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
Yield: A lot! Around 5-6 dozen
Cook Time: 18 minutes
Pretzel bites are fun to make and fun to eat!
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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They look yummy, I will try this recipe
thanks for this ingredients. i am gonna try this
These are amazing! and so easy to make
twopeas replied: — March 31st, 2011 @ 2:24 pm
Thanks! Glad you like them!
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Very yummy. Vanila cream cheese frosting? Your the devil.
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These were amazing and every family member who stopped by the house this week ooh’d and ahh’d over them. I haven’t been able to get the cream cheese frosting to come out for the cinnamon and sugar ones. When you say to add powdered sugar is it a little like a few tablespoons or a lot like a cup? I am still learning to cook and am not good at guessing yet. Thanks for your help!
Two Peas replied: — June 2nd, 2011 @ 5:05 pm
Start with about a cup, add a splash of milk, whisk and check consistency. If it is too thin, add more powdered sugar. If it is too thick, add more milk:)
I’m eating some fresh out of the oven right now! My version of heaven! Thanks for the recipe
Two Peas replied: — June 2nd, 2011 @ 5:04 pm
You are welcome!
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I made these for a party last night and they were great! I was surprised at how easy they were… I’ve made yeast-bread once before and it seemed a lot more complicated, so I was pleasantly surprised that this was pretty simple.
We had three of us doing the actual rolling/cutting/boiling/brushing egg, which was a good system… I think it would have been a lot harder/longer with just me!
Thanks for the great recipe!
Two Peas replied: — July 10th, 2011 @ 5:44 pm
Glad you enjoyed the pretzel bites. Thanks for letting us know!
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I made this recipe tonight and it turned out wonderfully! They were so amazing! Growing up my best friends mom made homemade pretzel bites and I have since tried duplicating the recipe, I finally found the one! My only thing is, and maybe it’s because I live in Colorado (High Altitude problems) I need to turn the oven down. The pretzels were perfect on top and almost burnt on the bottom, and that was even after I reduced the cooking time by 3 minutes. Absolutely delicious nonetheless! Everyone should make these, so easy!
Two Peas replied: — August 15th, 2011 @ 6:08 pm
I am so glad you liked the pretzel bites! They are so fun to make and eat:)
I made these and they were amazing right out of the oven. Unfortunately, I put some in an airtight container for the next day and they were not good later
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So cute! I definitely want to make these…looks really delicious!
Love them.
Would it be possible to make it in advance (possibly freezing it)? If so, how?
Thank you so much! Love your blog!
Two Peas replied: — September 9th, 2011 @ 4:42 pm
I haven’t tried freezing them, but I am sure you can. You can either freeze the dough in a ball or cut the dough into the bites and freeze them. Let us know if you try it!
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Made these today – so addictive! Thanks for sharing a great recipe! I’m sure this will be requested for every football game I attend.
Two Peas replied: — September 18th, 2011 @ 11:25 am
You are welcome! The pretzel bites are great for game day!
LOVE them! sooo soo so Good! thank you!
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Thanks for the recipe, but it says (3/4 cup baking soda), cup?
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All this time, I have only been buying the boxes of frozen soft pretzels. These are SO delicious, I have made them twice within a weeks time! They take some time, but the work is actually very minimal and the results are amazing!
These look SO amazing. I wish I wasn’t at work so I could make them and stuff them all in my mouth before anyone else gets home
these are AMAZING, after i made them they were gone in 5 minutes!
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I just finished making these and my husband and I really liked them! I posted a picture of the bites on my website http://www.quiltingwonderland.wordpress.com.
My husband likes them so much he’s dipping them into a marinara sauce he made earlier!
mmm they look yummy, I loved the cheese dip too
I’m going to have to try these, I love pretzels!!! I think I may be addicted.
I also think it’s awesome that your kids like to cook with you, you are making fantastic memories that they’ll remember forever!
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