Pretzel Problems Solved

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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Saucy Mama Steph

Saucy Mama asked if I wanted to enter a recipe contest, if I did they would happily send me a case of their sauces to experiment with. COUNT ME IN!!!

I was totally intrigued when I saw the jar of cracked pepper marinade and wanted to try it straight away. We only had a few hours before dinner so I stabbed a couple chicken breasts with a fork and slathered on some of the marinade, back in the fridge they went until it was time for dinner. I was amazed at how flavorful they were even after only a few hours marinating.


A quick trip onto a hot grill made for a delicious dinner... but that's not where this recipe is headed. This recipe is best served cold the next day... like revenge... I mean... umm never mind :D


I shredded up the leftover chicken and then topped it with John's awesome chipotle mustard spiked coleslaw!! Served on a whole grain baguette with a little extra sharp cheddar this is the perfect lunch sandwich if you ask me.

Or serve it up appetizer style like above, mini sammies!

John's chipotle coleslaw
recipe by John

Toss together
1/2 head green cabbage
3 shredded carrots
1/2 red bell pepper finely chopped
1/2 red onion thinly sliced

Mix together (nothing exact all by eyeball- come on now John did make it and he doesn't measure!)
Suacy Mama Chipotle Mustard
canola oil (tiny bit)
apple cider vinegar
garlic
franks red hot
celery seeds
pepper

Toss everything together and let marinate overnight.

Saucy Mama - giveaway

Ok this one is to all you saucy mamas and papas out there! Seriously how fabulous is the name of this company?? Really now!

Saucy Mama is a new collection of marinades, mustards, and sauces. I was one of the lucky 25 bloggers who was sent a big box full to try out. In exchange for all these yummy sauces my task is to come up with a fun easy recipe that a stay at home saucy mama or papa could easily put on the table! I have until September 1st to come up with said idea... I have a ton bouncing around.. nothing 100% set yet though.

To check out their full collection head on over here.

I have to say the bottle of wing sauce is calling my name BIG TIME... it's also calling my roommates name... so I better watch out or it might be gone before I get to try it :D

Now, so you don't feel left out, Saucy Mama sent me some extra bottles of the Lime Chipotle Marinade.

Leave me a comment with what you'd use your bottle of Lime Chipotle Marinade on for a chance to win a bottle.

You have until the end of the day Monday August 3rd to enter. Make sure to come back and check to see if you won! (if you have a blogger account and it's set to private I can't go and see your email, so I have no way of reaching you... so check back to see if you won!)