
I heart soft pretzels. And making it mini is even better! I am SO starring this to try for Superbowl. The cheese dip recipe is just icing on the cake. YUM!
These look fabulous Maria! I love homemade pretzels so much and these are a great idea for the Super Bowl. Thanks
These would be perfect for the superbowl!
What a great idea for game day. These sound terrific.
My favorite snack in the whole world!
I love soft pretzels! What a great idea. They are definitely going on my game day menu. Thanks for sharing and that is a great photo!
OMG! You need to package these lil’ guys up and sell them…stand outside a big screen TV place or something…Awesome!
My kids would love these! How fun you are teaching the kids…I bet you have a blast.
Those look fantastic!!
you just made me so hungry LOL yum!
These look amazing!!! I live for soft pretzels! i could go to town on those little bites!
These look fantastic! I can’t believe I’ve never made my own soft pretzels. You’ve inspired me!
Those look awesome!
A perfect snack!
Yum! Those look so good. They remind me of the kind you can get at the mall, but I bet they taste 100 times better. I bet a sweet version would also be delicious!
That is so cool! I would have loved to take cooking classes when I was younger!
These are perfect. And your photos are becoming more and more beautiful!!! Did you get some new equipment?
YUM! The pretzels look great. I’ve never made bread (with yeast) from scratch. Who doesn’t love pretzels and cheese??!
Just bookmarked the recipe! These little bites look so perfect. I actually made soft pretzels for the Superbowl last year. I have a feeling pretzel bites are a little less time-conusiming. Great idea!
I am totally going to try these!
I was searching for Super Bowl food ideas. This looks like the perfect choice on Sunday. Thanks for sharing, Maria.
Oooh wow they look great!
Thankfully super bowl we have all decided to meet at a local bar for wings. I am a huge Colts fan and I really did not want to spend the entire super bowl in Jeff being nice and a good host.
Awesome job! I love soft pretzels especially if the dough was made with jalapenos. drooll……..
Yum! I would have never thought it possible to make pretzels at home, just seems like an impossible task in my mind. They look so good and I love anything in a small bite! Can’t wait to try this recipe. Looks great Maria!
Dipping little bites of goodness in cheese is one of my favorite past times. Wow, these pretzel bites are calling my name.
I was just looking in our cabinets for pretzels last night! Love the Pretzel bits…you can dip more! LOL!
Oh these look too dangerous for me to make at home. Yum! I would eat them all in one sitting.
Yummy – I am totally making these this weekend! Our fmaily loves pretzels, and I am excited to make some homemade!
Yum! Question: how did you store them to retain the first day’s freshness? I made some pretzels recently that were delicious day 1, but they lost some of their perfect consistency after a night or two in a tupperware container… Thanks!
I’ve never made pretzels but those pretzel bites make me want to!
Gosh, these look amazing!
Leslie-the hubs got me new lights for Christmas so I can shoot at night:)
Jami-the kids ate them the day we made them. I would reheat them in the oven if you want to enjoy them the next day. Reheat and stir the sauce too.
Thanks everyone! These are fun to make and eat:)
ohhhhh….delicious….I have made pretzels before (were a favorite breakfast dish for my kids)…but bagel bites I have not made…yet…and just in time for superbowl sunday, too. Thanks for sharing.
Those look really yummy. I bet my girls would love them. I’m really tempted to make some this afternoon.
These look fabulous… I must try them soon…. I’m drooling!
Yummy
-Natasha
Those look great! The bites I might even get my five year olds to help me make, thanks!
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