Soft Pretzels

Dear Turkey,

I love soft pretzels, and I love the idea of letting kids roll out the dough and make letters and shapes. But I knew that I didn't want to mess around with the giant pot of boiling water and the lye and all the danger that generally makes soft pretzels delicious.

I figured that I could count on kid-friendly weelicious to get me started, and I was right. These aren't as good as the pretzels that you get at the mall (partly because they aren't soaked in butter), but they are definitely not just bread in a pretzel shape, they are easy and fun to make, and delicious dipped in mustard, Nutella, tomato sauce, whatever you want. They also store well in the freezer.

Kid-Friendly Soft Pretzels

(makes 12)

Ingredients:

- 1/3 c sourdough starter (optional)

- 2 c warm water

- 1 T honey

- T barley malt (optional)

- 2 c whole wheat flour

- 2.5 t yeast

- 1 T salt

- 1 T oil (I used canola)

- 2.5-3.5 c white flour

- 1.5 c warm water + 1 T baking soda (for wash)

- 2 T large-crystal salt (for sprinkling)

Instructions:

- Combine all ingredients starting with the water, yeast, and honey. Stir those three to combine and let stand for a minute or two before adding the rest of ingredients (try not to let the salt and yeast touch directly), starting with the smaller amount of flour.

- Knead with hands until a ball comes together, and then for about five minutes, adding more flour if it gets sticky. Let rest for about 20 minutes or more if you have time.

- Divide into 12 balls and roll each ball out into a log about 8-10 inches long. Form into pretzel shapes (or any shapes you want). Arrange on a parchment-covered cookie sheet.

- Paint/wipe each pretzel with some of the wash. You can get them pretty wet, but this will only use a fraction of the wash. Sprinkle generously with salt.

- Let rest while you heat the oven to 425 degrees. Bake about 20 minutes or until the tops start to get golden brown.

Enjoy,

Tofu