Pretzels

Makes 12 medium-size or 24 small pretzels

Pretzels are one of the world’s oldest snacks. Great-grandfather Herman ate them in Germany as a boy and here in America as an adult. It was natural that they would find their way into the Berghoff bar. Traditionally, shaped pretzel dough is briefly boiled in water, just like bagels, before being baked. This brief boiling gives both pretzels and bagels shiny crusts and a very chewy texture. I omitted the step of boiling the shaped dough when I developed our pretzel recipe for the home kitchen, so this pretzel is easy to shape and bake. It has a nice soft crust, easy to bite, easy to chew. It is best baked and eaten on the same day. Pretzels are fun for kids and grown-ups alike to shape. We recommend eating these pretzels with any Berghoff beer or a frosty mug of Berghoff Root Beer.

4 1⁄2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, plus additional for kneading
1 package (2 1⁄4 teaspoons) instant yeast
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 1⁄2 cups warm water
4 tablespoons (1⁄2 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1 large egg yolk, lightly beaten
1 large egg white, well beaten with 1 tablespoon water
Pretzel (coarse) salt, as needed

Preheat the oven to 450˚F. Do not use a convection oven for this recipe.

To mix in a mixer: In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the flour, yeast, sugar, and salt, and stir to mix; add the water, butter, and egg yolk, and mix on low until the dough pulls away from the side of the bowl.

Fit the mixer with the dough hook and knead the dough at the lowest speed until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes, adding some or all of the remaining flour as needed. Cover with plastic wrap lightly sprayed with cooking spray and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.

To mix by hand: In a 4-quart bowl, combine the flour, yeast, sugar, and salt, and whisk to mix; add the water, butter, and egg yolk and, using a large spoon, stir until the dough pulls away from the side of the bowl.

Remove spoon, and using your hands, knead dough right in the bowl until dough is smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes, adding some or all of the remaining flour as needed.
Cover with plastic wrap lightly sprayed with cooking spray and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.

To mix in a food processor: In the work bowl of a large capacity (14-cup) food processor fitted with the plastic dough blade, combine the flour, yeast, sugar and salt and pulse to mix. Add the water, butter and egg yolk and pulse until dough pulls away from the side of the bowl and forms a cohesive mass. Add additional flour as needed through the feed tube.

To shape pretzels: Turn the dough out on a lightly floured board and knead briefly, about 1 minute. Cut the dough into 12 equal-sized pieces. Roll each dough piece out 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 ends down on the bottom of the U to seal, forming a “pretzel shape.” For small pretzels, cut dough into 24 equal sized pieces. Roll out each dough piece into 12 inches and shape as directed.

Gently place each pretzel on a parchment-lined baking sheet (2 pans). Brush the tops lightly with the egg white mixture. Sprinkle each with 1⁄2 teaspoon of coarse salt, or to taste. Bake in a preheated oven (not convection oven) 14-16 minutes or until browned and firm. Transfer to a cooling rack and cool for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

TD&N Nutrient Analysis (based on 12 servings of plain pretzels): Calories: 220; Total Fat: 5 g; Saturated Fat: 3 g; Polyunsaturated Fat: 0 g; Monounsaturated Fat: 1 g; Cholesterol: 27 mg; Sodium: 328 mg; Carbohydrates: 38 g; Fiber: 1 g; Protein: 6 g

Variations on a Pretzel

Cheese Pretzels: Add 2 cups grated white cheddar cheese (8 ounces) with the dry ingredients and proceed with recipe. Or add 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese (4 ounces) to flour and proceed with recipe. Then sprinkle a second cup of grated Parmesan (4 ounces) on the egg white brushed pretzels before baking.

Caraway Pretzels: Add 4 teaspoons caraway seeds to the flour and proceed with recipe. Top with 1⁄2 cup coarse salt before baking.

Bacon Pretzels: Add 1⁄2 cup bacon bits (from the jar or package) to the flour and proceed with recipe. Sprinkle with kosher salt as needed and 1⁄4 cup bacon bits before baking.

Chocolate Chip Pretzels: Increase the butter to 1⁄2 cup, sugar to 1⁄3 cup, and prepare the dough according to the recipe. Add 1 cup chocolate chips to the finished dough, kneading only long enough to incorporate the chips. Dust the baked pretzels with 1 1⁄2 cups powdered sugar.

Cinnamon-Raisin Pretzels: Increase the butter to 1⁄2 cup, sugar to 1⁄2 cup, and add 2 teaspoons of cinnamon and prepare the dough according to recipe. Add 1⁄2 cup of dark raisins cut in half to the finished dough, kneading only long enough to incorporate. Dust the baked pretzels well with 1 1⁄2 cups powdered sugar.

Mini-Pretzels: Make half-size versions of any of the above by dividing the dough into 24 equal size pieces and rolling into 12-inch long ropes. Then proceed with the rest of the recipe as directed.

Recipe reprinted with permission of The Berghoff Café Cookbook: Berghoff Family Recipes for Simple, Satisfying Food by Carlyn Berghoff and Nancy Ross Ryan, Andrews McMeel Publishing © 2009, www.andrewsmcmeelpublishing.com

Pretzel Pedigree

According to some historians, the pretzel is the world’s oldest snack food. It was invented by a now-nameless Italian monk-baker in AD 610 who rewarded his students by baking scraps of dough in the shape of the way they prayed—with arms folded across the chest. He called them pretiolas, Latin for “little rewards.” Pretiolas spread throughout Europe and became symbols of good luck, long life, and prosperity. German children wore pretzels tied on strings around their necks at New Year’s and pretzels crowned the tops of Christmas trees.

In 1510, Turkish soldiers tried to invade Vienna, Austria, by digging tunnels underneath the city. The pretzel bakers, working at night, heard them, alarmed the city, and helped fight off the invaders. The grateful Austrian emperor commissioned a special coat of arms for them that still used today: a charging lion and a pretzel.

Until the 1600s, pretzels were soft. The hard pretzel is credited to a nameless 17th-century baker who fell asleep and overbaked the soft pretzels.

According to historians, pretzels (and their recipes) came to America on shipboard with the first colonists and were traded with Native Americans. In 1861, Julius Sturgis opened the first commercial pretzel bakery in America in Lititz, Pennsylvania.