Pleasantly Pleasing Unpretentious Pretzels

These are DELICIOUS!!!!!!

First, in a small bowl pour 1/2 cup warm water, 1 teaspoon sugar and mix together. Then add in
 2 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast. Let rest for 10 min.

Now, in a bigger bowl add 1 cup warm water,1 tablespoon sugar  and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Mix in the yeast mixture with this. The recipe calls for 3 3/4 cups all-purpose flour but I only used about 3 cups when mixing together in the bowl.

Make sure surface is clean and dry and sprinkle with flour.  Pour dough onto surface and knead for  about 5 minutes until dough is firm and elastic. Let rest for 10 minutes.

Make sure you have an adorable 2-year-old that wants to eat raw dough
sitting next to you and then divide dough into 12 equal parts.

Roll dough out as if you were making a snake....about 10 inches long. Then twist into a pretzel shape. Place on greased baking sheet. Shout out to LO for remembering this recipe. Isn't she just so cute!

 Combine 1 egg with 1 tablespoon water; stir briskly. Brush tops of pretzels and sprinkle with coarse salt and sesame seeds. Bake for about 15 minutes at 425 degrees and eat while warm. They are the BEST!!!! We are giving them away to neighbors for Christmas gifts (that is, if we don't eat them all first)!

Focaccia Bread

I love making bread, all sorts of bread! I like the whole process, I like the mixing, and the kneading, waiting for the dough to rise, shaping the dough, etc. I love it all. This is an easy focaccia bread recipe, it's super simple to make, if you've got the time. It does rise three times though, make sure you'll be around for that! 

Here's the recipe-


1 1 /2 C warm water
2 1/4 tsp yeast
1 tsp sugar
2 TBSP olive oil
1 1/2 tsp table salt
3 1/4 C flour

Add 1/2 Cup warm water to bowl with 2 1/4 tsp yeast and 1 tsp sugar. Let sit for about 5 minutes.
Add remaining ingredients, mix until just sticking to the bowl, turn on lightly floured surface, and knead 5-7 minutes. Place in bowl with oil, coat dough so it doesn't stick, cover with plastic wrap or clean dish towel and let rise in warm place for 1 hour, or until doubled.
After 1 hour, grease a cookie sheet, punch dough down, and press dough into cookie sheet, cover and let rise 45  minutes.
After 45 minutes, press fingers in dough to create indentations about 1 inch apart. Cover and let rise 45 minutes.
Preheat oven to 450
Take another 2 TBSP olive oil, drizzle on top of bread, and add salt (if you're adding other ingredients, place those on bread and then drizzle with olive oil and salt)
Bake 12-15 minutes.

You can find the tutorial here
FOCACCIA BREAD

The great thing about focaccia bread is that it's very versatile. I like to add fresh chopped tomatoes with oregano, and basil. Or you can saute onions until they turn golden and sweet, and add them on top before you bake the bread. 

Pizza Rolls

PIZZA ROLLS!

5 ¼ cup white bread flour or all-purpose flour…

¼ cup sugar

½ tablespoon salt

1 ½ tablespoon self instant yeast

2 tablespoon canola oil

2 cups hot tap water

Mix dry ingredients. Add oil and water. Mix for 1 minute and check consistency. If dough is too dry, add more water. If dough is too moist, add more flour. Mix for 5 minutes. (Do not add water or flour to the dough after it has finished mixing.) Spray counter with Pam, knead the dough and cut in half. Let it rise for 15 minutes. Roll out into rectangle and put marinara sauce and cheese and garlic salt, oregano, or whatever else. Roll the dough and slice. Place on greased cookie sheet. Bake at 410 degrees for 20-30 minutes

 I make these delicious pizza rolls about 3 times a month. They're super easy and super yummy. Mine are vegetarian, but you can chop up pepperoni and add it when you add the cheese. I made my first ever tutorial video making these rolls. I also decided to show off a custom apron my mommy made. When I saw the apron I just LOVED it! I couldn't believe how cute it was! My son also played the roll of my assistant, he was really excited to be on camera, just look at his face. OK he doesn't look excited but he kept saying "I'm going to be famous", to which I responded, "Um no one is going to watch this video!" he was so cute.

I've also used this pizza roll recipe to make dessert rolls. I mixed half a brick of softened cream cheese with 1/4 Cup brown sugar, spread it on my rectangle, added craisins and walnuts. I've also made them with kale pesto and instead of marinara. I've chopped up a bunch of veggies, spinach, onions, tomatoes, and peppers. The recipe is very versatile and can be made in a mixer with a dough hook (no kneading and kneading is my favorite part!). 

Don't forget to use my favorite marina. I don't work for trader joes, but sometimes I wish I did.... 

Find the tutorials here (I was super nervous!)

PIZZA ROLLS PART 1

PIZZA ROLLS PART 2

PIZZA ROLLS PART 3

Also, in the tutorial I used a cookie sheet sprayed with non-stick, but I  normally use a sheet of parchment paper. It makes it a lot easier to clean up.