Big Soft Pretzels

I have been wanting to make homemade pretzels for a long time. I finally did it and I can't believe it took me sooo long. They were easy and so delicious! Seriously, we loved them and ate them for dinner one night with a big veggie platter and dips! It was a fun dinner and the pretzels were warm, chewy and had a nice salty bite to them. Amazing. Try them! This recipe is from Alton Brown and it got like a million 5star reviews...and now I know why!



Ingredietns:

1 1/2 cups warm (110 to 115 degrees F) water
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 package active dry yeast
4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 ounces unsalted butter, melted
Vegetable oil, for pan
10 cups water
2/3 cup baking soda
1 large egg yolk beaten with 1 tablespoon water
kosher salt

Directions

1.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 cookie sheet pans with parchment paper 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.

You could also brush with a bit of butter and sprinke cinnamon and sugar on them and dip them in a glaze. Yum! We dipped in mustard and had them plain, they were amazing!

Smores Bark

You are probably wondering where I have been..... well we moved. Yep, like packed up the house in 3 days and moved to a new town. Then unpacked the boxes in 2 days before Rex went back to work. It was CRAZY!! But I LOVE our house and we are settled in an doing great! I LOVE my new kitchen. It is big. Lots of counter space. Lots of cupboard space. Ok, it just has lost of space. So.... now I can return back to the blogging world now that our computer desk is up and we have Internet connection again.

My huband is a snacker. He loves to munch. Espically when we are all set to watch a movie. So, I totally made these up for both of us. He has a yummy snack and I love them because I am obsessed with anything smores related. It is really good and kinda addiciting..... oh, and it is easy!



Ingredients:

golden grahams cereal
mini marshmallows
m&m's
white melting chocolate (almond bark or the white disks)
sprinkles
mini chocolate chips

1. Now this is really simple. Grab a cookie sheet and line that baby with wax paper. Next pour your golden grahams over onto the sheet. This is one of those recipes where you kinda make as much as you want. But I would say 2-3 cups of cereal. Next, sprinkle marshmallows over the top and kind of mix them together. Again, as many as you like. You want an even layer on your cookie sheet. If you have everything over lapped too much, when you pour the chocolate over it won't stick to everything resulting in a ton of goodies on the bottom of your cookie sheet not stuck to anything.
2. Ok, Melt your white chocolate (about 1-1/2 cups melted). When it is smooth, drizzle over the top of your cereal/marshmallow mixture. Get it all over everything!! Next sprinkle m&m's, baby chocolate chips and colorful sprinkles over the white chocolate.
3. If you want to really go crazy, melt a handful of chocolate chips in a zip lock bag and snip the tip off. Squeezing the chocolate, drizzle a thin chocolate layer over everything. Now, be patient. Let it harden and cool. (pop it in the fridge to speed things up) Then dig in!!Break it into chunks and snack. Keep left overs in an airtight container of bag.

CHEWY granola bars

YUM! This recipe is my mom's and it is amazing! These are the best chewy granola bars and soooo good for you. I make up a batch, cut them into bars and pop them in lunches and diaper bags. Super easy, super yummy!



Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups old fashioned oats
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour (or unbleached)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup raisins or another chopped dried fruit
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup light maple syrup
3 tablespoons peanut butter
2 egg whites
1/2 cup chocolate chips

1. Ok, this is super easy, you will have these made in no time! Ready, set, go!
Combine oats, flour, soda and salt. Add in your dried fruit and walnuts.
2. In another bowl beat together sugar, syrup, peanut butter and egg whites. After nice and smooth pour into dry ingredients. Add those chocolate chips now!
3. Spread into a foil lined and sprayed 9x13 baking dish. Pat down. Sprinkle with 1/8 teaspoon salt. I know it sounds weird but it is a must!
4. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes. Cool all the way and then cut into bars.

* I melt a handful of chocolate chips in a zip lock bag and snip the end off to drizzle a bit of yummy chocolate on top.
* When I cut my bars I trimmed all the edges off first (they tend to be a bit harder becuase they are on the edge of the pan) So snack on those and then after cutting all your bars wrap them individually in saran wrap to stay fresh. Put the in the freezer then take one out when every you need one.
* You can add dried cranberries, apples, apricots, blueberries, anything!