Soft Pretzels and Oreo Truffles

On Saturday Doug, Angie, Noah, and Leah came over to watch the University of Utah football game. They won, Go Utes!! We had a great time visiting, cheering, playing with the kiddies, and of course snacking!

Josh wanted to make homemade pretzels again, but this time we used Bobby Flay’s recipe. They are similar to the last ones we made, but these have brown sugar and a little more butter. We really like both recipes, but Josh thinks this one is a tad better. He also perfected his cheese sauce! So make sure to try this recipe. It is really good!!

We also made Oreo Truffles for a sweet treat! They were easy to make and great bite size treats!

Soft Pretzels

Adapted from Bobby Flay

Queso Poblano Sauce:
½ Tablespoon unsalted butter
½ Tablespoon all-purpose flour
½ cup milk
8 ounces Pepper Jack cheese, grated
1 poblano chiles, roasted, seeded and chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons freshly chopped cilantro leaves

Soft Pretzels:
1 ½ cups warm water
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
1 package active dry yeast
3 ounces unsalted butter, melted
2 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
4 ½ to 5 cups all-purpose flour
Vegetable oil
3 quarts water
¾ cup baking soda
1 whole egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon cold water
Coarse sea salt

For the Queso Poblano 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 Pepper Jack cheese, poblano chiles, and season with salt and pepper, to taste.

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 ¼ to 4 ½ ounces each. Roll each piece into a long rope measuring 22 inches and shape: take the right side and cross over to the left. Cross right to left again and flip up. Boil the pretzels in the water solution, 2 at a time for 30 seconds, splashing the tops with the warmed water using a spoon. Remove with a large flat slotted spatula or a spider. Place 4 pretzels on each baking sheet, 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. Dip into desired sauces.

Oreo Truffles
Adapted from Kraft Food and Family and Bakerella

1 package oreo cookies, 16 ounces (divided… use cookie including the cream center)
1 8oz. package cream cheese (softened)
White chocolate-the kind made for dipping! Either bark or the discs.

1. Crush cookies in a food processor and stir in softened cream cheese. Use the back of a large spoon to help mash the two together.

2. Roll the mixture into 1″ balls and place on wax paper covered cookie sheet.

3. Melt chocolate as directed on the package and then dip balls into chocolate, tap off extra and set aside on wax paper covered cookie sheet to dry. I melted dark chocolate and drizzled it on the white!

4. Once dry, refrigerate and enjoy!

Makes about 36 truffles.

FYI: It helps to freeze the uncoated balls for a few minutes to keep the mixture from starting to fall apart in the melted chocolate. If this becomes a problem, dip them in the chocolate, let dry and then dip again. They are also good dipped in regular milk or dark chocolate. Try different types of Oreos for fun, such as mint, peanut butter, holiday, etc.