Yesterday was John's birthday! (he wasn't born on a leap year so no chance of being a leap baby) Happy Day after your Birthday husband!! We celebrated this past weekend by going on lots of family time runs/hikes with Hobbes. We had a blast :) And Hobbes ended up looking like a gigantic snow ball.
What's your favorite way to celebrate your birthday? We went out for a nice dinner last night and I'm planning on cooking up a storm this weekend to keep the celebration going!
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My good friend Neva came to me with a very serious problem the other week. She had made homemade pretzels, but couldn't find anything good enough to dip them in! She she wrote me with a "Challenge!" and this video to explain exactly how she was saying it in her head. Hilarious!
So my darling Neva, I bring to you my soft pretzel recipe and a delicious garlic (since I KNOW you love it) mustard sauce. Delicious!
Did you all watch the Cosby show growing up? Had you seen this episode, I had not, but loved watching it. What's your favorite thing to dip soft pretzels in?? Garlicky Dijon Mayo 1 teaspoon rice vinegar 1 large garlic clove, minced 3 tablespoons mayo (or sub greek yogurt, it was delicious!) 1 1/2 teaspoons whole-grain Dijon mustard 1 teaspoon chopped fresh parsley
Combine vinegar and garlic in a small bowl; let stand 5 minutes. Stir in mayonnaise, mustard, and parsley. Set aside.
Whole Wheat Soft Pretzels INGREDIENTS: 1 tsp active dry yeast Pinch of sugar 1/3 cup warm water (110 degrees) 1/2 cup bread flour 3/4 cup whole wheat flour 2 Tbs white sugar 1/4 tsp salt 1 tbsp canola oil
3 tbsp baking soda 1 cup hot water (as hot as your tap can get) Sea salt or whatever other toppings you want
DIRECTIONS: Dissolve yeast into water with a pinch of sugar, let stand 10 minutes, until the mixture is creamy colored. Mix the yeast mixture with flour, sugar, salt and canola oil, and knead until combined (a few minutes, not even 5). Let the dough rise in a greased bowl until doubled in size, about 1 hour. (We keep our place kinda cold (65) so I normally turn the oven on for a minute then turn it off and stick the bread in there to rise... otherwise it would take foreeeeeeeever to rise)
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. When the dough has risen, pinch off a handful and roll it out into a long strand. Set aside. Repeat with the rest of the dough, about 6 times. Once all the strands are rolled out, pick up the first one and stretch it out again (the gluten will have relaxed and it should stretch further now). Twist it into a pretzel shape and place it on a baking sheet lined with silipat or cooking spray. Repeat with the rest of the strands.
Dissolve baking soda into hot water and stir until dissolved. Quickly dip each rolled pretzel into the mixture and place it back on the baking sheet. Sprinkle all the pretzels with sea salt, to your preference. Bake for about 8 minutes, until pretzels have browned. (Mine took 8 minutes then I dropped the temperature to 350 for an additional 4-5 minutes)
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So you might have noticed the lack of posting Wednesday... and the total lack of a food post today... you see my life has gotten a little more filled up time wise. Nights spent baking away are now being spent hanging out with this cute girl. And doing ridiculous things to her like making her wear my Warby Parkers and making John take pictures. Come on doesn't she look so studious in those things? Happy Friday! Hope these made you laugh or at least smile :) What do you have planned this weekend?? Hope it's fun!
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As Nana said "everything in moderation" but as Grandpa said "Life is short, eat dessert first!"
congrats you reached the bottom of the page! *phew* that was a long scroll, you must be hungry and tired! Click the images to see the recipes... YUM!
Disclaimer
So this is the spot where I tell you that you are a big boy or girl and make food choices for yourself. I'm not a dietitian... nor do I play one on TV! I do this for fun and for the sake of sharing and meeting new people. If you don't agree with what I cook or the ingredients I use that is 100% ok, please just don't harass me with insults about why I choose to eat the way I do :) thank you!
Questions? Comments? Arguments?
I'm always happy to answer any questions you have! I may not know the answer... but I'll give it a good go! You can email me at stephchows (at) gmail (dot) com
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