~ Soft & Buttery Pretzels ~

Enjoy Home-Made Warm, Soft and Buttery Pretzels 

in TEN EASY STEPS.

This Recipe takes a little 'elbow grease', but well worth it!  Allow 1 hour for the dough to rise.  

WHAT YOU WILL NEED:

4 teaspoons active dry yeast
1/2 cup white sugar + 1 teaspoon white sugar
1 1/4 cups warm water
5 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/2 cup baking soda
4 cups hot water
1/4 cup sea salt, used to sprinkle on top
2 tablespoons melted butter

LET'S GET STARTED:

1.  Dissolve yeast and only 1 teaspoon sugar in warm water.  Let stand until creamy and foamy (~ 12 min)
2.  In large bowl, mix flour, remaining sugar, and salt.  Making a well in the center, add the oil and yeast mixture.
3.  Mix into a dough.  (If the mixture is dry, you can add one or two tablespoons of water).  Knead the dough until smooth.  (This is the effort part.  It usually takes about 5 - 10 minutes to get that smooth texture).
4.  Place the dough in a large bowl that has been lightly oiled and turn to coat with oil.  Cover bowl with plastic wrap and allow dough to rise in a warm place, for about 1 hour.

WELCOME BACK:

5.  Preheat oven to 450 F.  
6.  Turn risen dough onto a lightly floured surface.  (You can divide the dough in half and work with the first half, while storing the second half in the covered bowl).  Or,
just separate the dough into equal pieces.  Pull off about hand-full sized pieces of dough and roll into balls.  The larger the pretzels, the softer the inside.  Smaller pretzels will have a little crispness to them.  Both equally a delicious way to enjoy.  We prepare both ways!
7.  One at a time, roll balls into ropes (~ 12 inches long).  Again, depending how big you enjoy your pretzel...I say experiment and make both large and small.
8.  Shape dough into pretzels.  

     Here's How:  
          A)  Shape dough into a "U".
          B)  Cross the two ends of the rope over each other.
          C)  Press the tips into the bottom of the "U".  Pinching to make sure they stay.

9.  In a large bowl, dissolve baking soda in hot water.  Once dissolved, dip each pretzel into this mixture and then place on a greased baking sheet.  Immediately sprinkle with sea salt.  (BTW - Unrefined sea salt is best).  It is also OK to wait and sprinkle pretzel with salt, after completing step 10.
10.  Bake in preheated oven for 8 minutes or until browned.  After removing from oven, brush with melted butter.

~ Tuna Balls ~

This quick & easy recipe was shared by Jennifer over at Catholic Inspired.  I added a few new ingredients to the recipe, to fit our family's taste.  I made both large size servings and smaller ones, to use on a salad or to eat alone.

You will probably find that you have most of the ingredients on hand, in your pantry & refrigerator.  If you are missing an item, you can easily substitute or even omit...as I see it, this recipe is very family friendly in many ways.

INGREDIENTS:
2 (24 oz) cans of Tuna, drained (or 6 5 oz cans) (I use tuna in water)
3/4 cup Sour Cream (or ranch dressing, mayonnaise...)
3 Eggs
1 cup Bread Crumbs (or crushed corn flakes, saltine crackers...)
1 cup grated Parmesan Cheese
ADDITIONAL INGREDIENTS that I added to the original recipe:
2 Green Onions, sliced
1 tablespoon Olive Oil
dash of Kosher Salt
dash of Pepper

Step One:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Mix all ingredients together, making sure the tuna pieces are crushed well. Add salt & pepper to mixture, blend.
Step Two:
Roll the mixture into balls; I found you can vary the sizes to use either in salad or just-pop-them-in-your- mouth-size. It did not effect the cooking time significantly.  Place rolled tuna balls onto well greased cookie sheet.  The original recipe also adds that you can press the mixture into a 13x9 inch greased pan if pressed for time.
Step Three:
Bake at 350 for 20 - 30 minutes.  Tuna balls should be browned and cheese should be bubbling.  The exterior is lightly crisped and the interior is soft.  Serve warm.

Serving Info:
Makes about 50 - 100 balls (depending on the size).  Goes great with ranch dip on the side; over a bed of greens & sprinkled with toasted almond slices, drizzle with a vinaigrette and top with fresh Parmesan cheese...I will bet they taste great with some marinara sauce on some pasta!  These can be refrigerated and served cold, too.

Again, this recipe really leaves room to adjust & substitute ingredients, which I love, because I can make this even if I don't have everything on hand.  But more importantly, my family loves these savory treats.

Joining Lenten Meal Plan Link-Up 2014

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