Mini Pretzel Twists with Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce

Ooooh, do I have a yummy recipe for you guys today!

So, I think that part of being a foodie is often getting mildly obsessed with a certain food or meal. For me, this can go 2 ways:

1.) Sometimes I get a craving for something, and I simply must eat it because the yen just doesn’t go away. I eat it once, feel satisfied, and then I’m over it.

2.) I get really into a food/recipe, and I just want to keep making it. I can eat it every week for months on end – such is the case for almond butter, this orzo veggie soup I’ve been into this winter, or the protein pancakes I’ve been making every week for heaven knows how long.

This leads me to today’s recipe. I hadn’t had a soft pretzel in years and years, and then my hubby and I went on a weekend adventure to Big Bear Lake, where we randomly ordered hot pretzels with some sort of beer cheese sauce.

Ohmygoodness, how it hit the spot…and from then on, I’ve been in love with warm, doughy pretzels. I’ve ordered them at a few football games, and began my foray into making them at home by trying out this pumpkin beer pretzel recipe. And then I started experimenting with making pretzels on my own, and came up with this deliciousness for New Year’s Eve…and then again for the Super Bowl. Obsessed, I tell ya! 

I decided to keep these pretzels vegan because I’ve been digging Earth Balance buttery spread. Honestly, these days my diet is mostly vegan with a bit of dairy mixed in, and if I can leave out animal products, I usually just do. You can use regular butter, but I doubt you’d be able to tell the difference.

Note that the honey in the sauce is technically not vegan and is optional. Personally I have no reservations with using local, raw honey, but it’s up to you if you want to leave it out and just dip your pretzels into dijon mustard.

Homemade pretzel making takes some effort, but in my opinion it is well worth it. The majority of the time that it takes to make the pretzels is just waiting for the dough to rise.

The gist of it is that you mix some things together, knead it, then wait it out. Then you roll the dough into a rope, cut it into little doughs, and roll them into pretzel twists. Here’s a little graphic on how to do so:

This part takes a bit of time, but try not to be a perfectionist about it. The pretzels don’t have to all be exactly the same shape & size – trust me, they’ll be delicious regardless!

From there, you throw the mini pretzels into a pot of boiling water with baking soda to get em a bit salty, lay them out on a baking sheet and brush them with a bit more Earth Balance, sprinkle them with sea salt, and bake until lightly browned. Something about the smell of homemade pretzels in the oven is amazing!

By the way, you can totally make regular sized pretzels with this recipe (which would take less time to shape the dough), but it’s pretty well known around here that I’m a fan of mini sized foods. When the given the choice of regular or mini sized pretzels, I’ll choose mini every time. Just look at how cute they are! 

For the dipping sauce, I just combined dijon mustard and honey. Nothing crazy, because sometimes simple is where it’s at.

I hope that you try making these babies for yourself!

Mini Pretzel Twists with Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce [dairy free]

Foodie Loves Fitness

5 from 1 vote

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Prep Time 1 hour hr 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 50 minutes mins

Servings 32 mini pretzels

Calories 170 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 4 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1/3 cup + 1 TBSP Earth Balance vegan buttery spread*
• 1/2 TBSP sugar
• 1 package active dry yeast
• 1/2 cup baking soda
• 1 1/2 cups warm water
• 2 TSP salt
• 5 TBSP dijon mustard
• 3 TBSP honey
• Cooking spray
• Sea salt for sprinkling on top

Instructions

 

• Combine the warm water, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Add in the active yeast, and allow it to sit for 5 minutes.
• Melt 1/3 cup of the Earth Balance, and add it to the bowl. Pour in the flour, and use your hands to knead all of the ingredients together.
• Lightly spray counter top or cutting board with cooking spray, and transfer the dough to it. Knead vigorously for 4-5 minutes. The mixture should be smooth.
• Wash out the bowl and spray it with cooking spray. Return the dough to the bowl, cover it with a kitchen towel, and allow it to sit in a warm place for about an hour, or until the dough has doubled in size.**
• Once dough has risen, preheat oven to 450 degrees. Coat 2 baking sheets with cooking spray.
• Roll the dough out into a large rope shape, and cut into 32 pieces.
• To make the twists, roll a piece out into a mini rope, form a U shape, press the top right of the U into the bottom left corner and repeat on the other side. Repeat for all of the dough pieces.***
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil with the baking soda.
• Place 5 mini pretzels at a time into the pot of boiling water. Allow them to boil for a minute, then remove them from the pot with a slotted spoon and place on the baking sheet. Repeat until all of the pretzels have been boiled.
• Melt the remaining Earth Balance, and lightly brush onto each mini pretzel. Sprinkle sea salt on top to taste.
• Bake for 12 minutes, or until pretzels are lightly browned. Allow them to cool for a few minutes before serving.
• To make the dipping sauce, simply combine the dijon mustard and honey together, mixing until evenly combined. Enjoy!

Notes

*You can use regular butter if desired.
**I like to place my rising dough either in the warm sun or on top of my dryer while drying some laundry.
***Refer to the photo for a visual on how to form a pretzel twist shape.

Nutrition

Serving: 2gCalories: 170kcalCarbohydrates: 28gProtein: 4gFat: 4gSaturated Fat: 1gFiber: 1gSugar: 5g

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

Tell me… Do you have a current food/meal/recipe obsession?