Pretzel Day

"I wake up every morning in a bed that's too small, drive my daughter to a school that's too expensive, and then I go to work to a job for which I get paid too little, but on Pretzel Day?...Well, I like Pretzel Day." -Stanley Hudson-

I was in the mood for soft pretzels, like the ones I used to get at Costco for .99 before they switched to Churros. I searched through some recipes and remembered an episode of Good Eats I saw on food network dedicated to the soft pretzel. I tried Alton Brown's recipe and they were good. They didn't end up being the most beautiful pretzels of my life, but the best I've been able to produce myself, getting that chewy outer crustishness with the soft center. I made half cinnamon/sugar, but next time I'm going to try just baking them plain, and after their done, brush some melted butter on, then the cinnamon/sugar because it kindof burned being baked with the pretzel itself.

Soft Pretzels

-1 1/2 cups warm (110 to 115 degrees F) water

-1 tablespoon sugar

-2 teaspoons kosher salt

-1 package active dry yeast (2 1/4 tsp)

-22 ounces all-purpose flour, approximately 4 1/2 cups

-4 T. unsalted butter, melted

Vegetable oil, for pan

-10 cups water

-2/3 cup baking soda

-1 large egg yolk beaten with 1 tablespoon water

-Pretzel salt

Combine the water, sugar and kosher salt in the bowl of a stand mixer and sprinkle the yeast on top. Allow to sit for 5 minutes or until the mixture begins to foam. Add the flour and butter and, using the dough hook attachment, mix on low speed until well combined. Change to medium speed and knead until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the side of the bowl, approximately 4 to 5 minutes. Remove the dough from the bowl, clean the bowl and then oil it well with vegetable oil. Return the dough to the bowl, cover with plastic wrap and sit in a warm place for approximately 50 to 55 minutes or until the dough has doubled in size.
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Line 2 half-sheet pans with parchment paper (I just used one cookie sheet)and lightly brush with the vegetable oil. Set aside.
Bring the 10 cups of water and the baking soda to a rolling boil in an 8-quart saucepan or roasting pan. In the meantime, turn the dough out onto a slightly oiled work surface and divide into 8 equal pieces. Roll out each piece of dough into a 24-inch rope. Make a U-shape with the rope, holding the ends of the rope, cross them over each other and press onto the bottom of the U in order to form the shape of a pretzel. Place onto the parchment-lined half sheet pan.
Place the pretzels into the boiling water, 1 by 1, for 30 seconds. Remove them from the water using a large flat spatula. Return to the half sheet pan, brush the top of each pretzel with the beaten egg yolk and water mixture and sprinkle with the pretzel salt. Bake until dark golden brown in color, approximately 12 to 14 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack for at least 5 minutes before serving.