RECIPE: YogurtNest Cinnamon Sugar Pretzels
There are so many great ways that a YogurtNest can benefit your homemade food and yesterday we used it to help make these delicious Cinnamon Sugar Pretzels. To say that they were popular would be a massive understatement! Here's how we made this perfect accompaniment to your tea and coffee break.
INGREDIENTS:
- 300g plain flour
- 275g strong white bread flour
- 2 tbsp. golden caster sugar
- 2 tsp. (7g) easy-bake yeast
- Pinch of salt
- 150ml strained whey liquid from your homemade natural yoghurt
- 200ml skimmed or semi-skimmed milk
- 100g unsalted butter
- 2-3 tbsp. bicarbonate of soda
- Mix of caster sugar (roughly 50g) and cinnamon (1-2 tsp. plus more if required) spread evenly onto a plate for dusting immediately after baking.
METHOD:
- Firstly, collect the whey liquid by placing your freshly made natural yoghurt into your Better Cloth above a bowl. For instructions on how to do this you can refer to our article here - How to make Greek Yoghurt. This stage takes a couple of hours to complete.
- Gently warm the whey liquid and milk together in a saucepan until just above room temperature and then set aside.
- Melt the butter in a saucepan.
- Sieve the two flour types into a large bowl to remove any lumps and combine with the sugar, yeast and pinch of salt. Gently stir together.
- Add the milk mixture and almost all of the butter, saving some in the saucepan (approx 3 tbsp.) for glazing after baking. Make sure that the milk is only just warm to the touch - too hot and it will kill the yeast and prevent the dough from rising.
- Stir with a wooden spoon or, if using an electric mixer, combine with the dough hook, until you have a smooth, soft dough in the bowl with all ingredients combined and nothing sticking to the sides of the bowl. Add a touch more plain flour if the dough feels too wet and sticky.
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead evenly for around 10 minutes.
- Transfer your dough ball to a lightly oiled bowl, cover with a cotton cloth and place in your YogurtNest for 1 hour. In this time it should double in size.
- Preheat the oven to 200C.
- Cut your dough into even portions (with this recipe you should be able to make 12-16 pretzels, depending on how big you want them!).
- Roll your portions into long, thin sausage shapes and tie into the traditional pretzel shape. If required, use a dab of water to join the ends of the knot to the edge of the pretzel ring so that it forms a complete shape that won't unravel and open out. Place your pretzels onto a non-tick surface, ready for their bath.
- Fill a large pan with water and bring it to the boil. Add the bicarbonate of soda and reduce the heat to a simmer.
- Slide your pretzels onto a spatula and bathe them in the simmering pan for 1 minute. They should float to the surface and, depending on big you have made them, it should be possible to cook 3 at a time.
- After the bath, place the pretzels on a non-stick pan and bake for a maximum of 10 minutes, until golden brown. If you find that your first pretzels stick to your pan during baking you can try air-drying them for 10 minutes after they leave the bath so that the bases are a bit less tacky.
- As soon as they are out of the oven, glaze with the remaining butter and roll them in the sugar and cinnamon mix. Best served whilst still warm with a fresh coffee!
Here are some photos to help you. Enjoy!