Cheddar Rosemary Pretzel Bites
Soft and chewy pretzel bites filled with cheese and rosemary make an irresistible appetizer or snack, especially when paired with honey mustard dipping sauce.
Ingredients
For pretzel dough:
- 3 ½ - 4 cups (435-500 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1 package (7 grams) active-dry yeast (2 ¼ teaspoon)
- 2 teaspoons (5 grams) coarse salt
- 1 tablespoon (13 grams) granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon (2 grams) chopped fresh rosemary (or 1 teaspoon dried)
- 1 ½ cup (340 grams) warm water (between 110-130°F)
- ¼ cup (56 grams) butter , melted
- 1 cup (113 grams) grated cheddar cheese
- Additional coarse salt , for sprinkling
For baking soda bath:
- ½ cup (144 grams) baking soda
- 10 cups (2.27 kg) water
For honey mustard sauce:
- ½ cup (113 grams) mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon (15 grams) dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon (15 grams) whole grain mustard
- 2 tablespoons (42 grams) honey
- Salt and pepper , to taste
Instructions
Prepare pretzel dough:
- In the bowl of stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment (or in a large bowl if you plan to knead by hand), combine 3 cups of the all-purpose flour, yeast, salt, sugar, and rosemary, and cheese. Add the warm water and melted butter and mix until combined to form a wet dough. Stir in the cheese.
- With the mixer on medium low, add the remaining flour ¼ cup at a time until dough clears the bowl but is still slightly sticky to the touch. You may not need to use all of the flour (and adding too much flour will result in dry, dense pretzels). Continue to knead until dough is smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes.
- Place dough in a grease bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.
- Preheat oven to 450°F and line a few sheet pans with parchment paper.
- Gently punch down dough and knead a few times to bring it all back together. Tear a small handful of dough off with your hand and roll into a long thin rope about ½ inch wide. Use a sharp knife or kitchen shears to cut into 1-inch pieces. Repeat with remaining dough.
Boil in baking soda solution:
- While you roll and cut pretzel bites, bring the 10 cups of water to a boil in a large pot. Stir in the baking soda and stir to dissolve. Drop the dough pieces into the boiling water in small batches (10-20 bites at a time depending on the size of your pot). Let them cook for about 30 seconds, stirring so they turn over and are evenly coated in the baking soda solution.
- Remove with a slotted spoon or spider strainer and tap off as much liquid as you can. Place on the prepared sheet pans, spacing them ½-1 inch apart. Sprinkle generously with salt.
Bake and serve with dipping sauce:
- Bake the pretzel bites until golden brown, about 10-12 minutes for each batch (if baking a few sheet pans at a time, make sure to rotate the pans so they baked evenly). Let cool completely.
- To make the dipping sauce, whisk all ingredients together in a small bowl and store in the fridge if not serving right away.
- Pretzel bites are best the day they are made but will keep for a few days in an airtight container at room temperature.
Notes
- You can use either active-dry yeast or instant/quick rise yeast. The only difference will be rise time, if using instant yeast rise time will be about 30 minutes.
- Makes about 120 pretzel bites, or 10 (1-dozen) servings.
- Feel free to use other cheese and herbs, or leave the cheese and herbs out completely for a more "plain" flavor.
Calories: 230kcal, Carbohydrates: 15g, Protein: 5g, Fat: 17g, Saturated Fat: 6g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g, Monounsaturated Fat: 4g, Trans Fat: 0.2g, Cholesterol: 28mg, Sodium: 2334mg, Potassium: 41mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 5g, Vitamin A: 270IU, Vitamin C: 0.1mg, Calcium: 94mg, Iron: 1mg
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