Pretzels (Martha Stewart)

Here is a basic recipe that I hadn't shared with you yet: pretzels, well-flavored and soft. I went to get this recipe across the Atlantic since I took the recipe from the Martha Stewart blog. I tried several recipes and I really liked this one; it allows you to get well-puffed and very soft pretzels, they keep well and can also be frozen. Finally, I like classic pretzels so I only sprinkled them with salt, but you can also make other versions: grated comté or cheddar for cheese pretzels, herbs de Provence, or even chocolate chips for a sweet version!

Equipment:
I used my Kenwood Cooking Chef / code FLAVIE = 3 accessories of your choice offered with the purchase of the robot / code FLAVIE = 20% discount on all accessories
I used the perforated baking sheet from Guy Demarle: referral code FLAVIE10 to be entered at registration for €10 off on your first order / commercial collaboration.



Preparation time: 45 minutes + 10 minutes of cooking + 1 night of resting
For about 12 to 15 pretzels (depending on size and shape):

The pretzel dough:

42g of fresh yeast (or 6g of dehydrated baker's yeast)
450g of water
80g of brown sugar
20g of salt
975g of flour
113g of butter

If you are using dehydrated yeast: mix the warm water, yeast, and brown sugar. Let it rest for 5 to 10 minutes.

Mix the flour and salt; add the butter cut into cubes and mix to obtain a crumble texture.




Add the previously prepared yeast-water-sugar mixture, or the crumbled fresh yeast, water, and brown sugar.



Knead the dough for several minutes, in the mixer with the hook (or by hand, but it will take longer), until you obtain a smooth and elastic dough that pulls away from the sides of the bowl.



Cover the dough and place it in the refrigerator for a night.
For shaping: the technique given in the original recipe is to roll out the dough into a large rectangle of 30x35cm, and cut strips of 35cm long and 2.5cm wide before shaping the desired forms. Personally, I preferred to cut the dough into several small balls before shaping them. I made pieces of 120g for the pretzels, 60g for the mauricettes, and 50g for the mini baguettes. For the pretzels, I rolled the dough balls into sticks of 50cm long before shaping them.







Place them on a baking sheet while preparing the baking soda bath.





The bath:

1.6L of water
40g of brown sugar
100ml of beer
115g of baking soda

Put all the ingredients in a large saucepan and bring to a simmer.
Dip the pretzels one at a time in the baking soda bath for about 30 seconds, then transfer them to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.



The cooking:

Coarse salt

Preheat the oven to 230°C.
Sprinkle the pretzels with coarse salt (or whatever you want, cheese, herbs…).





Bake for about 10 minutes, turning the baking sheet halfway through cooking.
Let cool on a rack before enjoying!

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