Sun-dried Tomato & Basil Soft Pretzels

With September finally creeping in, everything fall is on my mind already. Summer is dandy and all, but fall is really where it’s at. I may be jumping the gun a bit, but when I think of fall foods, soft pretzels are one of the bites that comes to mind.

I’ve loaded up my favorite classic soft pretzel recipe with sun-dried tomatoes and basil, topping it with flaked salt, for the perfect twist on the classic chew.

Maybe it’s those famous warm pretzels that I’m absolutely certain are the exact reason that so many mall-walking mommas put on their sweatpants to head out and burn off a couple calories. Perhaps they lace them with something addictive. Whatever the reason, there is no denying how amazing a warm soft pretzel is.

Since savory is the new skinny, I mixed in some sunny tomatoes (that’s what the cool kids call sun-dried tomatoes, I think). Since I had red in the snacks, I figured I might as well toss in some green. Christmas much? Maybe. I blame taking too many pictures of monotoned food. Turns out, that splash of color was the perfect addition.

Since I’m a total nerd when it comes to researching the roots of the foods that have managed to stick around for decades, I decided to put some effort into finding out what makes that perfect pretz. Lye. I’m sure you’ve heard of it before, even if you don’t know what or why it does what it does. — That glossy brown coat that the best pretzels wear is from a combination of sources. One of the main ones being this weird thing called a Maillard reaction. It’s basically nerd talk for why things brown and taste amazing. Lye helps with this process, due to it’s very high pH. Now… do y’all have a tub o’ lye sitting in your kitchen at home? No?? Oh, wait. I don’t either (surprisingly). Lots of people swap out this bath with a solution of baking soda and water. It does work. BUT, it’s just not the same. It’s missing that zing that a true twist has.

In comes the magic of Google. I managed to find an older article in the New York Times that says you can bake out some of the moisture in your run-of-the-mill baking soda to concentrate that pretzel power. Makes sense to me! I gave it a go and will never turn back again. It fits right into the time table of waiting for the dough to puff up, so why not? It’s as easy as dumping some baking soda on a pan and putting it in the oven. You’ll be left with that perfectly brown, chewy crust hugging the perfectly soft interior.

Grab a beer and cheers a pretzel. Summer is almost behind us, and I’m all about celebrating for a nice cool breeze and an overload of carbs. Hear, hear!