Buzz words /-/ Mini double pretzel sugar knots

A lot of the time when I bake, I am not thinking about this blog. No, no I still care about you readers and followers. However most of the stuff on here comes from my greedy mind and frugal ways. Yep I am Cheap Asian who refuses to pay 4 dollars for one macaroon or fork out a few notes for a cake.  I am not interested in developing “buzz words” recipes.

I like to come up with my own terminology for things (mainly because I am too lazy to find the real one) but in the world of dessert and recipes; some are more likely than other to become “viral” or get the massive amounts of commented with the words “drool”, “delicious” and “insane” attached to them. 

We should all the know the typical ones that gets heaps of views. Chocolate , brown butter, cookie, cake and cheesecake for the dessert world. Low calorie, gluten free, quinoa, secretly healthy, vegan and natural are the buzz words for the health crowd. Finally the mix bunch; recipes with melted cheese, fried, single serve, homemade take away (e.g taco, pizza) and bacon all get heaps of views.

Sometimes, yes, these recipes can be wonderful however once you start viewing 30 or so recipe for the same cookie bar; they have tendency to become, well, boring. So you can feel my frustration when recipes like this are called “unique” and “innovative”. Other things like the popularity of the blogger, picture etc. play a role too but the food always comes first. 

  I do not develop recipe for the sake of getting X number of views per capita or tracking the number of people who pin the images. While I admire whose who do go that effort of producing recipes that people want to read, drool and gawk over; to me that is not what baking is about. Sure posting a recipe for a Gooey (anyone hates this word as much as I do?) quadruple chocolate, brown butter marshmallow frosted snack bar with caramel cookie dough stuffing will get more views that posting a simple recipe for sliced bread but I feel as though I am lying to myself. Maybe I am just too serious about food for my own good.

Now depending on your mood for pretzels, I like main plain and covered in cheese. I am unapologetic fan of the American soft style cheese burger bun or knot style hard pretzels, even those little dippers with the fake cheese are something I plan to make. However the world doesn’t need to me to contribute to its cheese shortage problem, so I made sweet pretzel for myself! 

We use to have a store in Australia call Pretzel world that was everywhere in the 90s but the down turn, most food trends experience all the stores near me have shut down. With tears in my eye as a little kid, I often thought about the pretzels used together there. Soft pillows of chewy goodness with a sweet sugar crust that tasted like cookies. 

Sometimes you could get the pure sugar coating in clumps at the bottom of the paper packaging; I am not going to argue with that. I am smitten with these pretzels and ate most of them in the pre photo shoot. They are so addictive that I made tow batch and both were gone in two days flat.

These are the for the ultimate pretzel lover. These mini double pretzel knots are the sweet pretzel that have fulfilled my pretzel world dreams.  The cookie crust is not ordinary it is made from crushed up pretzel rods and sugar which deliver an addictive salt sweetness to the pillowy pretzel. The malted sweet formed by the pretzel sugar makes sure that these pretzels have that authentic taste; only achieved by boiling in lye water.

These are way too easy not to share and make a heap of them. Nobody is going to complain about more pretzel flavour in pretzel sweet buns but may they will hate you for making them a size bigger. Eh… they get over it.

Mini double pretzel sugar knots

Recipe from sweet and stick pretzel knots
Adapted from Annie Eats, on her adaption from Sweet like home and Alton Brown

100ml warm water
160ml warm milk
120g caster sugar
10g salt 

14g yeast, dry
500g bread flour
60g butter soften

Finishing

4 Litters of water
50g baking soda

Sugar crust

Pretzel sugar ( mix them in a large bowl before starting recipe)

200g crushed pretzel rods

100g sugar (any will do)

5g cinnamon ground

60g melted butter

In a large jug, mix milk and water and 30g sugar. Mix to dissolve, add yeast and allow to stand for 10 minutes or until foamy.

In a large bowl add flour, salt, and remaining sugar. Knead into a soft dough, that should come away from the sides. Transfer to floured bench and knead in soften butter. After continue to knead for 20 minutes. It should have very springy, toughish texture like rubber.

Place dough in grease bowl and allow to rise for 1.5 hours. My kitchen is cold right now, so use your own judgement.

Preheat oven to 220C

Line three baking trays with baking paper and oil it.

Bring water and baking soda to the boil in large pot.

Divide your dough into 20g balls. Take each ball and roll it into a 10-15cm long tube. Knot them in your favourite shape.

Place on tray. Do this with the others. I got 30 from this recipe.

In batches of 4, place them in the boiling soda water. Boil on side for 30 seconds then turn and give another 30 seconds,

Using a skimmer drain the pretzels on a wire rack and top with seeds.

Bake in oven for 15 minutes.

Once baked immediately brush over butter and toss in pretzel sugar.