Pretzel Rolls

I’ve been wanting to try making pretzel bread for a long time and finally found a recipe.  I really liked the way these rolls turned out.  The roll in the picture was my favorite.  It was small, perfectly round and had the right size of slits on top.  I experimented with X’s, slits and plain rolls for decorative tops, but this one was the best. 

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups warm water
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 2 1/4 teaspoons (1 package) instant yeast
• 22 ounces all-purpose flour, approximately 4 1/2 cups
• 2 ounces unsalted butter, melted (1/2 stick)
• 10 cups water
• 2/3 cup baking soda
• 1 large egg yolk beaten with 1 tablespoon water
• Pretzel salt (optional)

Directions

1. Combine the water, sugar, salt, yeast, flour and butter in a large bowl and mix until well incorporated. (I used our bread maker to mix and knead this recipe.)

2. Knead with an electric mixer or by hand until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the side of the bowl, approximately 4 to 5 minutes (by mixer).

3. Transfer the dough to an oiled dough rising bucket or bowl, cover and let rise for 1 hour or until the dough has doubled in size.

4. Preheat the oven to 450ºF. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and set aside.

5. Bring the 10 cups of water and the baking soda to a rolling boil in a large stock pot.

6. In the meantime, turn the dough out onto a slightly oiled work surface and divide into 10-12 equal pieces. Form each piece into a small, circle loaf. Place onto the parchment-lined sheet pan.

7. Place the loaves into the boiling water, topside down, one at a time, for 30 seconds. Remove them from the water using a large flat spatula. Return them, right side up, to the sheet pan.

8. Brush the top of each pretzel with the beaten egg yolk and water mixture and sprinkle with the pretzel salt. Slash with a sharp bread knife once or twice. Bake until dark golden brown in color, approximately 14 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack for at least 5 minutes before serving.

(recipe adapted from Alton Brown)