Soft Pretzels

These pretzels taste like the ones you get in the mall! Serve with your favorite cheese sauce, or mustard, or omit course salt and top with cinnamon and sugar!

Ingredients:

1 1/3 cups warm water

2 1/2 tsp active dry yeast

2 TBL butter or margarine (soft)

1 1/2 TBL white sugar

3/4 tsp salt

4 cups all-purpose flour

4 cups water

1 1/2 TBL baking soda

2 TBL kosher salt ( I didn't have kosher salt; I used coarse sea salt)

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast and sugar in the warm water. Proof for about 10 minutes.

2. Mix in butter or margarine, flour, and salt. Cut dough into short strips (I just pulled off chunks of dough), roll into ropes, and shape into pretzels. Cover, and let rise on a greased baking sheet for about 45 minutes.

3. In a cast iron or other nonaluminum pan, bring water and baking soda almost to a boil. Gently lower pretzels into water for about 1 minutes, turning once. Do not let the water come to a full boil. Remove pretzels, and return to greased baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt.

4. Bake at 475 degrees for about 12 minutes.

Enjoy!