Auntie Anne's Pretzels

Ingredients:

1 cup milk

1 package active dry yeast

3 TBS packed light brown sugar

2 1/4 cups all purpose flour, plus more for kneading

10 TBS unsalted butter, plus more for greasing

1 TSP fine salt

1/3 cup baking soda

2 TBS coarse salt (I skipped this since I like unsalted pretzels)

Directions

1. Warm the milk in a saucepan until it's 110 degrees. (I just microwaved it for 20 seconds). Pour into a medium bowl and sprinkle in the yeast. Let the yeast soften, about 2 mins. Stir in the brown sugar and 1 cup of flour with a wooden spoon. Dice 2 TBS butter and soften. Stir into the mix. Add the remaining 1 1/4 cups flour and the fine salt to make a sticky dough. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead, adding more flour if needed, until smooth but still slightly tacky, about 5 mins. Shape into a ball, place in a lightly greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm spot until doubled in size. About an hour.

2. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees and grease a large baking sheet. Punch the dough to deflate it, then turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough into 6 pieces. Roll and stretch each piece with the palms of your hand into a 30 inch rope, holding the ends and slapping the middle of the rope on the counter as you stretch. Form into a pretzel.

3. Dissolve the baking soda in 3 cups warm water in a shallow baking dish. Gently dip each pretzel in the soda solution, then arrange on the prepared baking sheet and sprinkle with the coarse salt. Bake until golden 10-12mins.

http://www.cdkitchen.com/recipes/recs/352/Aunt_Annies_Soft_Pretzels13849.shtml