Homemade Soft Pretzels

Lately there has been a "pretzel" craze in restaurants; pretzel bite appetizers, pretzel buns, pretzel sticks, etc.  Fortunately I love a good soft pretzel, and a good pretzel bun.  My husband and I like to order pretzel appetizers when we eat out, and one day I had a craving for a soft pretzel roll and eating out wasn't in our budget for that day.  So I set out searching through my tasty treats pinterest board to find that pretzel recipe I pinned and...it required milk, I did not have any milk.

What to do? I searched for milk substitutes in a pretzel recipe, nothing good.
I searched for milk free pretzel recipes and found a few that sounded good. 
Then I came across this one: homemade by holman soft pretzels
The only thing I was unsure about was using bread flour, I only had all purpose flour.
I noticed that I did not have rapid rising yeast either, so I followed the directions on the package.

The results were great! 



They were soft, but firm on the outside.  A little chewy, and a little sweet.  Definitely a recipe I will make again!

Pretzel recipe adapted from Homemade by Holman:
Dough:
1 package yeast
1/4 cup honey
1 tsp salt
3 cups all purpose flour
1 cup warm water
1 T olive oil

Baking Soda Solution:
6 cups water
3 T baking soda

 Salt or your favorite seasonings for sprinkling on pretzels


First: follow the directions on your yeast package:

 

This organic yeast needed to be proofed first...rapid rise yeast does not. Just follow the directions and add the remainder of ingredients when ready.

 

 

Into my yeast mixture went all of the ingredients for the dough:

 1/4 cup honey
1 tsp salt
3 cups all purpose flour (part of the flour was used to create the yeast mixture)
1 cup warm water (part was used to mix the yeast)
  1 T olive oil

 

I used my Kitchen aid mixer to mix the dough. I mixed for a few minutes until it was well combined and then used the dough hook to knead the dough until it was smooth and elastic.

 

Transfer the dough to a separate container coated with olive oil to keep it from sticking. (I had a little too much olive oil, oops)

Also I used a double sided metal mixing bowl and later I transferred it to a glass bowl.  I recommend glass, the dough did not rise very well in the metal bowl.

 

Cover and leave in a warm place to rise for around an hour or until doubled in size.

 This is where I transferred the dough to a glass bowl, it seemed to rise better after that.

 

Punch down the dough then re-cover and let rise again about 30 min.

 

Meanwhile prepare your baking soda water to boil the pretzels in.

Approximately 6 cups water

3 T baking soda

 

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

 

When the dough is ready separate into equal portions.  I make large portions because I wanted to make thick chunky pretzel rolls. For a more traditional soft pretzel make smaller portions when at this step.

 

Roll and stretch out the dough into a long string.  Again, I rolled mine thick to make a roll, for a traditional soft pretzel roll yours out thinner. I also didn't take much care to make them "smooth" if you are concerned about the texture of the pretzel take care to make them smooth as the bumps do not go away when baked.

 

A little twist and....A pretzel is formed!

 

When the baking soda water reaches a rapid boil lay your pretzel on a slotted spoon and place into the water.  Cook for about 30 seconds on each side.  I found that I liked the pretzels I cooked longer.  I think that is because my pretzels were so thick and actually needed a little longer boil time.

 

Make sure that you drain the extra liquid from the pretzel before placing on the baking sheet.  No one likes a soggy pretzel!

I drained mine on a paper towel placed over a hand towel on a plate.

 

See the difference in the texture of the dough?  When the dough is boiled it gets shiny and a little slimy looking but is firm to the touch.  That's why pretzels have that great chewy outside crust.

Here they are boiling away.

As soon as you remove the pretzels from the boiling water and they are drained transfer them to the baking tray and sprinkle with your favorite pretzel toppings.

 

This pretzel is topped with garlic salt and crushed red pepper flakes.

 

 

I did three different types of pretzel rolls; garlic salt and crushed red pepper, salted, and two with cinnamon and sugar. (for dessert)

 

Bake the pretzels for 12-15 minutes or until they reach a deep dark brown.

 

Beautiful!

 

Warning:  The cinnamon and sugar did burn a little.  I think next time I will add the cinnamon and sugar after they are done baking. 

 

 

I used my pretzel rolls with my pepper peach chicken for dinner.  I will be making these again soon as pretzel bites for a celebration of motherhood party paired with my delicious recipe for spicy beer cheese sauce.  Yummy!

 

Thanks for baking with Baker and Brackenridge!

Love & Light,

Jamie Jeanne



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pepper peach chicken on pretzel rolls.

After making the yummy pepper peach jam I wanted to try it as a spicy sweet marinade for a different twist on grilled chicken for my homemade pretzel rolls.  If you have never tried pepper peach jam or salsa before give it a try it's deliciously spicy and sweet!  This meal was very easy, and pretty quick.

I used about a half a cup of peach pepper jam and combined it in a glass mixing bowl with a few tablespoons of olive oil, chopped onion, chopped jalapeño, minced garlic, salt, and pepper.  If you don't have peach pepper jam I think using raspberry jam would taste great too!

 

Add the chicken, mix together, cover and refrigerate for about an hour minimum.  The longer it marinates the more infused the flavor will be.

 

I used a grill pan to get pretty grill lines on the chicken...this is really not necessary a regular skillet will work just fine. cook until the chicken is done.  Add 1/2 cup of chicken stock to the pan to de-glaze the pan and then add the remaining marinade to create a sauce.  Cook until all the vegetables are soft and the sauce starts to thicken slightly. 

 

 

 

 

And Done!  Eat like this over rice, shred the chicken and mix with the sauce to eat on a bun, or eat the chicken pieces alone with the sauce.  I choose to place the whole chicken tenderloins on a pretzel roll and cover with the sauce.

 

The sweetness of the pretzel and the sauce go so nicely together, and it finishes with just a little heat from the jalapeños.  Bon Appetite!

 

 

 

Enjoy your kitchen adventures!

Love and Light,

Jamie Jeanne

 

 

 

 

 

 

Grand-opening!

After some time planning and creating listings the Etsy shop is ready!  I have been busy creating and crafting in order to start the shop with a fair amount of inventory.  Now it's time to see how this works out.  I hope this leads to bigger and better things and that this brings happiness to my life.  I am absolutely so excited that I finally have a place to showcase some of the things that I love to do and that I have a reason for doing the things that I love.  I am looking forward to creating new exciting things and reinventing old ideas to make them unique.  I hope that you find something interesting here and that you share it with others in your life. 

www.etsy.com/shop/bakerandbrackenridge

Join me on facebook too:  https://www.facebook.com/bakerandbrackenridge

Happy crafting!
Love & Light,
Jamie Jeanne

Pepper Peach Jam

I love this time of the summer when there are so many fruits and vegetables ripe and ready to eat.  However there is always the issue of having too many and produce goes bad.  That is what led me to todays kitchen...experiment? I love the discount produce section at our local grocery store; bags of lettuce for $.50, containers of raspberries for $.89, and bags of fruit for $.99.  Last week I purchased a large bag of peaches (oops didn't check the bag too close) nectarines and after eating a few I noticed that the remainder of the bag was starting to get soft.  I had just made a round of desserts for the previous weekend including zucchini brownies, and key lime cookie cups using the huge bag of limes that I purchased on discount (sorry didn't post those delicious cookies...but here is a picture).

Though it's unusual I have lost my taste for desserts right now *shock* so the usual peach crisp, peach pie, or anything else of the sort was not sounding good.  Plus I knew we wouldn't eat it all and it would just go to waste anyway.  Unfortunately I had to throw away some of those good lime cookies and zucchini brownies too, my husband and I just can't eat that much sweet stuff.  Earlier today we had just picked a handful of fresh jalapeños from the garden, and while staring at all the canning supplies at Wal-Mart I saw a bag of spiced peaches seasoning and IT HIT ME! Peach pepper jam...err nectarine pepper jam!  So I purchased a container of pectin and headed home with a plan, in my head anyway.  I have never made jam before but growing up on a farm we always had fresh fruit jam.  I  think I know what I need to do so lets get to it!

 

I started peeling my nectarines, and eating all the skins :) why waste the goodies right?  I sliced them up and cut them into chunks.

Nice and juicy and right into the pot!

I remember reading/hearing to add lemon juice to homemade jellies or jams.  So I figured it wouldn't hurt.  I squeezed half a lemon into a bowl so I didn't squeeze the seeds into the pot.

I added 2/3 c. of sugar to the nectarines along with the lemon juice and turned the heat on low.

It is always so hard to guess how hot a jalapeño is going to be so I just started with two.  A little tip for all of you who are afraid to handle these spicy little gems:  rub oil on your hands before you start cutting them so the oil will protect your skin. 

 

It works well for me, just be careful the juice can get under fingernails and linger for a long time, so scrub your hands when your done and DO NOT touch your face or your eyes! ouch!  I tasted one small piece of the jalapeño to test it's hotness.  I figured that is the only way to figure it out.  Well, they are HOT ones this time, my lip was numb for a little while :)

Add the peppers to the pot give it a stir and wait, wait, wait.
 

 

 

When I added the peppers to the pot I realized that I bought the wrong kind of pectin! It's instant!

 

What! That is what Wal-Mart does to me...I get distracted and try to get out of there ASAP, that place is such a crazy mess. So I am just experimenting now.  Cook down the peaches nectarines and peppers until the consistency is right, let it cool, and use the no cook pectin that I bought.  I think it should work fine.

Here is the nectarine/pepper mixture after cooking for about and hour and being smashed with the potato masher.  Total I let the mixture cook for 2 hrs.

 

I smashed the mixture up a little bit more as it cooled down and added the pectin to the mixture slowly through a flour sifter (I didn't want it to clump together so it seemed logical to "sift" it in)

I am sure you understand I could not sift with one hand, stir with the other, and take a picture so forgive me for leaving that step out. 

 

I save all of my empty glass jars from pasta sauce, salsa, jellies, etc. so I grabbed two and filled them with the tasty jam.  As it cooled it started to thicken so I think the pectin did it's job.

YUMMMMY!

 

 

So a quick review:

about 2c. of peaches... er nectarines

2/3 c. sugar

1 T. lemon juice

2 jalepenos

2 T instant pectin

 

Cut fruit and pepper and start to cook over low heat in a small saucepan.

Add the sugar and lemon juice to the mixture and cook until desired consistency.

Mash with a potato masher if desired.

Add pectin (follow directions on regular pectin, which you would need to add while you are cooking)

Ladle into jars or containers and ENJOY!

 

 

 

 

*recommendations for peach pepper jam*

 

spread cream cheese on a cracker and top with jam

spread a thin layer of cream cheese on a plate and top with jam, eat with pretzels or wheat thins

marinate chicken or pork before grilling

spread on a cold turkey sandwich

dip for grilled cheese

dip for chicken tenders or chicken nuggets

dip for jalapeno poppers

 

Comment below and share how you like to use your spicy peach jam!

 

 

 

UPDATE: First taste test

I couldn't wait to try this jam so for breakfast I spread a little on my toast. 

I will say that it could be a lot spicier, so in the future I would ere on the side of spicy if you like the heat.  Maybe using 3 or 4 jalapeños instead of 2.  The consistency is great, the sweetness just right, so add another use for pepper peach jam: toast!

 

 

 

Keep "jammin" on at Baker & Brackenridge!

Love  & Light,

Jamie Jeanne

 

 

 

 

Volkswagen photos

 

 

 

A few weeks ago my husband and I along with a group of our friends spent the weekend at two different Volkswagen shows. The following are some of my favorite pictures of the weekend.

 

Enjoy!

 

There were so many beetles at this show.  It was a great turn out at "Bugfest 2013"

This thing has patina for days...it was awesome.  The original lettering is still on the side from the Piano shop it used to belong to.

 

This beetle belongs on a beach somewhere.

(there's my bus in the background!)

 

Come see Baker & Brackenridge soon!

Love & Light,

Jamie Jeanne