Homemade Soft Pretzels

vegan, nut-free, ​​soy-free

Adapted from a recipe on Love & Lemons.

There's nothing else like warm soft pretzels fresh out of the oven! Sometimes when I'm in an airport, I'll order a soft pretzel with no butter. They'll always say, "Yes, we can give you one with no butter, but you'll have to wait a few minutes." And I agree to wait because those few minutes are well worth it for a fresh hot pretzel! Since I found this recipe, I've been making them at home, which makes the house smell amazing!
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Yield: 4-6 pretzels / Active time: 35 minutes / Total time: 90 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon (20 g) maple syrup
• ½ package (1/2 tablespoon or 7 g)) active dry yeast
• ¾ cup water (1/4 cup/60 g for proofing, ½ cup/120 g for dough)
• 2 tablespoons (27 g) olive oil or canola oil
• 2 cups (240 g) all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon (6 g) sea salt
• 2 tablespoons (28 g) baking soda (this is for the boiling water, NOT the dough)
• 6 cups water, in a pot (for boiling)
• Course salt (for sprinkling, optional)

Directions:

1. Proof the yeast: Put ¼ cup (60 g) warm water, maple syrup, and yeast into a small cup and stir until yeast dissolves. If yeast does not foam, try again with another yeast packet.
2. Make the dough: If you have a mixer with a dough hook, put the flour, salt, oil, proofed yeast mixture, and an additional ½ cup (120 g) of water (for a total of ¾ cups water) into the mixer. Run on medium low for about 5-6 minutes (until the dough pulls away from the bowl). If you don’t have a dough hook, mix and knead dough ingredients for about 8-10 minutes.
3. Brush the inside of a large glass or ceramic bowl with a little bit of oil. Form the dough into a ball and put it in the bowl. Cover and allow the dough to rise for about 40 minutes, or until it has doubled in size.
4. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. 
5. Uncover the dough and punch it down few times.
6. Tear the dough into 4 or 6 equal sections (depending on the size you want your pretzels), and roll each into a long rope (18-24 inches).
7. Grab the ends of each dough rope to make a U shape, then form into a pretzel shape.*
8. Fill a large pot with water and stir in the 2 tablespoons of baking soda. Bring to a rolling boil.**
9. Carefully drop pretzels, one at a time, into the pot. Each should sink a little then rise up. Wait 30 seconds, then use a slotted spoon to lift each out and place onto the cookie sheet. While still wet, sprinkle liberally with coarse salt, if desired. 
10. Bake for about 14 minutes. Watch them carefully during the last few minutes – when they’re golden brown, they’re done.

*Of course you can make whatever shapes you want! As you can see in the photos, I ended up making some twists and a heart, which were a little easier than traditional pretzel shapes. The photos show a double batch.
**In case you were curious, the baking soda is what makes the outside of the pretzels brown. Lye is used in traditional German pretzel making (see this NPR article), but the solution is so caustic, the pretzel makers must wear gloves to protect their skin when handling the unbaked pretzels. Dunking the pretzels in lye might be the most authentic way to get a nicely browned crust, but that sounds dangerous to me! You just need an alkaline solution, and most of us already have harmless baking soda sitting around waiting to do the job.