Week 13: Pretzels

Yes folks, you read that right. Pretzels. Who makes their own pretzels? I do! After a few weeks of sweet treats, I decided it was time for something more savory. Don't you just love that word? Savory. Makes my mouth water just saying it. Or typing it. Oh, you know what I mean.

These are super easy. When was the last time you baked something with only 5 ingredients? Plus, they don't take all day to make. You should try this.

Pretzels

Makes 8

Recipe from thedaringkitchen.com

DOUGH:

2 1/2 c. all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. sugar

2 1/4 tsp. yeast

7-8 oz. warm water

TOPPING:

1/2 c. warm water

2 Tbsp. baking soda

coarse, kosher or pretzel salt

3 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted

The recipe I used had all kinds of variations for mixing the dough, but really, how hard is it to throw 5 ingredients in the mixer for a few minutes? I know there are people out there who love their bread machines, but I'm a snob and I refuse to use one. I'm old school that way. So here's what you do:

Combine all dough ingredients in a mixing bowl. Beat until well combined. Knead the dough by hand (or use the dough hook attachment on your mixer) for approximately 5 minutes, till it's soft, smooth and quite slack. Flour the dough, put it in a ziplock bag, and let it rest for 30 minutes.

Preheat your oven to 500 degrees. Hindsight being what it is, I would advise against making pretzels on a day when you could just as easily fry an egg on the sidewalk. 500 degrees will heat your house up nice and toasty. Take it from me.

Prepare two baking sheets by spraying them with nonstick cooking spray, or line them with parchment paper.

Transfer the dough to a lightly greased surface (a little vegetable oil on the kitchen counter will work well), and divide it into 8 equal pieces (if you're into using your kitchen scale, they should weigh about 70g or 2 1/2 oz each). Allow the pieces to rest, uncovered, for 5 minutes. While the dough is resting, combine baking soda and warm water in a shallow bowl. Make sure the baking soda is completely dissolved; if it isn't, it'll make your pretzels splotchy.

Roll each piece of dough into a long, thin rope (28-30 inches long), and twist each rope into a pretzel. Dip each pretzel in the baking soda wash-- this will give the pretzels a nice, golden-brown color. I had to whisk the baking soda wash every time before I dipped. I really don't think it's possible to completely dissolve the baking soda. Sprinkle them lightly with coarse, kosher or pretzel salt. Allow them to rest, uncovered, for 10 minutes.

Bake the pretzels for 8-9 minutes, or until they're golden brown; reverse the baking sheets halfway through baking.

Remove the pretzels from the oven and brush them thoroughly with the melted butter. Keep brushing until you've used all the butter. I know it seems like a lot but in my family, butter and salt are practically their own food groups, so keep on brushing that butter. :) Eat the pretzels warm, or reheat in the microwave.

(pay no attention to that little guy up in the right corner. quality control, ya know.)

I've gotten pretty lucky so far in this project, in that there have only been two recipes that I wasn't crazy about. It seems like I say "this is SO good" every week, but it's true. I promise to be very honest with you, and if I'm not into something I've made, you'll be the first to know.

And I know this is a pretty big claim, but I'd almost go as far as to say that these pretzels are just about as good as that pretzel place at the mall. For real. I'm looking forward to trying some cinnamon raisin pretzels drizzled with a powdered sugar icing. Doesn't that sound SO good? (There I go again!)

Week 7: Pita Bread

Now before you start thinking that I've forgotten about the "one baking project per week" plan... let me say this: the baking was done last week Wednesday. I work on Thursdays and Fridays. We went camping Saturday and Sunday. Today is Monday. Today is when I have time to post last week's baking project. Back off, okay? The baking got done. :)

When I committed to baking one new recipe per week for a year, I didn't fool myself into believing that every week would produce delicious, "oh my goodness this is the best thing I've ever made" results. Week 7 is the reason I am glad that I wasn't lulled into a false sense of baking nirvana.

Ordinarily, I love pita bread. I'd rather have a sandwich where the fixin's are stuffed into a tasty little pocket than smushed between two slices of mushy bread. This pita bread is not what I have become accustomed to. They're "okay". That's all. Nothing spectacular. But I promised to bring it all to you, good and bad, so here ya go!

Pita Bread

Makes 12

Recipe from: Better Recipes

3 1/2 - 4 c. flour

1 pkg. dry yeast

1 1/4 c. warm water (115-120 degrees)

2 Tsbp. oil

1 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. sugar

In mixing bowl, combine 1 1/2 c. flour and yeast. Combine warm water, oil, salt and sugar. Add to yeast; mix for 30 seconds. Beat 3 minutes at high speed. By hand, stir in enough flour to make a moderately-stiff dough. knead for 5 minutes until smooth and elastic.

Cover and let rise 45 minutes. Punch down and divide into 12 pieces. Shape into balls; cover. Let rest for 10 minutes.

Roll into 5-inch rounds. Roll out from center, not back and forth (I used my hand to flatten the dough-- why use the rolling pin for something so small?). Cover and let rise 20-30 minutes.

Put 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Cool on wire racks.

That's about it. The pitas do puff up a bit when they bake, so if you cut them in half it would be possible to put sandwich stuff into them, but the flavor just isn't there for me. I'm sure if you added honey and used whole wheat flour it may improve the flavor, but to be honest, I'm not that interested. Sorry this is kind of a downer of a post, but I have to be honest. And honestly, if I were you, I wouldn't bother with this one.

Guess they can't all be winners. Better luck next time.

Week 5: Cinnamon Raisin Bread

Let me just start by saying that this could possibly be the best thing I've ever baked. Not just in the last 5 weeks, but EVER. Seriously, it's that good.

Now that I've got your attention...

Cinnamon Raisin Bread

Recipe from Taste of Home

Makes 2 loaves

2 pkg. (1/4 oz. each) active dry yeast

2 c. warm water (approx. 110 degrees)

1/4 c. canola oil (I used vegetable oil)

1 c. sugar

3 tsp. salt

6 - 6 1/2 c. all-purpose flour

2 eggs

1 c. raisins

3 tsp. cinnamon

additional oil

Combine the yeast and warm water in a large bowl. Let it sit for about 5 minutes until it looks foamy. Add the oil, 1/2 c. sugar, salt and eggs; mix until smooth. Add 4 cups of flour and mix until you get a soft dough.

(Don't you love this mixer? We call it "Big Red".)

Stir in as much of the remaining flour as you can. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead until smooth and elastic, 6-8 minutes. (Remember to remove your rings and put them in a safe place while you knead the dough, or it'll get into every nook & cranny-- mine always go in an ice cube tray that lives on the counter.)

Place dough ball into a lightly oiled bowl, turning once to coat the dough.

Cover tightly with plastic wrap and allow to rise until double in size, about 1 hour.

Punch dough down and divide in half. Knead 1/2 c. of raisins into each section of dough. Roll each section into a 15x9 inch rectangle.

Combine the remaining 1/2 c. of sugar with cinnamon. Brush the rectangles with oil, then sprinkle with the cinnamon and sugar mixture, leaving 1/2 inch margin all the way around.

Starting at the short end, roll the dough up, jelly-roll style. Pinch the seams to seal, then place in 2 loaf pans, seam side down. Cover and let rise until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.

Brush the tops with a little more oil, then bake at 375 degrees for 35-40 minutes. Remove from loaf pans and cool on wire racks.

A few notes:

1) I used half whole wheat flour and half all-purpose flour, just to see what would happen. Good things happened.

2) I used the paddle attachment for mixing the dough with the 4 c. flour, then I used the dough hook for adding the remaining flour.

3) This bread is amazing. I toasted it and added butter. So. Good. Tastes better than store-bought, and I know exactly what went into it, and can pronounce all the ingredients.

No preservatives + no high-frutcose corn syrup = good for your family.

Please try this bread. Add a slice of cheese for even more yumminess. You know you want to. :)

Week 2 (part 1): English Muffins

First, a disclaimer: English muffins are not baked.

I know! I totally thought they were! Apparently I didn't read the recipe thoroughly before I decided to go ahead with this "baking" endeavor. I decided to go for it anyway, and they did not disappoint. I'm looking forward to modifying this recipe to make cinnamon raisin muffins, but for now, I give you English muffins.

The recipe begins with a simple yeast dough... mix, knead, rise, roll out, cut into circles. I used a water glass rather than a cookie cutter to get them big enough. Place onto a pan of cornmeal, sprinkle more cornmeal on top, and let them rise again.

You will be totally shocked when you do the first flip. They seriously look like the English muffins you buy at the store. Only better. I even squealed and called Sailor Boy into the kitchen to join in my excitement. He was appropriately excited with me. One of the many reasons why I like him so much. :)

English Muffins

Recipe from www.cookingbread.com

Makes approx. 20 muffins

1 1/4 c. warm water (110 degrees)

4 c. bread flour (I found that 3 1/4 c. was plenty)

2 1/2 tsp. instant yeast

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1 1/2 tsp. salt

2 small egg whites

fine cornmeal

Pour water into a large bowl. Add yeast, baking soda, and 2 cups of the flour; mix until smooth.

Allow to sit for 5 minutes uncovered. In the meantime, add egg whites into a separate bowl and beat with an electric mixer, until the egg whites have formed stiff peaks; add to dough batter.

Using a rubber spatula, fold in egg whites until incorporated into the batter. Add in the rest of the flour, 1/4 cup at a time, mixing with the spatula. After adding the first 1/4 cup of flour, add the salt.

Pour out onto a lightly floured surface when dough becomes too hard to mix in the bowl. Knead for 5-6 minutes until it becomes smooth and silky. Add a little vegetable oil to a clean bowl and place the dough in the bowl, turning once to lightly coat dough ball. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rest until double in size, about 1 hour. Afterwards, pour out onto a flat surface. Press to release some of the air from the dough. Using a rolling pin, roll out to 1/2 inch thick. Allow dough to rest for 3 minutes to relax.

Use a 3 inch cookie cutter to cut circles from the dough. Place the cut out pieces onto some cornmeal. When you have leftover dough, just gather together and cut out more circles. Sprinkle the tops with more cornmeal. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rest for 45 minutes.

About 5 minutes before you are ready to cook the English muffins, turn on your griddle or fry pan to 350 degrees (or medium heat). Spray with a little nonstick spray, and when the griddle is hot, place the muffins on and fry. If you are using a fry pan, you may only be able to fry 3-4 at a time. Fry on one side for about 4 minutes. Then turn over and fry for another 4 minutes. Do this once more to a total of 16 minutes. Cool on wire racks.

Wanna see how good they are? Check it out:

So. Good.