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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I want to snack on some of these! Looks great Maria!!
I just tried these and they were pretty good, but they tasted a lot like baking soda? Did I do something wrong or is it possible to cut out the baking soda?
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I just made these to take to a potluck lunch and I’m afraid there aren’t going to be any left for me to take in a moment! They are addicting! I brushed them with butter and skipped the cheese sauce, but I’m sure it’s yummy too!
Hi, I just tried the soft pretzel bites and they tasted like baking soda. Do you know what I did wrong? I thought I followed the recipe.
Thanks!
Ronda
twopeas replied: — July 12th, 2010 @ 2:07 pm
Hmm. Our pretzels have never tasted like baking soda. after you add the baking soda maybe wait a minute or two before adding in the pretzels. Sorry you had struggles.
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Oh these look yummy!!! Question though…do you think i could sub some whole wheat flour for some or all or the apf in this recipe?
Yummy! And what a great size to dip in chocolate, eh?
I made these cuties today and they taste AWESOME! I searched for recipes all day and came across this simple recipe. Thank you!
The first time i made these they tasted too much like baking soda, so the next batch i made, i just put a little bit of baking soda in the water and they tasted great and still soft!
Hi – was wondering if these freeze well? I wanted to make & then freeze to put in gift baskets for Thanksgiving.
Thanks – good recipe
twopeas replied: — November 7th, 2010 @ 7:06 pm
I have never froze the pretzels before. I am guessing they would be fine though. Let me know if you try it! Thanks!
YUM! And thanks for the recipe! Such a great idea to teach cooking classes to kids…that may be something I could do in my neighborhood! Do you charge?
This is a fantastic recipe. I tried it over the weekend and it turned out perfectly – with any recipe like this though, I am always careful to make sure not to overcook. My oven is a bit on the older side and that can lead me to problems if I don’t keep an eye on things!
wow, looks absolutely yum. I must try those pretzels gluten free. My kids would love them.
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Are you sure it shouldn’t be 3/4 TSP of baking soda, not cup?
twopeas replied: — December 30th, 2010 @ 2:44 pm
I am sure, you need a lot of baking soda to boil the pretzels. You don’t taste it, I promise:)
twopeas replied: — January 1st, 2011 @ 10:53 am
The baking soda goes in the boiling water, to boil the pretzels. I hope that is clear. Enjoy!
Leila Carmel replied: — February 5th, 2011 @ 3:28 pm
I definitely would agree…I used this recipe and the entire batch tastes (strongly) like baking soda!! They look great, but I can’t eat a single one. I was so bummed! Next time I will add much less and I’m sure they’ll turn out awesome
These look great!
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I just made these and having grown up eating Philly pretzels, I say, “yum”! For the people wondering about too much baking soda, I hope I don’t offend you when I ask if you are using the baking soda in the boiling water bath? Baking soda does not go in the water that the yeast is being dissolved in, only in the water that the pretzel dough will be dipped in for 30 seconds or so before baking. Mine did not taste at all like baking soda. I just hope my family doesn’t eat them all before our guests arrive!
twopeas replied: — January 1st, 2011 @ 10:50 am
Glad you liked the pretzels. The baking soda goes in the boiling water to boil pretzels!!! You are right!
What a great treat! As a lover of pretzels, these definitely were delicious! I featured them on my blog – blogfoodbetter.blogspot.com
Thanks for the inspiration!
twopeas replied: — January 4th, 2011 @ 8:06 am
So glad you liked the pretzels! Yay!
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What I did was to coat them with cheese and bake them, giving them a stronger cheese flavor and a little crunch.
twopeas replied: — January 12th, 2011 @ 1:57 pm
Sounds delicious!
I really want to make these for my book club Friday night but won’t have time to do it right before. Are they still good the next day? If prepared the day before the event?
twopeas replied: — January 12th, 2011 @ 1:57 pm
I am sure they would still be fine, just put them in an air tight container. Ours never last until the next day:) Have fun!
Hi,
This looks fantastic!! I can’t wait to try it, but can you give advice on how to make it without a stand mixer? I don’t have any experience with mixing bread dough. (yet!)
Thanks,
Hmmm – these look super super delish and like they would make for THE perfect game day snack.
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I too was wondering about making them w/out using a stand mixer b/c I don’t own one.
twopeas replied: — January 18th, 2011 @ 9:26 pm
Just knead the dough with your hands instead of using the mixer. You will get a good workout in:)
Those look amazing!
Do you think the dough could be made in a bread machine on the dough setting?
twopeas replied: — January 19th, 2011 @ 5:08 pm
I don’t have a bread machine and have never used one, but I am sure it can be done! Give it a try and let me know how they turn out! Thanks for visiting our site.
Rene replied: — January 19th, 2011 @ 9:45 pm
I make all my yeast dough recipes in the bread machine, whether the recipe is a “bread machine” recipe or not. It’s just a machine. So long as your flour amounts in the recipe do not exceed what your pan can handle, go ahead!
Richelle Luchkowec replied: — January 20th, 2011 @ 6:49 am
Thanks! I just got my machine last week so I’m still new to it all. I’d much prefer to dump the ingredients and then move onto something else while it prepares the dough. I’ll give it a try and let you guys know how it goes.
twopeas replied: — January 20th, 2011 @ 7:08 am
Ok, great! good luck!
twopeas replied: — January 20th, 2011 @ 7:08 am
Great information. Thanks for sharing.
I just made these! After baking, I dipped half of them in a little bowl of melted butter then a bowl of sugar and cinnamon. YUM! The other half I will dip in honey mustard sauce. Thanks!
twopeas replied: — January 19th, 2011 @ 5:05 pm
Caroline-I am so glad you enjoyed the pretzel bites. Great idea to do sweet and savory!
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Thanks for the recipe – is the baking soda off – I only used half and they are super strong tasting still – plus the water boiled up all over the stove when it reacted with the baking soda.
twopeas replied: — January 21st, 2011 @ 8:25 pm
The baking soda is right, I adapted the pretzel bites from Bobby Flay’s pretzel recipe. You need the baking soda to achieve the brown, chewy crust on the pretzels. Add it slowly to the water. We didn’t taste the baking soda. If it is too strong for you, try using less, but you do need it.
These look sooo yummy! Will give it a shot soon!!! Thanks for posting!
twopeas replied: — January 21st, 2011 @ 8:25 pm
You are welcome! Enjoy!
I made this today and they came out AMAZING! This will be great for parties and such! My husband loved them! Thanks for sharing!
twopeas replied: — January 23rd, 2011 @ 7:24 am
Sarah-glad you had success with the pretzel bites! Thanks for letting us know!
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