Legit Soft Pretzels -- Just Like Auntie Anne's

Submitted by heatherhopecs

"After trying a bunch of recipes that claimed to imitate Auntie Anne's pretzels and finding myself unimpressed by each, I finally found one that truly approximates the addictive flavor and texture of the real thing. Inspired by Yammy's Noshery food blog."

 

• Ready In: 1hr 50mins
• Ingredients: 10
• Yields: 12 pretzels
• Serves: 12

ingredients

• FOR THE DOUGH

• 2 cups whole milk
• 2 (1 1/2 tablespoon) packets active dry yeast (use the entire two packets, don't focus on the actual measurement)
• 6 tablespoons light brown sugar
• 4 tablespoons butter, melted
• 4 1⁄2 cups flour
• 2 teaspoons table salt

• FOR CREATING THE PRETZEL

• 1⁄3 cup baking soda
• 3 cups warm water
• coarse salt

• FOR FINISHING THE PRETZEL

• 8 tablespoons butter, melted

directions

1. Warm up the milk in the microwave or on the stove for just about one and a half minutes, to about 110º.
2. Stir the yeast into the milk and let it sit for about 3 minutes.
3. Add the butter and sugar to the milk and stir to mix.
4. Add the flour to the milk, about 1 cup at a time and add the fine salt as you add the flour. Mix w/ a spoon.
5. Knead for about 10 minutes with a stand mixer, or by hand.
6. Put kneaded dough in a greased bowl and cover with greased plastic wrap.
7. Let rise for 1 hour in a moist, warm place until doubled in size.
8. Preheat the oven to 450º.
9. Punch down dough and divide into 12 lumps -- this is easiest if you divide it in half, cut each half into three lumps, then cut each lump in half.
10. Combine the warm water and baking soda in a shallow dish (e.g. and 8x8 baking dish); stir/whisk until the baking soda is as dissolved as possible.
11. Roll all 12 lumps of dough out as thin as you can -- they will shrink up quickly so getting the thinnest ropes possible is key.
12. Form the dough into pretzel shapes, then quickly dip in the baking soda water. I found this works best when you roll out 2-3 pretzels, dip them, then put them on the baking sheet.
13. Place rolled, dipped pretzels on a greased baking sheet and sprinkle with coarse salt.
14. Bake for about 7-11 minutes or until browned.
15. Dip each in the melted butter while hot.

Reviews

[adopt a greyhound]

I made half a recipe but put everything in the AMB. Very easy to do and dough was easy to work with, I just have to do better at rolling thinner. I baked for 10 min and just had one hot from the oven. It was still doughy even though they were nice and brown. I did four with salt and two cinnamon sugar. Anxious to try the others.