My Recipe Box - Pretzel Rolls no breadmaker required

I think this is my summer of baking. I made these pretzel buns for hamburgers and they worked out perfectly. They don't fall apart.

I had previously made pretzel rolls in my breadmaker and they were good but time consuming.

These do not need a breadmaker.

I found the recipe at The Lady Behind the Curtain blog. The only change I would make is making more than her recommended 8 buns, as that was a little too large for us. I would make 12, but that is a personal choice.

UPDATE - April 2016 I made 12 but they were quite small, but I also noticed they didn't rise as much as they should have.

April 2016 photo

A photo of my first try, less than picturesque but they were delicious.

Ingredients

• I-1/2 cup warm water (110 degrees)
• 2-1/4 teaspoons or 1/4 ounce active dry yeast
• 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
• 4-1/4 cups all-purpose or bread flour
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 4 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1/4 cup baking soda
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• salt for sprinkling (pretzel or kosher)

Instructions

1. In the bowl of your stand up mixer fitted with the dough hook, add the water, yeast and sugar.
2. Stir and let rest for 5 - 10 minutes or until foamy.
3. Add the flour, salt and melted butter.
4. Mix until well combined and forms a ball.
5. Transfer to a medium bowl sprayed with non stick cooking spray, cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise in a warm place for 1 hour or until doubled in size.
6. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
7. Pull dough out of bowl onto a lightly floured surface and divide into 8 equal portions (about 4.2 ounces each).
8. Form each portion into and ball by first pinching the top to the bottom and then rolling in the palm of your hand.
9. Place on prepared cookie sheet seam down in a staggered position.
10. Cover with towel allow to rest in a warm place for 30 minutes or until they rise and double.
11. Preheat oven to 425 degrees and place oven rack in the middle position.
12. In a large saucepan, bring 2 quarts of water to a low boil.
13. Remove from heat and slowly add the baking soda.
14. Return to heat and continue with a steady boil.
15. Place 2 - 3 of the rolls at a time in the poaching liquid, seam side down.
16. Poach for 30 seconds and then carefully turn the roll over and poach for another 30 seconds.
17. Remove with a slotted spoon to the same prepared sheet pan, seam side down.
18. Repeat with the remaining rolls.
19. Using a pastry brush, brush each roll with the beaten egg, making sure to coat all sides completely and then sprinkle each roll with salt.
20. Using a sharp straight edged knife, cut a "X" shape in the top of each roll.
21. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes.

My Recipe Box - Breadmaker Pretzel Rolls

We have been dreaming of pretzel rolls/bread since we were in Washington DC last month.

I researched some recipes for my bread maker and finally chose this one from Salad in a Jar blog.

This is my photo of the rolls!! Next time I might make them into actual pretzels and serve with mustard.

I had never made dough in my machine, only breads. My husband said "but bread is dough". Yes, but bread made in a bread maker is also "baked" and ready to eat when you remove it.
So I follow the instructions once I have added the ingredients to the machine. Set it, watch the clock start counting down from 2:00 hours, but nothing is happening. I unplug the machine several times and start over. Nothing. John comes home and looks "knowingly" at it and walks away.
We decide just to leave it alone. After about fifteen minutes, I am reading in another room, I hear the bread maker start operating.
I decide to let it run its course even though it will now be too late to make for dinner.

After two hours it finishes and I put the container with the dough in the fridge overnight.

I take the dough out in the morning to let it get to room temperature. Deciding I have nothing to lose I make the rolls for dinner. Results? DELICIOUS!!!

I did find a handy chart for bread/dough cycles later.

Other notes:
Some recipes add brown sugar
These would make great hamburger buns
Mustard dip - mix yellow, dijon and honey

Bread Machine Pretzel Buns

Author: Adapted from King Arthur
Recipe type: bread
Serves: 8 buns

Ingredients

Dough
1-1/8 cup (9 ounces) warm water
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
½ teaspoon salt
3 cups (13 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons nonfat dry milk
1-1/4 teaspoon instant or bread machine yeast
Coarse salt

Water Bath
2 quarts water
¼ cup baking soda
1 tablespoon salt

Instructions
1. Add all ingredients except coarse salt to bread machine in order given. Select dough cycle. Open lid and check dough after a few minutes. It should be a slightly sticky ball.

2. When dough cycle completes (bread dough will rise inside machine during this cycle), remove dough from pan to a floured surface.

3. Preheat conventional oven to 400 degrees F.

4. Divide dough into 8 portions and make into balls. Allow to rest for 15 minutes.

5. Meanwhile, prepare water bath. Add soda and salt to water and bring to a boil.

6. Gently smash each ball into a flat bun-like shape. Drop each bun into your boiling water bath. Cook 30 seconds, then flip and cook another 30 seconds. They will be wrinkly as a raisin. Remove each bun to a cookie sheet covered with a silicone mat or well greased. These buns are prone to major stickage.

7. Use a serrated knife or new single-edge razor blade to slice an X into each bun about ½ inch deep.
Sprinkle with coarse salt.

8. Bake 20-24 minutes.

9. Remove buns ASAP to a cooling rack. Otherwise, they will stick.

Alternate method - making pretzels

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.