Special Edition...

Since I don't have much to report in the way of food, I have a special treat for y'all. You might remember Sydney, she's my Boss Karen's daughter. She also has a sister, Annie. These were to two ladies that I've chosen to take care of Poppy and me in our old age.

So my special treat is today's writing is devoted to the Pretzel. Not just any pretzel either, today's recipe is brought to you by fellow foodie, Sydney. Here is her recipe for...



Sydney's Super NOM Pretzels

1-1/2 cups hot tap water, about 110-115 degrees F
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 package active dry yeast (or 2-1/4 teaspoons)
4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup wheat pastry flour
10 cups water
2/3 cup baking soda
1 egg yolk beaten with 1 tablespoon water
Sea Salt

Combine the water, sugar, and salt in a bowl. Sprinkle the yeast on top, give a quick stir, and let stand about 5 minutes. The recipe said until foamy, but it never got foamy for me so after 5 minutes I decided to continue on anyway (nothing bad happened).

Add flour and melted butter, then stir until ingredients are combined. Add a bit of flour to the countertop and then knead the dough by hand until smooth, approx 4 mins.

Coat a bowl (you may use the same bowl) with nonstick spray and allow the dough to rise, covered with plastic, until doubled in size, about 50 minutes. Since I live in fog central and there is no such thing as a warm place in my house, I turned on the oven to warm for about 2 minutes then turned off the oven and placed the covered bowl inside for about 50 minutes.

Remove the dough from the oven. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees and bring the 10 cups of water and the baking soda to a boil in a large pot.

Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper, then oil the parchment paper down. Oil the counter as well(I literally oiled the counter--I poured some vegetable oil onto a paper towel then wiped the counter with the oily paper towel) Divide dough into 8 pieces, and, working with one at a time, roll each piece into a 2 foot rope. Make a U with the rope, then cross the pieces in the center and press them firmly on the bottom of the U in a traditional pretzel shape. Place on baking sheet.

Drop one pretzel into the water for 30 seconds, remove with a some kind of utensil (I used a spatula), and place on the lined baking sheet. Repeat with remaining pretzels. Brush with the egg mixture and sprinkle with sea salt.

Bake until dark brown, about 12 to 14 minutes, reversing the trays halfway through bake time to ensure even browning. If the undersides still feel moist (they weren't for me after 14 mins, but just in case), flip and bake for an additional 2 to 3 minutes, until the pretzels are dry to the touch. Transfer to a cooling rack, and serve warm.

While I've not had the pleasure of eating these and as you know, I can't bake to save my life, so I'm hoping Sydney made some extra and will send them to work with Boss Karen.

Later!